Month: October 2026

The well-known lawyer Christiane Meusel has reported on a possible case of bullying within the Berlin police force by officers of Turkish and Arab origin. “Lucky for us, that dirty German isn’t here today,” they are said to have remarked, according to the lawyer.
Furthermore, according to reports, a trainee with a migrant background is also said to have threatened during police training that he would “take revenge” on the Germans.

Just how chaotic the situation in the German capital has become is illustrated by the fact that more than 23 per cent of applicants to the Berlin police force last year were deemed unsuitable and were therefore unable to join the force. Police Commissioner Barbara Slowik lamented that there was “a very significant problem with German language skills”. She said there was an issue with the standard of education that young people were leaving school with. Furthermore, around 40 per cent of applicants regularly fail the German language tests.

Unzensuriert

Cardinal Gerhard Müller has said that the heretical German “Synodal Way” has to be stopped and that there is “no place for rainbow flags in the Church.”

In an interview with the Gibbons Institute, produced by Oxford philosopher and Blackfriars Fellow Jan Bentz, the prefect emeritus of the Congregation (now Dicastery) for the Doctrine of the Faith addressed the problems with the German “Synodal Way” and stressed that Pope Leo XIV is the successor of St. Peter and not of Pope Francis.

He criticized the “Synodal Way” and the German bishops for their pro-LGBT ideology and said that the process lacks proper foundation in the Christian faith and instead focuses on contemporary cultural and political ideas.

“There were people who were present there. There was no [word] spoken about God, the revelation about Jesus Christ, the only Savior,” Cardinal Müller said, adding that the focus was on “this modern ideology of wokism and this synodal way.”

The prelate stressed that the documents produced by the German “Synodal Way” have no theological authority.

“These documents they publish, they have no sense, or there’s no value for the magisterium,” he said.

He said the Synodal Way “cannot introduce heretical ideas in the anthropology and denying the revealed mysteries of God” and therefore it “must be stopped.”

“And there is no place for rainbow flags in the Church,” Cardinal Müller stressed.

During the German Synodal Way, more than two-thirds of the German bishops approved documents that included heretical statements, for instance, that homosexual acts are not sinful or that women can become priests.

The former Vatican prefect questioned the entire modern concept of “synodality” introduced by Pope Francis that attempts to constantly redefine the identity of the Church.

“There is a Church, the Catholic Church instituted by Jesus Christ – one, holy, apostolic, and Catholic Church. And there are synods, there are councils. But the Church, as the Church, is not a permanent synod,” he stated.

“The normal life of the Church is in preaching of the Gospel, living according to the way of Jesus Christ, living as a Christian in the family, in your profession, in the Holy Sacraments, in the liturgy,” he noted. “That is a Church. And we don’t need a permanent council to speak about it.”

He stressed that Pope Leo is bound by Catholic Tradition as the successor of St. Peter and not by the magisterium of his immediate predecessor.

“The Pope is not the successor of the Pope before, but he’s a successor of St. Peter,” Cardinal Müller said. “So chronologically, successor of the Pope before him, but this has no theological importance.”

He said that the Pope’s mission is to strengthen Catholics in their faith and proclaim Jesus Christ as the only mediator between God and man to the world.

He contrasted Pope Francis “practical approach” with Pope Benedict XVI’s emphasis on theological doctrine and clarity, stressing that his own approach was based on “the theological well-developed doctrine of Pope Benedict.”

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Anti-grooming gang activist Tommy Robinson has been convicted of harassing two journalists from the Daily Mail newspaper, who accused him of stoking the riots in the wake of the mass stabbing at a children’s dance party in Southport in 2024.

The Southwark Crown Court on Wednesday found Robinson guilty of two counts of harassment causing fear of violence against Daily Mail journalists Andrew Young and Jacob Dirnhuber, for which he faces up to ten years in prison.

In addition to claiming that Robinson had incited the riots, a claim he has consistently denied, the paper also published images of the activist at a property in Cyprus, where he was staying at the time with his family. Robinson claimed the reports exposed his location despite knowing that “people want to kill me.”

In turn, Robinson hired private investigators to uncover the journalists’ private addresses in a bid to “put pressure on them”, the BBC reported.

He told the court he didn’t intend to scare the journalists, but to “bring the Daily Mail to the table”, claiming he had “panicked” after images of his location were published and that he felt it “endangered” his family.

The court also heard that Robinson published the journalists’ personal information on his X account and told Young on a phone call that he was “coming to get” him. The journalists, in turn, claimed to have hired private security and left their homes.

A Met Police spokesman said: “There are legitimate and established routes that can be pursued by people who have concerns or complaints about their treatment by the media.”

However, the Met said that Robinson chose instead to make “threatening online posts in the knowledge that they would almost certainly lead to his followers to target and intimidate those journalists”.

A spokesman for the journalists added: “This kind of intimidatory behaviour is not acceptable, and anyone behaving in such a way to intimidate, harass and threaten others either online or in the real world can expect to be investigated and brought before the courts, as was the case here.”

Responding to the ruling, Robinson wrote on X: “Just insane, the whole fucking thing is insane. We fight on.”

Some have asserted that the case was brought forward in order to silence the prominent activist, including Restore Britain party leader Rupert Lowe, who said Robinson has “not been treated fairly by our establishment for many years, and today is the latest example of that.”

“To be honest, I believe it is a disgrace. He was right on the rape gangs. The state was wrong. They want to vilify him for that,” Lowe argued.

Robinson has been jailed multiple times since becoming a public figure, most recently for contempt of court after breaching an order barring him from repeating claims about a Syrian refugee, who successfully sued him for libel.

He had also previously served a sentence at the high-security Belmarsh Prison for having filmed grooming gang child rapists outside of court. The predominantly Pakistani-heritage men were later found guilty of a “campaign of rape and other sexual abuse” against young girls.

breitbart

A 29-year-old Syrian national was arrested Tuesday after attacking an off-duty police officer with a kitchen knife in Vienna’s Ottakring district, according to police. The officer, who was finishing a jog, fought off the assailant in a struggle that left the knife blade broken.

The incident occurred around 2:45 p.m. on Oct. 27 in a driveway on Hasner Strasse.

“The officer was jogging around 2:45 p.m. and finished with stretching exercises in a driveway on Hasnerstraße. Out of the corner of his eye he observed the 29-year-old, who was approaching him rapidly. The officer also noticed the kitchen knife in his hand,” police spokeswoman Julia Schick said.

Without speaking, the attacker lunged at him.

“The unknown man attacked the officer with the knife without saying a word. The 37-year-old defended himself vigorously and screamed for help. The blade broke multiple times because of the intensity of the struggle. This and the resistance meant the injuries were less severe than they otherwise would have been,” police said.

Passersby alerted by the cries caused the attacker to break off and flee on foot toward the Ottakring U-Bahn station. Emergency services treated the officer at the scene and transported him to a hospital, according to Wien ORF news outlet.

Police recovered the damaged kitchen knife and launched a search based on a detailed description and surveillance-camera images from a nearby building. Officers from the Wattgasse and Brunnengasse stations located the suspect shortly afterward in Wernhardtstraße and took him into custody.

The man, a Syrian citizen, confessed to the attack during questioning but offered no motive. “The Syrian citizen confessed to the act but did not comment on his motive. He appeared psychologically distressed during the interrogation,” police said. However, there is no report that the man suffers from mental illness.

The two men did not know each other, according to media reports.

On the order of the Vienna public prosecutor’s office, the suspect was placed in detention.

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Elif Eralp, the lead candidate of Germany’s left-wing Die Linke party seeking to become governing mayor of Berlin, has privately admitted that she and her husband fear individuals with links to the militant group Hamas, according to internal comments accidentally shared with Der Spiegel.

In annotations on a draft interview that her office accidentally returned to the magazine this week, Eralp asked for the removal of a passage concerning the pro-Palestinian activist Ibrahim Ibrahim. The authorised version sent back by her spokesperson still contained her team’s notes, the magazine said in a cover story published on October 29.

She wrote that she could not “endanger myself and my family for Der Spiegel” and asked: “What do we do now? Can we cancel the whole interview?”

She added that she and her husband had “fear of these people”.

Eralp explained her reluctance to name specific individuals by citing past advice from Berlin’s State Criminal Police Office (LKA).

“At the time it was about OK [organised crime]. Now it’s about people with contacts to Hamas,” she wrote.

Eralp wrote that she could deal with general questions on anti-Semitism and people with ties to Hamas, but could not handle the naming of specific individuals such as Ibrahim.

She said she should never have agreed to the interview.

Ibrahim, who is in his seventies, attended a Die Linke election night event in the Neukölln district on September 20, the night of the Berlin state election.

He has been photographed with party figures including Bundestag member Ferat Koçak and local representative Vanessa Emde.

Berlin’s domestic intelligence service has classified the United Palestinian National Committee (VPNK), in which Ibrahim plays a leading role, as extremist. It is described as bringing together supporters of Hamas and the Popular Front for the Liberation of Palestine (PFLP).

Ibrahim has reportedly referred to the late Hamas leader Yahya Sinwar as a “martyr hero”.

Both Hamas and the PFLP are designated terrorist organisations by the European Union.

Die Linke has previously stated that neither Ibrahim nor the clan figure Issa Remmo, who also appeared at a related event, had been invited, and that the Neukölln gathering was open to the public.

Party members, including Koçak, have publicly distanced themselves from statements glorifying violence or terrorism.

Eralp herself has said the party has no relations with organised crime and that Israel’s right to exist is party policy.

Eralp’s spokesperson told Der Spiegel that the candidate has faced daily insults, threats and hostility for months.

Security authorities, the spokesperson said, advise against linking political problems to named individuals in public statements when media reports have associated those people with organised crime or terrorist organisations.

The office asked the magazine to take Eralp’s personal security interests into account.

Der Spiegel decided to publish the internal remarks, which were not intended for external release, citing the public interest.

The magazine noted that a potential governing mayor would shape Berlin’s security policy and questioned whether someone who declines to name individuals out of fear could take responsibility for the capital’s safety.

It warned about the peculiar situation Berlin is in right now.

“For a long time, it has been an open secret in the capital that security authorities are struggling to keep the situation under control. That there are neighborhoods, streets, and milieus where the state must fight for control—where their own rules apply and the German rule of law carries little weight,” the magazine wrote.

“It seems many in Berlin have come to terms with the fact that both organized crime and organized hatred of Israel have become entrenched here.”

“Can a woman who is too afraid to confirm the name of a terror sympathiser in an interview be responsible for the security of all Berliners?” it asked.

The magazine also spoke with Hendrik Hansen, professor of political extremism at the Federal University of Applied Administrative Sciences, who said that in the pro-Palestinian faction “everything problematic about the Left Party converges: Anti-Semitism, hostility toward the police, and an extremist variant of postcolonialism”.

“The Left Party is, in parts, a dangerous party. Extremists operate in several of its subgroups and factions, and it collaborates with extremists.”

Neukölln district mayor Martin Hikel, of the Social Democratic Party (SPD), criticised Eralp’s stance in comments to Bild: “If someone allows themselves to be constrained in this way, it shows how strongly these terror-glorifying, anti-Semitic forces are anchored in Die Linke and want to come to power with the help of Die Linke.” He added: “Our open-minded city cannot want this.”

Stefan Evers, the Christian Democratic Union (CDU) leader in Berlin, told the same newspaper the revelations reinforced “the great concern” about a State government led by Die Linke and asked how Eralp could guarantee the security of millions of people as governing mayor.

Berlin CDU security spokesman Burkard Dregger told Bild: “If you get involved with Hamas criminals and their henchmen in Berlin, you should not be surprised if they claim their price for the campaign support granted.”

Die Linke secured 25.7 per cent of the vote in the September 20 Berlin state election, becoming the largest party in the city’s House of Representatives for the first time and putting Eralp in a position to seek a coalition with the Social Democrats and Greens. The CDU fell to 18.8 per cent, the Alternative for Germany (AfD) rose to 16.3 per cent, the Greens took 14.3 per cent and the SPD 12.1 per cent, its worst result in a Berlin election, according to the Federal Agency for Civic Education.

The SPD executive and a Greens party conference both voted on October 19 to open formal coalition talks with Die Linke. A Die Linke state party conference is due to decide on October 31 whether to do the same.

Coalition talks have already been complicated by concerns over anti-Semitism, contacts with controversial figures and events involving the Neukölln branch.

Eralp, a 45-year-old lawyer of Turkish descent who was born in Munich to parents who fled Turkey after the 1980 military coup, and a member of the Berlin parliament since 2021, would be the city’s first governing mayor from Die Linke and the first of Turkish origin if elected by the assembly.

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French Socialists are pushing to legalize an estimated 300,000 illegal migrant workers, embracing the same mass regularization agenda as Spain’s failed Socialist prime minister Pedro Sánchez despite an explicit warning from the EU that such policies encourage further illegal immigration.

The proposal is endorsed by the party’s presidential candidate, Raphaël Glucksmann, who declared during an October primary debate: ‘We will do it, and it will be popular.’ He also urged his fellow Socialists to ‘stop being afraid of the diktats of the National Rally on this issue,’ referring to Marine Le Pen’s party and its hard-line anti-immigration position.

🇫🇷French Presidential candidate for the left Raphaël Glucksmann is endorsing a plan to pardon and legitimise up to 400,000 illegal migrants, in a similar policy push to that in 🇪🇸Spain earlier this year.

Would such a decision give more winning chances in the next year’s… pic.twitter.com/3iW1C4MxZL

— Dovydas Vitkauskas (@Dovydas44444) October 28, 2026

Introduced on 6 October by Socialist MP Paul Christophle, the bill would grant a residence and work permit as a legal entitlement to foreigners able to prove at least six months of employment within the preceding two years. The periods need not be consecutive, and employment could be demonstrated by any means, creating a breeding ground for potential fraud. Crucially, applicants would not face the current shortage-occupation route’s three-year residence requirement or its 12-month employment threshold.

The Socialists present the measure as protection against exploitation. However, there is a much more troubling message behind such policies: work illegally for six months, and France will reward you with legal residence.

The bill praises Sánchez’s April mass regularization policy as a model to follow. The scheme was initially expected to cover around 500,000 illegal migrants but attracted 1,174,978 applications by the end of June. Spain’s programme primarily relied on prior residence rather than France’s proposed employment test; both, however, would offer legal status on a mass scale.

Sánchez’s move had already received substantial backlash from the European Union. On 28 October, the European Commission confirmed that it would examine a complaint from the Catalan independence party Junts alleging irregularities in Madrid’s implementation of the scheme. While no formal infringement procedure has yet been launched, the possibility of one is clearly there.

Both the Spanish and French initiatives run directly counter to a longstanding European commitment dating back to 2008, when EU governments agreed to favour individual rather than generalized regularizations. The European Parliament recently reinforced that position on 17 September, voting 339–225 to condemn Sánchez’s policy as a ‘pull factor’ and warning that ‘illegal entry must never become a shortcut to legal residence’.

The underlying cause of the resolution was the mass invasion of Ceuta, Spain’s North African enclave, where around 80,000 illegal migrants crossed from Morocco at the end of July. The EP explicitly described the incident as an ‘invasion’ and warned that mass-regularization signals could embolden migrants and smuggling networks.

‘Both the Spanish and French initiatives run directly counter to a longstanding European commitment’

In France, nevertheless, the proposal faces substantial parliamentary obstacles. Even if the Socialists secured the backing of Mélenchon’s far-left France Unbowed, the Greens and the Communist-aligned alliance, the combined left would command just 193 seats in the 577-seat National Assembly, leaving it dependent on support or abstentions from centrist parties. Resistance from the National Rally and the parliamentary right, alongside a conservative-dominated Senate, makes the bill’s passage highly unlikely. RN MP Laurent Jacobelli rejected the proposal outright, declaring ‘zero regularizations’ and warning that immigration had reached an ‘intolerable’ level.

The bill is scheduled for 19 November, although it may never reach a vote. Meanwhile, Marine Le Pen, who has made opposition to mass immigration a central pillar of her political agenda, leads virtually every major poll ahead of France’s 2027 presidential election. Recent surveys consistently place the National Rally leader between 32 and 37 per cent, well ahead of her competitors. An October OpinionWay poll put Le Pen on 36 per cent against Glucksmann’s 13 per cent, highlighting the stark contrast between their competing visions for France’s immigration policy.

hungarianconservative

At an event hosted by the Budapest-Fasor Evangelical congregation, a book was presented that draws a sexual parallel to the suffering of Jesus. The author of the publication—which is aimed at young people—is Johanna Wikberg, an openly lesbian, ordained pastor of the Church of Sweden.

According to a report by Hír TV, the comic book by Swedish pastor Johanna Wikberg, which addresses the topic of Christian sexuality and is intended for teenagers, was unveiled at a joint event organized by the Budapest-Fasor Evangelical congregation, the Mosaik community, and the Cser publishing house. The author of the comic book—which targets adolescents and promotes homosexuality—is an openly lesbian, ordained pastor of the Church of Sweden.

In the comic, Wikberg compares anal sex between men to the suffering of Jesus.

Furthermore, in this publication designed for young people, a queer character and their friend pose questions about sexuality to various biblical and historical figures. The news outlet noted that while the public book launch was not a school lesson, the publication is nonetheless directed at young people.

As reported by Hungary Today, parliament dominated by the TISZA party recently passed an amendment to the Child Protection Act. The bill was supported by members of the governing parties, while the opposition voted against it. In this context, Péter Magyar stated on Facebook that it was a disgrace for politicians from Fidesz, the KDNP, and the “Our Homeland” (Mi Hazánk) movement to oppose the new child protection legislation.

According to the opposition, however, the TISZA party—in line with expectations from Brussels—has put forward a law that opens school doors to gender ideology and represents a step backward in the fight against pedophiles. Furthermore, the legislation embeds ideological concessions within otherwise commendable child protection measures—concessions that directly threaten the psychological and moral development of children.

Moreover, the TISZA party has removed a provision that prohibited self-identification inconsistent with one’s sex at birth, gender transition, and the promotion or depiction of homosexuality.

Hardly had the parliament passed the amendment to the Child Protection Act when the “gender lobby” began appearing in schools—a development we have also reported on.

As for the Evangelical Lutheran Church in Europe, this denomination is arguably the staunchest advocate of “woke” ideology. It also acts as one of the main financial sponsors of illegal migration. In regions where a church tax is levied—such as in Germany—members’ funds are diverted to finance questionable initiatives that have little to nothing to do with the biblical view of humanity or Christian values. In response, many Evangelical Christians—primarily in Scandinavian and German-speaking countries—are “voting with their feet” (by leaving the church).

Since the electoral victory of the TISZA party, a state-aligned Lutheran (Evangelical) church has begun to emerge in Hungary—one that, in a display of preemptive obedience, adopts the ideological dictates of the EU establishment and provides them with a theological foundation. This mirrors developments within the Evangelical Church in Germany (EKD), where church services now often resemble political rallies for the Green or Left parties. Even following the retirement of Tamás Fabiny, the Evangelical Church of Hungary’s drift toward a Western-style, left-liberal model of the church has shown no signs of slowing.

The fact that the magazine *Evangélikus Élet* (“Evangelical Life”) has featured Zoltán Tarr—the chief ideologue of TISZA and a trained Reformed theologian—on its cover twice speaks volumes about an insatiable desire to curry favor with those now in power. Tarr’s detachment from pastoral care is matched by the growing alienation between the church leadership and its own congregants; notably, this left-leaning founding father of TISZA has never served in a local parish.

In light of this disastrous trajectory—which appears to repeat every mistake made by Western sister churches—the only remaining hope lies in the emergence of a “confessing church”, a term coined by Lutheran pastors resisting Nazism during World War II. Such a movement would draw upon the legacy of Lajos Ordass (born Wolf, 1901–1978), a Lutheran pastor and later bishop who stood firm against both the Arrow Cross fascists and the Communists. Signs of this are already appearing:

Church circles committed to remaining faithful to the Gospel have taken a sharp stance against the proponents of that scandalous document from Sweden, deploying theological arguments to counter the instrumentalization of the Good News.

hungarytoday

“The far-left extremist scene is internationally connected and coordinated.”

The Marxist-Muslim riots in France have spread to Italy and Spain. Now they’re reportedly trying to bring them to Germany.

As politicians in Germany look ahead to the coming weekend, many fear that cities across the country could witness the kind of violent unrest that recently shook France. An initiative known as “Gen Z regelt” (“Gen Z sorts it”) has launched a social media campaign calling for demonstrations in 23 cities nationwide.

“Gen Z” broadly refers to the generation born between 1995 and 2010. Many feel that their parents’ generation has done too little to combat climate change and has allowed the gap between rich and poor to widen ever further. At the same time, they are concerned about their educational prospects and future opportunities.

No better way to deal with educational prospects and global warming than some rioting and arson.

Alexander Throm, the CDU parliamentary group’s domestic spokesperson, told the daily Handelsblatt newspaper: “Scenes like those in France must be prevented at all costs.”

In Throm’s view, far-left groups and criminals from immigrant communities could “hijack” the demonstrations. “An ominous alliance is emerging, particularly in Berlin,” he warned.

Marc Henrichmann, also of the CDU, chair of the Bundestag’s parliamentary oversight panel for the intelligence services, also expressed concern: “The far-left extremist scene is internationally connected and coordinated.” He said that violent far-left activists now even cross national borders to engage in looting and acts of violence elsewhere.

Which is something we don’t talk about nearly enough. There were radicals traveling around the country to set off BLM riots. And they’re also traveling across Europe.

But the next step would be breaking up that ‘scene’ and arresting key players and funders in it. And that’s what no one is doing.

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Iranian rebels have accused Andy Burnham of “appeasing” the Islamic Republic’s tyrannical rulers.

The country is bracing itself for more strikes from United States and Israeli forces following months of an uncertain ceasefire. Beleaguered leaders in Tehran believe they may face fresh attacks once the US mid-terms and Israeli elections are fully concluded.

Opposition forces are poised to take advantage of any instability and rise up across battle-scarred Iran as the economic and social situation quickly deteriorates. And when they attempt to wrestle control from the hands of their evil leaders, they want to know Britain will be on their side.

A rebel source in southern Iran told GB News the Prime Minister is key to their future. But he has been told he must first fully face down Iran – despite fears of lethal reprisals on British soil.

The source said: “From Europe, and especially the British Prime Minister, I expect them to stop appeasing the Islamic Republic and instead show real, practical support for the people of Iran.

“I hope the British prime minister will act decisively toward this regime and not appease a government that lacks the support and consent of the people. I believe this regime will not last, and the people of Iran will remember which countries and leaders stood with them in these hard days and which turned a blind eye to their suffering.

“I expect Britain to stand with the people of Iran and their demands for freedom, security, and self-determination.”

Anxiety about imminent attack overshadows everyday life in Iran, which first faced bombardment in late February at the start of Operation Epic Fury.

In recent days reports in the Middle East have claimed the US has told several Gulf Arab states they must prepare for a short but intense military campaign in the region following next week’s midterm elections.

Diplomatic and military circles are buzzing with indications that the US and Israel are ready to attack again.

As they await what happens next, regime opponents in Iran say conditions are getting worse, with the people of the country sinking into despair.

The source told the People’s Channel: “Life these days passes with worry, pressure, and uncertainty. I’m afraid that in the next few days a severe war may break out, and that, given the blockade, people will face severe shortages of food, medicine, and hygiene supplies. I expect the international community to think of the people of Iran and not allow an even bigger humanitarian crisis to form. People have suffered enough and have the right to live in safety and peace.”

I hope the future moves toward an end to the war, improved living conditions, and fundamental change, a future in which people can play a real role in determining their country’s destiny.

If the regime is finally removed, dissidents leading the opposition say they want the people of Iran to have their voice at last.

The source, whose identity we are protecting for their safety, said: “I don’t want all this suffering and damage to end up with no result for the people. I hope the people of Iran can play a real role in determining their country’s destiny, be involved in the country’s major decisions, and have the right to decide about their own future and that of coming generations. People should not be mere spectators to decisions that directly affect their lives, livelihoods, freedom, and future. After everything that has happened, I don’t want the same conditions and the same problems to repeat.”

Government sources insist they are getting tough on Iran.

Earlier this month, Foreign Secretary Ed Miliband summoned their ambassador, telling him “Britain will not tolerate threats on our soil” following last month’s incident at RAF Fairford, which is alleged to be linked to Iran.

Mr Miliband warned Iran against undermining the UK’s security “through its criminal networks, proxy groups and state-backed malign activity”, branding it “unacceptable”.

Iran’s ambassador to the UK, Seyed Ali Mousavi, denied Tehran was involved.

Two British nationals appeared at Westminster Magistrates’ Court in connection with the alleged Fairford plot on Tuesday.

Mohmed Abdulkarim, 24, from Westminster, London, is charged with assisting a foreign intelligence service.

Nouman Essghir, also 24 and from Westminster, has been charged with entering a prohibited place for a purpose prejudicial to the UK on August 22, just weeks before being arrested near the airbase in Gloucestershire alongside four other men.

gbnews

Reform UK Leader Nigel Farage tore into John Healey’s “timid” Budget as he warned Britain’s perilous finances are “on a knife-edge”.

The Chancellor blamed a “global economic storm” as growth forecasts were slashed with taxes and borrowing hitting all-time highs.

Healey – who failed to cut a single penny from Britain’s bloated £200 billion welfare spending – pledged to lift tariffs on groceries in a move which will save households just six pence per day. 

He told MPs: “Those are the storms we face. We can’t wish them away.”

Healey hiked taxes on banks and gambling firms, blaming the war in the Middle East for higher inflation and debt repayment costs.

The Chancellor announced an ‘energy bills support package’ – at a cost of £2.6 billion – which will see households in council tax bands A to D receiving £100 from the Government this winter.

But Farage warned families across the country would be worse off every year under Labour.

The Reform leader said: “We are in a deep financial hole. Britain is broke.

“Only a radical plan can begin to do anything about it. That’s why we’ve set out spending cuts of £40bn in the first financial year of a Reform government, rising to £80bn over five years.

“Not everyone’s going to like it. It’s going to be tough. There’ll be protests. There’ll be upset. But Government spending has to be cut.

“By taking strong action, we can cut energy bills. Not just by £100 in the short-term, for certain council tax bands. But by £250, on average, permanently, in the first 100 days of being in power.”

He added: “We will scrap income tax on overtime for anyone in full-time work earning less than £75,000-a-year.

“And by cutting spending, we can raise tax thresholds to £15,000, with the aim of raising them even higher – to £20,000 if we can – to make the gap between welfare and work much more significant.

“The British economy is broken. Only Reform have the guts to do the one thing that is needed and cut welfare spending.”

In a shock move, Healey also gave HM Revenue and Customs (HMRC) sweeping powers “to collect overdue tax from those who can clearly afford to pay but ignore repeated contact”, meaning the taxman will be able to raid people’s bank accounts directly.

Mr Farage responded: “HMRC can now seize money from your bank account without even having a meeting. As someone who’s been de-banked, this sets a dark precedent. Reform will fight this at every turn.”

Other measures announced by the Chancellor included extending the freeze on fuel duty until July next year, hiking machine games duty from 20% to 25% for higher-stakes gambling machines and raising the national minimum wage and national living wage by 3.9%.

He also increased income tax on beleaguered British landlords yet again, by another 2%, halved Business Asset Disposal Relief – in a huge blow to entrepreneurs  – and pledged an extra £10 billion support to Ukraine.

It came as the Office for Budget Responsibility slashed its growth forecast from 1.6% to just 1.0% next year. The forecast is then unchanged at 1.6% in 2028 before rising to 1.8% in 2029, then 1.7% in 2030 against forecasts of 1.5% in each of those years, then 1.6% in 2031.

Reform’s Shadow Chancellor Robert Jenrick said: “This was a ‘do nothing’ Budget. It was a nothing burger. It was a Budget that could, and should, have responded to a crisis in our country.

“Britain is broke. And British people feel broke. And this was the best that the Chancellor could deliver?

“Living standards will be down. Growth will be down. Borrowing will be up. And prices are set to rise even higher in the months and the years to come.

“Next year is looking like a truly terrible year for this country. Household spending will be down, business investment will be negative, unemployment will be up and growth will be stagnant – the economy going nowhere.

“This isn’t even the managed decline we’ve seen in recent years. The country is going backwards.”

He added: “Real wages will not rise by a single penny in 2027 or 2028. Borrowing will be higher than planned, every single year Debt will be no lower by 2032 than it is today.

“The Government will spend £109 billion this year on debt interest alone and that is set to rise to £160 billion by 2031.

“Taxes will rise by £36 billion-a-year – the most in history.

“Where are the cuts coming from!? Supposedly, in 2029 or 2029, we’ll see some cuts to welfare and public services. Don’t make me laugh.

“This Prime Minister, this Chancellor, have not been able to offer a single saving in their 100 days in office.”

The OBR said the UK’s “economic and fiscal position remains very challenging” after almost two decades of shocks and stagnation, pushing up the national debt.

In a statement accompanying the Budget, it said: “Since 2008, repeated adverse shocks have contributed to persistently weak GDP growth and elevated levels of Government borrowing.

“This has resulted in a sharp increase in Government debt as a share of GDP, to a level that is high by both recent historical and international standards.”

The Government is expected to borrow more every year than had been forecast in March, with the cost of that borrowing also set to increase.

Borrowing is around £18 billion higher this year, £16 billion in 2027-28, and an average of £11 billion a year over the following years, the OBR said.

The cost of debt interest is expected to be £15 billion higher this year and then £12 billion a year more on average in the years to come.

The jump in borrowing costs is linked to Mr Healey lowering his fiscal headroom against the Government’s self-imposed spending rules to £15 billion in 2029-30, from a previous prediction of £26 billion.

The OBR said high inflation will contribute to a painful squeeze on living standards and that it was expecting “no real earnings growth in 2027”, with household disposable income set to fall.

Economist Paul Johnson, former Director of the Institute of Fiscal Studies, said: “The real story of this Budget is the can being kicked down the road. 

“This Labour Government is apparently planning spending cuts on most areas of public service spending of 2.6% per year between 2028-29 and 2031-32. Pull the other one. It’s got bells on.” 

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