The state can do things when it wants to The more anti-immigration unrest grows, the more repressive the state is becoming. For decades, we were told that immigration was going to be our economic jet fuel; all the experts agreed, and well-credentialed people from serious sounding, acronym-named institutions assured us it was true. Yet after the biggest wave of immigration in this country’s history, that economic boom never came, and instead living standards have visibly deteriorated. Then we were told that net zero was to be our next great hope — simultaneously reducing our emissions as well as turbocharging the “green industrial revolution” and its plentiful well-paid jobs. But those plentiful “green jobs” never came, and instead we got rising fuel and electricity prices. Successive prime ministers have assured us that they “understand” public anger about the small boats, that they too wish to see an end to their arrival, and are working tirelessly to that end. But then when groups of British citizens take it upon themselves to expedite this process and stop the boats we all agree must no longer reach these shores, the British state mobilises resources it had told us had been cut out of existence to lockdown the entire town of Gosport. The full force of the state was used to ensure that those migrants politicians told us they absolutely want to stop entering the country can land hassle-free, going as far as to give them police motorcades fit for a visiting dignitary. Despite this unprecedented use of state power, the national broadcaster reports with indifference about arrests at the “protest”, as if this were all normal. thecritic.co.uk/the-state-ca…

Farage puts Reform on ‘emergency’ general election footing as he predicts Burnham will call snap vote in May. Unless the right put away their disagreements a much bigger disaster will overwhelm this country than we’ve ever seen before. thesun.co.uk/news/40644265/f…