Dr Tim Aker (@Tim_Aker) header
Dr Tim Aker (@Tim_Aker) profile picture

Strategic Advisory and Communications Consultancy. Academic Director @ThatcherCentre. Former MEP, Cllr etc.

Kent
Joined August 2012
Photo by Dr Tim Aker (@Tim_Aker)Photo by Dr Tim Aker (@Tim_Aker)Photo by Dr Tim Aker (@Tim_Aker)Photo by Dr Tim Aker (@Tim_Aker)Photo by Dr Tim Aker (@Tim_Aker)Photo by Dr Tim Aker (@Tim_Aker)Photo by Dr Tim Aker (@Tim_Aker)Photo by Dr Tim Aker (@Tim_Aker)Photo by Dr Tim Aker (@Tim_Aker)
Dr Tim Aker retweeted
Barnier lays out the true nature of the EU today. It will no longer tolerate dissent, criticism, or people voting against it. Brussels is now trying to solidify their grip on information and democracy, as that is where resistance can thrive. Only the blind or misinformed would vote to join what the EU is turning into today.
No cherry-picking. No special treatment. The door is open. This time, it’s meant for coming in, not walking out. There is so much to do together to face global challenges🇪🇺🇬🇧 #Brexit
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Dr Tim Aker retweeted
I thought this was a parody account, but apparently this is a real Labour MP. God help us.
Shaping up to be a pretty good week.
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Dr Tim Aker retweeted
Mrs Thatcher is indeed the only person with a proven track record of bringing Britain back from the brink. A research Chemist and a qualified Barrister to boot? And a grammar school girl from a modest social background? Sign me up.
Replying to @policy_uk
She's marmite but there is no argument it's Thatcher. She's the only one who took us from the brink before. She's the only one available of making the difficult decisions. She's the only one who'd fight for her country.
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Dr Tim Aker retweeted
Nigel Farage set out this afternoon to show that Reform is still up for the fight – and has learnt lessons from Donald Trump's disastrous loss of Republican support. At a press conference in London Bridge, the Reform leader introduced the latest recruit to his top table: Angus MacIntyre, a former senior RAF Regiment officer with a 40-year military career. MacIntyre appears to be a serious addition to the party, and a sign that, despite plateauing in the polls, Reform has not given up on winning power. ✍️ Noa Hoffman Article | spectator.com/article/reform… | @hoffman_noa
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Dr Tim Aker retweeted
Funny that Angela Rayner didn’t get 14 years in prison for dodging her tax obligations….
Exc: Evasion of Angela Rayner’s new “tourist tax” will carry a maximum penalty of 14 years in prison. The measures, set out in a bill published on Wednesday, target accommodation providers in England who evade the proposed overnight visitor levy. The new legislation is also designed to prevent property owners offering “mates’ rates” to friends that would reduce the amount of tax paid on temporary stays.
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Dr Tim Aker retweeted
3 September: Government suspends army exercises to save £30m. 3 November: Government gives £40m to Caribbean countries for ‘green projects’.
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Dr Tim Aker retweeted
So they get to spend 30 years sponging off the state, to which they contribute nothing, and then they get permission to stay and do the same for longer? This really is idiotic governance of the highest order.
🚨 NEW: Shabana Mahmood has announced small boat migrants will have to wait 20 years to settle in the UK or 30 years if they don't work or study
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This is what state failure looks like. More on debt interest than education.
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The whole Bowen Pies saga is recalling just how much huge swathes of Britain hate wealth and do not understand profit. The great irony being that it funds everything we have. Which is more than ever (collectively). Including “MPs”. It is this very pillaging of success and capitalism which is why progress and living standards are topping out now in Europe. A string of pie shops is not a “tycoon”, in the US it would be middle class ambition.
A multi millionaire property tycoon moaning at paying staff an increased minimum wage. Greed.
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The Chancellor is pulling a fast one on the self-employed. Labour spent the Budget pretending to be on their side. Dig into the facts, and the truth becomes clear. Labour plans to make the self-employed pay tax every month, or every quarter. Instead of paying on what they earn, however, it’ll be based on what the Government expects them to earn. So if they lose work, or a client doesn’t pay, they could end up with the taxman chasing them for money they never had. It’ll be like those estimated bills by incompetent utility companies such as Thames Water, which you have to spend hours on the phone trying to resolve when they get it wrong. Except it’s even worse as Labour is expending their power to grab the money directly from your account, without so much as a court order. What could possibly go wrong? It feels like the tax system is being set up purely for the convenience of the taxman. It would be nice if they just concentrated on answering the phone on time…
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Dr Tim Aker retweeted
Some things that British voters have forgotten. 🔴Making a profit is no vice. 🔴Inequality is not evil. 🔴The fact that tax cuts chiefly benefit people who pay taxes is not an argument against them. 🔴Governments spend money less well than you do. 🔴There’s no such thing as a free lunch.
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Dr Tim Aker retweeted
Ok unless something bizarre happened just after the door this appears to be a straight up lie from the Lib Dems.
🚨NEW: Footage from the Commons shows Nigel Farage and MP Caroline Voaden making their way down from their benches together to secure a place in the procession of MPs to the King's speech The Lib Dems allege Farage "shoved her out the way" and "sent her flying"
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Dr Tim Aker retweeted
Taking home less than half your wage should never, ever be justified. You should never have to work for the state more than you work for yourself.
I read a piece in the FT this week about the price of being middle class in Britain now and it said a couple earning £436,000 combined take home £216,000. That’s a crazy amount of tax, and it doesn't include VAT on purchases, council tax, stamp duty or other taxes (I think does include pension contributions). I can’t stop thinking about it.
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To great fanfare the Chancellor announces a new Founders Relief and business peoples' ears prick up. I have just read the qualifying criteria for this published in the consultation document released. So here are the headlines and you tell me how many businesses do you think will qualify? : Turnover £10m+ 3 consecutive years of turnover growth of +25% per year 3 consecutive years of headcount growth +25% per year £1.5m of recent R&D spend, qualified by spend that has already been audited for R&D relief - which is now a very tight criteria. "Stop the tech bro's leaving" Relief - is a better name.
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Mbappé called Mao a dictator and now he's been forced to apologise. What a world we live in.
Readers added context they thought people might want to know
Mao Zedong is under any single social metric a dictator. Not a single popular election, single government party and lifetime leadership. Not even taking into account the millions of deaths under his reign. en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Mao_Zedong
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Dr Tim Aker retweeted
Yesterday, Lula ostensibly became the first person since Brazil's return to democracy to win a fourth term in office. This is just three weeks after the country elected its most right wing legislature ever. It was the first time a candidate has lost the first round and gone on to win the presidency, and the first time that turnout in the second round has exceeded turnout in the first. Also unprecedented was the Supreme Court's last minute extension of voting hours. That decision was made by key Lula ally Alexandre de Moraes, who has now seized the passport of Lula's opponent after imprisoning his predecessor. British media's response to all of this? Bovine silence. Brazil is a famously corrupt country. Honesty should not be the expectation. It may be that Lula's victory was legitimate: it is certainly not obvious that it was. How will we know if nobody asks the questions? Remember this disinterest the next time that you hear a British journalist tell you about the importance of their role in 'protecting democracy' and 'speaking truth to power'. They have zero interest in either objective, and we should take zero notice of their words.
One day after Lula was declared the winner of Brazil's elections, his opponent -- Sen. Flavio Bolsonaro -- just had had his passport seized by the Federal Police. Theose police were sent by notorious tyrant Judge Alexandre de Moraes. What a lovely democratic image.
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Dr Tim Aker retweeted
Some proper policies here. Suspect many on the Tory benches would quietly agree with most of this:
Britain is broke. And to fix it, we need to start growing again. That’s why Reform’s Economic Rescue Plan includes these 64 pro-growth measures I’d take if I were Chancellor: 𝗨𝗻𝗹𝗼𝗰𝗸𝗶𝗻𝗴 𝘁𝗵𝗲 𝗡𝗼𝗿𝘁𝗵 𝗦𝗲𝗮 1. Approve Rosebank 2. Restart oil and gas licensing 3. Legalise onshore exploration 4. Abolish the Energy Profits Levy 5. Restore maximum economic extraction as the North Sea regulator's objective 𝗥𝗲𝗶𝗻𝗱𝘂𝘀𝘁𝗿𝗶𝗮𝗹𝗶𝘀𝗶𝗻𝗴 𝗕𝗿𝗶𝘁𝗮𝗶𝗻 6. Abolish the Emissions Trading Scheme 7. Halt the Carbon Border Adjustment Mechanism 8. Repudiate AR7 contracts for difference and scrap AR8 9. Implement the Fingleton Review on nuclear in full 10. Automatically approve French and South Korean nuclear designs 𝗚𝗲𝘁𝘁𝗶𝗻𝗴 𝗛𝗼𝗺𝗲𝘀 𝗕𝘂𝗶𝗹𝘁 𝗶𝗻 𝗢𝘂𝗿 𝗖𝗶𝘁𝗶𝗲𝘀 11. Cut affordable housing requirements on brownfield sites 12. Permitted Development Right for brownfield housing 13. Repeal Biodiversity Net Gain 14. Exit the Aarhus Convention 15. Repeal and reform the Habitats Regulations, including Nutrient Neutrality 16. End the boiler ban 17. Legalise air conditioning to meet overheating rules 18. Remove mandatory EPC improvements 19. Revoke the Future Homes Standard 20. Repeal the Renters' Rights Act 𝗕𝘂𝗶𝗹𝗱𝗶𝗻𝗴 𝗖𝗿𝗶𝘁𝗶𝗰𝗮𝗹 𝗡𝗮𝘁𝗶𝗼𝗻𝗮𝗹 𝗜𝗻𝗳𝗿𝗮𝘀𝘁𝗿𝘂𝗰𝘁𝘂𝗿𝗲 21. Legislate approval for new runways at Heathrow and Gatwick 22. Auction airport landing slots 23. End 'target-consistent' carbon pricing in project evaluation 24. Ban carbon emissions considerations in planning applications 25. Fast-track all water reservoirs as nationally significant projects 26. Make Development Consent Orders a true one-stop shop 27. Restrict judicial review of ministerial planning decisions 28. Scrap Net Zero construction rules 29. Scrap the social value test in procurement 30. Lift launch limits at SaxaVord Spaceport 31. Open completed sections of East-West Rail 𝗝𝗼𝗶𝗻𝗶𝗻𝗴 𝘁𝗵𝗲 𝗔𝗜 𝗥𝗲𝘃𝗼𝗹𝘂𝘁𝗶𝗼𝗻 32. Review regulatory barriers to AI adoption 33. Permit on-site gas generation for data centres and industry 𝗥𝗲𝗱𝘂𝗰𝗶𝗻𝗴 𝘁𝗵𝗲 𝗖𝗼𝘀𝘁 𝗼𝗳 𝗛𝗶𝗿𝗶𝗻𝗴 𝗕𝗿𝗶𝘁𝗶𝘀𝗵 𝗪𝗼𝗿𝗸𝗲𝗿𝘀 34. Cut Employer NI back to 13.8% 35. Introduce a migrant worker levy 36. Repeal the Employment Rights Act 37. Clarify that workplace rights don't require mandatory training courses 38. Let experienced tradesmen work on government contracts without CSCS qualifications 𝗨𝗻𝗹𝗲𝗮𝘀𝗵𝗶𝗻𝗴 𝘁𝗵𝗲 𝗖𝗶𝘁𝘆 𝘁𝗼 𝗜𝗻𝘃𝗲𝘀𝘁 𝗶𝗻 𝘁𝗵𝗲 𝗥𝗲𝗮𝗹 𝗘𝗰𝗼𝗻𝗼𝗺𝘆 39. Review bank capital requirements to boost lending 40. Rule out Net Zero in financial regulators' remits 41. Repeal climate-related financial disclosure rules 𝗚𝗲𝘁𝘁𝗶𝗻𝗴 𝗠𝗼𝘁𝗼𝗿𝗶𝘀𝘁𝘀 𝗠𝗼𝘃𝗶𝗻𝗴 42. Scrap airport 'surface access strategies' 43. Abolish the electric vehicle mandates 44. Apply domestic GB hours to all UK HGV trips 45. Ban Low-Traffic Neighbourhoods 46. Back the M4 Relief Road 47. Move a new car's first MOT to four years 48. Abolish the Renewable Transport Fuel Obligation 𝗨𝘀𝗶𝗻𝗴 𝗕𝗿𝗲𝘅𝗶𝘁 𝗙𝗿𝗲𝗲𝗱𝗼𝗺𝘀 49. Replace GDPR with a New Zealand-style Privacy Act 50. Fully re-legalise Imperial units 51. Review all unchanged EU law 52. Automatically repeal remaining EU law in 5 years unless retained 𝗚𝗲𝗻𝗲𝗿𝗮𝗹 𝗗𝗲𝗿𝗲𝗴𝘂𝗹𝗮𝘁𝗼𝗿𝘆 𝗠𝗲𝗮𝘀𝘂𝗿𝗲𝘀 53. Make quarterly Making Tax Digital reporting voluntary 54. Reduce legal obligations on SME Non-Executive Directors 55. Double permission-free event days from 28 to 56 56. Make pavement dining licences automatic and permanent 57. Let shops open until 10pm, except Sundays 58. Repeal board diversity and inclusion rules 59. Remove the Sustainable Aviation Fuel mandate 60. Abolish the packaging tax 61. Scrap BBC and Channel 4 priority on streaming platforms 62. Remove the Public Sector Equality Duty 63. Five-year sunset on all QUANGOs 64. Five-year sunset clause on all new regulations And there are more to come! Britain’s full potential is waiting to be unleashed 🚀
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Dr Tim Aker retweeted
Reactionary colonels in the Home Counties who wrote to the newspapers half a century ago warning that the Labour Party were a bunch of lunatic Communists who would ruin the country are some of the most vindicated people in history.
🚨NEW: HMRC's letter to wealthy Britons demanding detailed information about their financial arrangements has been revealed
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This argument is like telling a starving man he can’t have bread, because he needs a balanced diet.
Replying to @RogerHelmerMEP
But that argument doesn't hold: #Jackdaw = a gas field #Rosebank = 90% oil •Rosebank's oil would sell on intl markets, so no impact on energy bills •Rosebank's oil doesn't contain all the blends we need, so we'd still import oil that did •Rosebank's emissions = 7x Jackdaw's
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