This is Northumberland Calling 9.5.25

The Let’s Make A Deal edition

Hello America (particularly Central Ohio) this is Northumberland calling.

Trade deals are coming thick and fast for Britain. First up was the UK/India deal – slightly overshadowed by the India/Pakistan barney, but important. With any trade deal, there are swings and roundabouts, but it is a decent deal. The waiving of National Insurance for 3 years for Indian companies employing Indians in the UK puts India on the same footing as the US and several other countries which due deals on Social Security and National Insurance to avoid double taxation. https://www.telegraph.co.uk/politics/2025/05/07/india-trade-deal-undercut-british-workers-jonathan-reynolds/ or https://archive.ph/DNtUJ

The bigger deal is the UK/US one. Peter Mandelson proved his credentials as the Prince of Darkness once again and got the deal over the line. I wasn’t so sure about his appointment but Mandelson schmoozes with the best of them and now is being called a Trump whisperer. Apparently his car is now stuffed full of signed Trump memorabilia. I suspect he and Trump are very much cut from the same cloth and are ruthlessly pragmatic people. https://www.thetimes.com/us/american-politics/article/peter-mandelson-how-prince-of-darkness-became-the-trump-whisperer-db9s9zzrj or https://archive.ph/19udR

Britain will sign a trade deal with the EU on the 19^th. It has been trailed for a long time. Britain will give access to its fish rich waters and there will a three young person’s work visa. In return, Britain gets access to the defence spending money .

Of course the US/Ukraine mineral deal has happened. It was not as terrible for Ukraine as they first feared. One can only hope that it does mean the US will provide security guarantees. The big plus for the US is the access to rare earth minerals as China has managed to hoover up most of this access while the Biden Administration was engaged elsewhere. https://www.telegraph.co.uk/world-news/2025/05/04/how-ukraine-can-survive-when-us-steps-back/ or https://archive.ph/wTcpG

The sentencing of the Russian spy ring continues offer up interesting snippets – the US hired them to help with the evacuation from Kabul. <eyeroll at the Biden administration> I suspect it will make more fodder for a Rest is Classified episode. https://www.thetimes.com/uk/crime/article/russian-spy-ring-evacuation-kabul-d6w5xcjtd or https://archive.ph/ey5jk

Germany has a new chancellor. His deal nearly fell apart on Tuesday but Merz managed to scrape through. The German security services have added to his headaches by suggesting that the AfD ought to be banned outright. This is because of their stance on migration, making a distinction between those who are ‘passport’ Germans and those who are ‘native’. Senior AfD officials are also alleged to have spied for Russia and China. The German security services say that this is a violation of the constitution. However, banning them would probably just increase their popularity and Merz can’t ban their voters. I suspect the sensible thing would be to censure them for making statements contrary to the German constitution and leave it there. Merz has already moved to end the open border to asylum seekers policy which Merkle started in 2015. https://www.thetimes.com/world/europe/article/view-on-immigrants-led-to-afds-extremist-branding-dsxp2h0v5 or https://archive.ph/Pjnl7

Merz has said that the US must stay out of German domestic politics and it is for Germany to decide how they run their domestic politics, just as it is not for Germany to decide how the US runs its domestic affairs. https://www.telegraph.co.uk/world-news/2025/05/08/friedrich-merz-us-must-stay-out-german-politics/ or https://archive.ph/odPzT

This op ed from Joseph Sternberg of the Wall Street Journal is well worth a read. Sternberg does understand Germany and the German mindset. He points out some of the more obvious differences between the British Reform, the French NF and the AfD. Basically the AfD refuses to purge the party of the neo-Nazi element but will occasionally lamely disavow them. But it is really the inflamtory language against migrants, calling some ‘knife migrants’ which is causing the problems. https://www.wsj.com/opinion/germany-still-doesnt-know-what-to-do-with-the-far-right-afd-d5a53c6e or https://archive.ph/gutR1

The Scottish government have finally seen sense (ie their lawyers actually realised that they didn’t have a leg to stand on re the Supreme Court ruling) and from Monday, the toilets and changing facilities at Holyrood will be single sex except where they are explicitly mixed sex (aka unisex). Before it was a free for all (use the facility which best represented your gender) (not behind a paywall) https://www.thetimes.com/article/19b0abbd-e636-47ec-9f63-769cf628c2f1?shareToken=889490b5ad8e4e553dbcd2cbf599eaa5

Freedom in the Arts released a report demonstrating the Spirals of Silence are getting deeper in the Arts, rather than diminishing. More than 80% now feel the need to keep quiet. Gender and Gaza are but two of the topics where people feel they need to guard their tongue. The Arts is very Left leaning and likes to think of itself being of the ‘right side of history’ but there is definitely an authoritarian streak in the Arts (including publishing) these days. The report:

https://www.freedominthearts.com/

The Telegraph on the report: https://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/2025/05/06/artists-terrified-speak-freely-about-gaza-gender-issues/ or https://archive.ph/CenMo

The Lions squad has been announced. In a surprise to no one only two Welsh players made the squad. Wales have been playing dismally. Mario Itoje gets the captain (Martin Johnson was the only other English captain of the Lions in recent times). Fingers crossed that this is a strong squad as they are going to face fearsome opposition in Australia this summer. The first match is on 20 June in Dublin. https://www.telegraph.co.uk/rugby-union/2025/05/08/andy-farrell-lions-squad-10-big-calls-define-australia/ or https://archive.ph/Yzv0C

Here

Paddy after the groomers. Note the ears.

Paddy went to the groomers for the first time. He was apparently well behaved. I am not sure how happy he was. He has now forgiven me. Next time we will forego the scent as I prefer him to smell like a dog.

I am enjoying working on my Regency. It is wonderful to revisit a time period which I used to love. There were personal considerations when I stopped writing in this period, but these no longer apply and it is an exercise in reclaiming this period for me.

The bees are building well

I have no plans to put a paywall on, so please subscribe. If you want to reward me, consider buying one of my books. My latest Secret Princess for the Warrior is currently out and in places like Barnes and Noble.