quinta-feira, 13 de agosto de 2026

Morocco takes a tougher stance and calls on Spain to act

Migrants APPREHENDED ahead of SECOND planned Spain border RUSH as hundreds of guards mobilised

 

Andy Burnham’s proposed artificial intelligence investments have scaled to roughly 50 gigawatts (GW)—surpassing the nation's entire recent peak electricity demand of 45 GW—highlighting an immense looming power draw.


Specific, finalized aggregate national energy cost figures for Andy Burnham’s proposed artificial intelligence investments have not been officially published. However, proposed data center queues in the UK have scaled to roughly 50 gigawatts (GW)—surpassing the nation's entire recent peak electricity demand of 45 GW—highlighting an immense looming power draw.

 

The Energy and Infrastructure Challenge

  • Grid Demand: Proposed hyperscale data centres seeking grid access demand massive capacity, putting intense strain on existing electricity networks.
  • High Unit Costs: UK electricity prices historically sit significantly higher than major competitor averages, presenting a core conflict for energy-intensive AI infrastructure.
  • Policy Tensions: Ministers have publicly cautioned that data centers must not drive up consumer bills, leading regulatory bodies like Ofgem to crack down on unviable grid applications.

Strategic Approach

  • Sovereign Focus: The administration aims to favor domestic, British-owned AI infrastructure and localized accountability rather than unfettered foreign tech expansion.
  • Mitigation Efforts: Emerging frameworks look toward direct clean energy procurement and advanced liquid cooling technologies to help curb runaway facility consumption footprints

 

Britain’s AI problem isn’t data centres – it’s electricity | Reality Check

Zia Yusuf Is A Different Man In Private | Fraser Nelson

Why Things are Getting Even Worse for Reform

 

Farage paints himself as local Clacton hero in battle to beat Binface

 



Farage paints himself as local Clacton hero in battle to beat Binface

Analysis of Reform UK’s £10,000 spend on online ads in Clacton by-election reveal a mix of anti-establishment rhetoric and more prosaic matters.

 

August 13, 2026 4:00 am CET

By John Johnston

https://www.politico.eu/article/nigel-farage-paints-himself-as-local-hero-in-fight-for-clacton/

 

LONDON — Nigel Farage billed it as a “people vs the establishment” by-election. But before he wins back the seat he resigned in July, there’s the small matter of convincing Clacton’s voters he can help them with their shabby beachfront stairs.

 

POLITICO analysis of the Reform UK leader’s digital campaign messages shows that Farage has run a twin-track strategy in the seaside seat as polls open Thursday. The two key themes of the digital air war have been painting Farage as a champion for local residents — as well as an insurgent leader harried by the “establishment” machine.

 

Farage and his party have spent more than £10,000 pushing those messages via ads on Meta’s platforms — which include Facebook and Instagram — in the campaign so far.

 

It’s a similar amount to that spent by the party in the crunch Makerfield by-election in June, where Reform unsuccessfully attempted to halt Andy Burnham’s march on Downing Street by denying the Labour candidate a Westminster seat.

 

But in Clacton, Farage’s chief opponent is Count Binface, a satirical candidate who sports a silver cape, wears a rubbish receptacle on his head, and claims to be from outer space.

 

The Reform leader triggered the special election in a bid to bolster his personal standing amid questions about his finances, including whether he broke parliamentary rules by not declaring a £5 million donation from a crypto-entrepreneur. Britain’s other mainstream parties refused to field candidates in the contest as a result, leaving Farage running against independents and comedy characters.

 

In his paid ad content, the Reform leader makes no mention of his Count Binface, whose policies include capping the price of ice cream and holding a referendum on returning Pluto’s planetary status.

 

Instead, a spate of campaign videos have been pushed out showing Farage as having his finger on the pulse of local concerns.

 

Tackling low-level crime, housing problems, shabby infrastructure and veterans’ issues all get mentions in the paid ads targeted specifically at users living in the area.

 

One Meta ad suggests he is the only candidate to have visited forgotten areas of the constituency. A further clip shows a local resident giving Farage a positive review of his work — and is presented as proof that opposition complaints he has neglected the patch since his 2024 general election victory in the seat are “cobblers.”

 

With over 7 million followers across the leading social media platforms — making him by far the most-followed U.K. party leader — Farage has also been churning out election content across TikTok, Instagram and X.

 

Even with that reach, the Reform UK leader appears to be the only candidate running in Clacton who has used paid Meta features to bolster his online campaign.

 

Almost £1,000 has been spent on videos of Farage urging local supporters to request the party deliver and install an “I’m with Nigel” garden sign. Meanwhile, around £500 went to ads asking voters to return their postal votes and “send a message to the establishment.”

 

The largest single sum — between £4,000-£4,500 — was spent on an almost five-minute campaign video in which Farage waxes lyrical about the connection he’s made with local constituents, while claiming his party’s surging success has resulted in the powers-that-be using “foul means” to hamper him.

 

“Rather than being judged by the political class and the mainstream media, I am going to let you, the voters in the Clacton constituency, make a decision,” he said. “I want you to be my judge, not the political elite.”

 

Farage also used the same piece of campaign content to try and take on questions about his funding head-on. In the clip, the Reform leader argued that the furor over a £5m donation he received from crypto-entrepreneur Christopher Harborne before the 2024 election — now the subject of a House of Commons investigation — amounts to merely a failure to fill out a parliamentary form.

 

The Clacton candidate also argues in the same clip that the murder of a senior Reform figure proves such funding is needed for his personal security. “Surely in the wake of the death of the elderly Ann Widdecombe, you can see that I am going to need money to protect myself for the rest of my life,” he said.

 

With a result due in the early hours of Friday, Farage does not have long to wait to find out whether his online spend has paid off.