Free thinking. Straight talking. Explore more opinion from the nation’s leading comment writers. | | Nick Gutteridge Chief Political Correspondent | Just why did Sir Keir Starmer fall over himself to welcome Alaa Abd el-Fattah, an Egyptian activist with a history of “abhorrent” social media posts, to Britain?
It is the question on the lips of shellshocked Labour MPs who have watched aghast as the quiet Christmas recess has descended into another comms catastrophe. The Prime Minister said he was “delighted” that Fattah had arrived from Egypt on Friday evening after a travel ban imposed by Cairo was lifted following lobbying by ministers.
Fattah, an activist with dual British-Egyptian citizenship, allegedly said that it was heroic to kill Zionists “including civilians”. In posts on X, he also allegedly urged Londoners to burn Downing Street, told his supporters to kill police and said he hated white people. | Social media posts allegedly written by Fattah between 2010 and 2012 circulated online after his arrival in the UK | Ministers are facing calls to revoke his British citizenship, which he was granted in 2021 while imprisoned in Egypt, where campaigners described him as a “prisoner of conscience”.
Fattah has since apologised “unequivocally”, but claimed that some of the posts were “completely twisted out of their meaning”.
Opposition politicians were quick to leap on the situation, saying it showed an extraordinary lack of due diligence on the part of Downing Street.
But could it be that the real culprit behind Sir Keir’s latest woe is actually his beloved ECHR?
Questions are now being raised over whether Fattah would have been denied citizenship had he not benefited from a loophole carved out by human rights law.
Had that been the case, the Prime Minister would not now be mired in yet another needless controversy that will fuel further discontent in the Labour ranks.
Read the full story here ➤
How a murderer’s ECHR victory helped ‘extremist’ win British citizenship ➤
Robert Jenrick: Starmer must deport this vile man immediately ➤ |  | Lisa Armstrong Head of Fashion | You may live for the annual New Year’s Eve knees-up, or detest/despise/dread the entire shebang, but I guarantee you this much: thinking your outfit through properly can ease the pain to the point where miracles happen and you may actually have a good time.
Start with the basics: comfort. Men, this doesn’t – indeed it cannot – mean fleece. Women, give thanks for the plethora of lovely, flat shoes and low heels from which we can now choose. Everyone, enjoy 2025’s one inalienable achievement: double-faced wool at reasonable prices.
It’s all about the vibe: fun, plus low-key glamour, plus I-wasn’t-flummoxed-by-this-dress-code sophistication. I’m plumping for Wyse’s “Never Too Much” sweater in a glow-up red. I’m not mad about slogans on clothes generally, but this is the right one for the right time (although you’ll wear it afterwards, a lot).
And remember, whether you’re marking New Year’s Eve by making an effigy of 2025 and setting it on fire, or planning a sofa-thon rewatching the classics, The Telegraph’s fashion team has you covered.
Read the full guide here ➤ | | Zoe Strimpel When I knead and stir, chop and wash up, it’s about me as much as whoever is going to eat my stuff Continue reading ➤ Roger Bootle Why we shouldn’t rule out more tax rises in the New Year Continue reading ➤ Michael Mosbacher Banning ritual slaughter would shame Britain Continue reading ➤ | Get the full experience. Unlock our award-winning website, app and newsletters. | | Brigitte Bardot died at her home in southern France on Sunday at the age of 91 | | When she was 10, Celia Walden spotted Brigitte Bardot in a Saint-Tropez market. Everyone within a 10-foot radius was in awe, as if they had never quite believed she really existed. Here, Celia pays tribute to “BB”, the French actress who mesmerised every man who saw her and never pretended to care.
Continue reading ➤
Plus, Bardot’s five greatest films – ranked ➤ | | | Javier Milei was chosen as one of the Telegraph World Leaders 2025 for the radical changes he has rung in Argentina. The mercurial president sat down with Louis Emanuel to talk through his controversial programme of reforms, his relationship with Giorgia Meloni, his dogs, and, of course, the Falklands. Continue reading ➤ | | | Before the First World War, 23,000 gamekeepers were at work in the British Isles. Today, there are only 3,000 in the UK – and some fear that number could drop to zero under Labour. The Government’s Animal Welfare Strategy includes a clampdown on trapping game predators and a consultation on rearing pheasants and red-legged partridges. Other legislation would make it harder to own a shotgun. As Patrick Galbraith reports, these measures could signal the end of game shooting. Continue reading ➤ | | | Edward Stourton, the former BBC Radio 4 Today programme presenter, has been living with prostate cancer for 12 years. “There are treatments keeping me alive now which didn’t even exist when I was first diagnosed,” he tells The Telegraph. That’s why the broadcaster is supporting Prostate Cancer Research, one of The Telegraph’s Christmas charities. You can donate to the appeal until Jan 31. Continue reading ➤ | | | As light fades and body clocks drift, sleep scientist Sophie Bostock explains why rest becomes harder in winter and how small changes can help reset your rhythm and improve sleep through the colder months. Continue reading ➤ - Each year, our travel experts visit every new British hotel of note, from small country inns to gilded all-suite properties in London. These are the ones that truly impressed.
- After a decade-long gap, The Night Manager is back with a new series. Here’s a handy briefing dossier to catch you up on the story so far.
| | The Walker family: (L-R) Luke, Richard, Bryony, Jackie, Nicky, the late Sir Jim, and Alastair |  | Jack Rear Features Writer | Winter in Speyside already feels like Christmas, and few places embody that better than Aberlour, home to Walker’s Shortbread. I traveled north to meet the fourth generation of the family behind Britain’s most festive biscuit, at a moment of quiet transition.
Founded in 1898, Walker’s has grown from a village bakery into a global brand with royal warrants and a presence in 50 countries, yet it remains rooted in butter, flour and family. | By 1975, Walker’s had outgrown its bakery and moved to a custom-built factory | This Christmas was the second without Sir Jim Walker, the third-generation figurehead whose influence still hangs heavy in the bakeries, where carols play and Santa-shaped biscuits are made in the height of summer.
As the next generation takes the reins, they reflect on legacy, pressure and the peculiar business of planning Christmas two years in advance, all while keeping faith with the shortbread that has defined British festive tables for more than a century.
Continue reading ➤ | Cup of Joe Every weekday, Orlando Bird, our loyal Reader Correspondent, shares an off-piste topic that has brought out the best of your opinions and stories. Orlando writes...
I never expected to be that guy in the office who makes his own coffee in a cafetière, but life has a way of surprising you. Yes, yes, I know it looks like I’m obnoxiously declaring my connoisseurship, but the truth is that I don’t have especially strong feelings about coffee. I want it to a) be caffeinated and b) not taste as though it’s just trickled out of a hospital vending machine. Beyond that, I am easily pleased.
The reason I make my own is that takeaway coffee has become so preposterously overpriced. What used to be an entirely justifiable morning treat now requires... well, more financially sound career choices than becoming a journalist. Not so long ago I forked out £4 for a cappuccino from a well-known coffee chain. In return I got a bucket of scalding foam; I’m not sure the espresso ever made it in there. I thought: I could have had three-fifths of a pint at the pub for this.
I’m not alone. In response to the Caffè Nero founder’s warning that prices are unlikely to become more palatable, Peter Baylis wrote: “The raison d’être of Caffè Nero, along with the likes of Costa and Starbucks, is to sell coffee at exorbitant prices. It’s bad enough that they are all too expensive, but the quality is appalling. The coffee at the burger chain McDonald’s is, in my opinion, far superior and much cheaper, and this is a business that sells the drink as a side line.”
But not everyone felt this way. “I am a longstanding customer of Caffè Nero,” replied Alan Tomlinson. “For a relatively modest sum, I can enjoy a (usually) well-made and tasty coffee, sit in a comfortable armchair, use the free Wi-Fi and generally chill for an hour or so among like-minded customers. Of course, I could go to McDonald’s instead and save some money – but who in their right mind would want to sit there for an hour?”
Kevin Duffy added: “Peter’s complaint that high-street coffee chains are ‘too expensive’ surely implies that there should be an official, ‘reasonable’ price for this drink. However, this is flawed and dangerous logic. Who decides what is expensive and what is reasonable? And if the price of coffee is to be regulated, why not the price of everything else?” That’s all from me for today, folks, but be sure to tune in tomorrow morning for the best Telegraph talking points. In the meantime, you can contact me here. The best of your responses will feature in a future edition of From the Editor PM, for which you can sign up here.
Please confirm in your reply that you are happy to be featured and that we have your permission to use your name. | | Find as many words as you can in today’s Panagram, including the nine-letter solution. Visit Telegraph Puzzles to play a range of head-scratching games, including PlusWord, Sorted, and Quick, Mini or Cryptic Crosswords.
Yesterday’s Panagram was INTRICACY. Come back tomorrow for the solution to today’s puzzle. | | Thank you for reading. Have a fulfilling day and I hope to see you tomorrow. Chris Evans, Editor
P.S. I’d love to hear what you think of this newsletter. You can email me your feedback here. | |
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