Funeral to be held for ‘icon in British politics' Norman Tebbit
Lucy Connolly set to be freed from jail within weeks
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Scottish Sun
an hour ago
- Scottish Sun
Teacher branded ‘Islamaphobic' and SACKED after describing Lucy Connolly's prison sentence as ‘two-tier policing'
Simon described Connolly's post as "obviously wrong" but went on to say her imprisonment was "two tier policy from the top down" 'TWO-TIER' FURY Teacher branded 'Islamaphobic' and SACKED after describing Lucy Connolly's prison sentence as 'two-tier policing' Click to share on X/Twitter (Opens in new window) Click to share on Facebook (Opens in new window) A TEACHER who was branded "Islamophobic" has been sacked after saying Lucy Connolly's prison sentence was 'two-tier policing'. Simon Pearson taught English to foreign language students at Preston College in Lancashire. Sign up for Scottish Sun newsletter Sign up 4 Lucy Connolly, 41, was sent to prison for 31 months in October after being found guilty of inciting racial hatred Credit: Not known, clear with picture desk 4 Her tweet was viewed more than 300,000 times before she deleted it Credit: Not known, clear with picture desk 4 She will go free from HMP Peterborough in August having served 40 per cent of her term, The Sun understands Credit: PA The 56-year-old was removed following an internal investigation after posting about Connolly - who was handed a 31-month sentence for inciting racial hatred in a social media post following last year's Southport riots. Simon described Connolly's post as "obviously wrong" but went on to say her imprisonment was "two tier policy from the top down". He was dismissed after a complaint from a Muslim rep of the NEU accused him of being 'Islamophobic' and 'racially discriminatory'. The teacher said he apologised and claimed to have provided evidence of his support for both Muslim students and asylum seekers. But it was found that the posts were a violation of the college's policies, damaging of professional relationships and likely to bring the college's reputation into disrepute. Simon has now started legal action, which has been filed at an employment tribunal, with claims of wrongful dismissal, unfair dismissal, harassment, and discrimination under the Equality Act 2010. He told The Telegraph: 'I am appalled by the way I've been treated. I've dedicated my life to education and to supporting students from all walks of life. 'Yet as soon as I was branded 'Islamophobic' for expressing concern about violent crime, I became a marked man. "It was clear that I had to be found guilty by the college, it became a witch hunt, and I had to be eliminated no matter what.' Lucy Connolly, 41, was sent to prison for 31 months in October after being found guilty of inciting racial hatred. She will go free from HMP Peterborough in August having served 40 per cent of her term, The Sun understands. Her tweet, which was viewed more than 300,000 times before she deleted it, said: 'Mass deportation now, set fire to all the f* hotels full of the b** for all I care… if that makes me racist so be it.' It had been prompted by false rumours that the suspect behind the murder of three girls at a dance class in Southport was an illegal immigrant. Connolly, from Northampton, the wife of a former Tory councillor, lost an appeal to reduce her sentence in May. Nigel Farage has previously called for her release and called her jail term 'absolutely excessive'. But Sir Keir Starmer has defended the sentence, saying he would 'always support' the UK court system. A spokesperson for the NEU said: "The management of Preston College reached a decision to dismiss the teacher following disciplinary procedures. "The NEU was not directly involved in these processes and it will be for the Employment Tribunal to consider the fairness of the dismissal if and when the claim reaches a hearing."
Spectator
5 hours ago
- Spectator
Truss takes a pop at Badenoch over Tory record
Uh oh. As if Conservative leader Kemi Badenoch didn't have enough on her plate with the rise of Reform eating into the Tory vote, now one of her predecessors has taken a pop at her. Liz Truss has taken to the august pages of the Telegraph to attack Badenoch, accusing the Leader of the Opposition of being 'not willing to tell the truth to her own supporters'. The gloves are coming off… Truss's scathing remarks follow a piece in the same newspaper by Badenoch, in which the Conservative leader said that Keir Starmer's Labour government was failing to learn from the mini-Budget that led to Truss's downfall. In an attempt to push back on Labour's narrative that the country's economic woes are the fault of the Tories, Badenoch wrote: For all their mocking of Liz Truss, Keir Starmer and Rachel Reeves have not learnt the lessons of the mini-budget and are making even bigger mistakes. They continue to borrow more and more, unable and unwilling to make the spending cuts needed to balance the books. But Truss was left rather unimpressed by the comparison, with the former Prime Minister and her allies convinced that her low-tax vision was the right thing for the country. In her latest piece, Truss wrote: 'She is wrong. Labour is doing the opposite of the mini-budget, which is why the country is headed for disaster.' Shots fired! She went on, describing how her previous policies put her in line with the thinking of US President Donald Trump, before lamenting: It is disappointing that, instead of serious thinking like this, Kemi Badenoch is instead repeating spurious narratives. I suspect she is doing this to divert from the real failures of 14 years of Conservative government in which her supporters are particularly implicated. Ouch! Will Badenoch bite back? Stay tuned…
The National
5 hours ago
- The National
Which MPs have received the most donations? See the full list
A secretive and influential Labour group, Labour Together, received a huge bulk of that – a third of the whole pot, in fact, at £2,669,832. Then there are various other party-affiliated groups – including Labour YIMBY (Yes In My Back Yard) and the Tory-uCarlton Club Political Committee, which regularly supports Tory MPs – which benefited from various five and six figure sums. But what about our elected MPs? Propping up the top of the list, perhaps unsurprisingly, are the Tory MPs who battled it out last year to be party leader. Despite coming second, Robert Jenrick has been gifted the most of any individual MP since July 5 last year at £762,936. This has included a donation of £35,000 from Quantum Pacific Corporation UK, which is owned by Idan Ofer, a London-based shipping and mining heir whose father was once Israel's richest man. Tory leader Kemi Badenoch was given the second largest amount at £725,812. This includes £150,000 from Lord Bamford of JC Bamford Excavators (JCB), who was a longtime Boris Johnson backer. Erstwhile contenders Tom Tugendhat, James Cleverley and Priti Patel received £409,669, £293,500 and £201,332 respectively. Other MPs who have received a hefty amount of money from donors includes Labour MP Clive Lewis, who has received £125,882 – much of which was from organisations such as Compass - Together for a Good Society Ltd, who support his bill looking to introduce the public ownership of water. Lib Dem MP and former leader Tim Farron has received a hefty £73,364 including over £60k from Faith in Public, a religious think-tank he started. Jeremy Corbyn is the ninth highest with nearly £70,000, over £60k of which came from Community Unity Ltd. Here is a full list of all donations from regulated donees to MPs since July 5 2025:
