Caerphilly result is blow to Labour and Reform – and shows parties who cannot adapt will be crushed
If anyone inside No 10 allowed themselves a sigh of relief at Reform UK’s advance being stymied in the Caerphilly byelection, they would then have heard the warning from Lindsay Whittle, Plaid Cymru’s winning candidate: “You are on your way out after 100-plus years.”Labour in Wales might or might not be “a dying beast”, as Whittle argued, but this one-off Senedd race illustrated how it was on course to lose its grip on Welsh politics in May, with potentially wider implications for Keir Starmer and his party.The idea that the full Senedd elections will result in Labour being supplanted by Plaid and Reform has long been heralded by polling, but here it was in stark voting figures: a Labour share of 46% when the seat was previously contested in 2021, now down to 11%; a consistent first place in the town since the Senedd was created in 1999 had tumbled to third.This signals not just a seismic shift in Welsh politics, it is also likely to create huge ripples in Westminster, with many Labour MPs and ministers viewing May’s elections in England, Wales and Scotland as a pivotal moment for the prime minister.Whittle’s warning from outside that Labour must “get back to the drawing board” is a sentiment shared by many within the party, and if the forthcoming elections end particularly badly, there will be serious consideration as to whether Starmer is the man to do this.
The slightly more hopeful lesson for the government, and for other parties facing Reform UK’s rapid and seemingly inexorable rise, is that Nigel Farage’s party can be beaten.Bookmakers had Reform’s Llyr Powell as the favourite in Caerphilly yet Whittle secured a majority of nearly 4,000.There were two seeming factors to this: one was evidence of strong tactical voting from both sides, with the Conservatives squeezed to just 2% of the vote, and the Liberal Democrats and Greens below even this.Labour’s reduced vote would also have been affected, with voters aware that Plaid was the better “stop Reform UK” option.This is a potential obstacle for Farage’s party, even if tactical voting tends to work less effectively amid the noise of a general election.
The other lesson is more prosaic, though just as important: pick a strong local candidate.Whittle is exactly that to an almost absurd degree, having been a local councillor for nearly 50 years, standing for the Caerphilly Westminster seat 10 times and previously being a regional Senedd member.Nonetheless, Friday’s result represents a clear disappointment for Reform, particularly after Farage joined the campaign trail.It is possible the party’s chances were hampered by the news that its former leader in Wales, Nathan Gill, had admitted to taking bribes to make pro-Russia comments in the European parliament.However, as Powell noted after his loss, the campaign would have been a valuable learning ground for the new party: “A big part of what we were trying to do here is to master our campaigning.
We’ve trained so many people up on our systems,”And finally, what of the Conservatives, so often half-forgotten in discussions of UK politics? While they can argue they were squeezed by tactical voting, a 2% total – just 690 votes – remains a dreadful result, and will not make Tory MPs any more confident in Kemi Badenoch’s ability to turn around her ailing party,This is the key lesson from Caerphilly for every political leader, if not necessarily a new one: UK politics is moving at speed, with voter loyalties shifting and atomising in unprecedented ways,Those who cannot adapt will be crushed,
Rachel Roddy’s recipe for leftover polenta biscuits | A kitchen in Rome
This, then, was the situation: it was Friday night after a long week, and having met a friend on the way home for a glass of wine, which arrived with crisps, taralli, dry roasted peanuts and enough salt that we needed another glass, it seemed a good idea to go home and cook polenta – the long-stir sort as opposed to the instant variety, although I always have that in the cupboard, too. Another good idea, which came to me as I pulled a new packet from the back of the dresser and ignored the flutter of tiny wings, was to make more than enough polenta and pour the extra into a Pyrex dish while it was still hot, so it could set into a block to be cut into slices and grilled the next day.I’ve written about polenta before; how the word is ancient and generic – referring to any mushy dish made from cereal flour and water – and how, after its arrival in Europe in the 1600s, it became synonymous with ground maize. There exists a world of different grades and milling, but, broadly speaking, when you buy ground maize (cornmeal) for polenta, you will have two options: finely ground (which might also be white) for a soft, thin polenta, and coarsely ground, which will have glassy-looking grains and makes an excellent body scrub and a harder, tastier polenta. The latter also takes much longer to cook, anything from 40 minutes to several hours, depending on who (or which packet) you consult, although in my experience an hour is almost always enough, and anything beyond that is more a way of deepening the flavour
Don’t chuck your parmesan rind – it is an excellent stock cube – recipe | Waste not
Parmesan rinds are the ultimate zero-waste hack – like a cheesy stock cube, they enrich stews, sauces and all sorts, and add pure deliciousness in the form of umami depth and creamy texture. Stored in the fridge or freezer, they keep almost indefinitely. This week’s recipe uses them in a thrifty, creamy corn orzo that transforms a few simple ingredients into comforting autumn fare.This dish was a happy accident, and left me and my family drooling for more. I was planning a classic tomato orzo to use up that half-bag in the cupboard left over from making a pasta salad, but wanted something more seasonal
No waste, all taste: Max La Manna’s comfort food pantry-raid recipes
Cooking with little to no waste isn’t about rules; it’s about rethinking old habits. Take inventory of the food you already have (I like taking a photo of my fridge and pantry before I go shopping), stick to your list and buy only what you need. Make sure you store it properly, too, so it lasts longer, and don’t forget to cook with a bit of curiosity: that bendy carrot, yesterday’s rice, the broccoli stem you’d normally bin – they all have potential. Start small, and trust me: you’ll notice the wins in no time, saving money, time and food from the bin. For me, low-waste cooking isn’t restrictive, it’s liberation
If you like piña coladas: how to make slushies at home without a machine
It promises icy, refreshing drinks, and for a cool $179, this slushie maker is yours – if you can find one.Australian TikTok users have become fixated on a Kmart slushie machine, apparently a budget version of the equally viral Ninja slushie machine (RRP A$499), with users posting videos and reviews of their frosty, fruity extrusions. One Australian video has racked up 2.7m views, and the appliance has sold out online. But with Kmart supply chains under scrutiny and the knowledge that culinary trends and the very specific appliances needed to make them are passing fads, not everyone wants to – or has to – buy a machine to make slushies this summer
Pickle power: how to make your first ferments | Kitchen aide
I love ferments and want to start making my own to save money. Where should I start? Ben, by email“Maybe with some carrots, onions, cucumber or beetroot – anything Ben has an excess of,” says Connor Wilson, head chef at The Kirkstyle Inn in Slaggyford, Northumberland. “Fermentation is a great way of preserving produce, but it won’t give new life to things that are past their best.”That said, tired-looking carrots would be perfect for Olia Hercules’ go-to for newbie fermenters: “If they look dehydrated but without any rotting, they’re amazing to ferment,” says the author of Strong Roots. “The sugars concentrate and you get this bright carrot flavour
Georgina Hayden’s recipe for parmesan and sage jacket potato gnocchi | Quick and easy
If I’m going to the effort of making jacket potatoes (and by effort I mean putting them in the oven for an hour), I will almost always pop in a few extra spuds to make gnocchi for a later meal. The difference between shop-bought and homemade gnocchi is vast, especially the vac-packed, long-life kind, which are dense and can be heavy. Freshly made gnocchi, with fluffy baked potatoes, however, are light as air, pillowy and silky. If that sounds intimidating, let me reassure you that this recipe is really forgiving, and much easier than making fresh sheet pasta. I love them served simply, as here, with a slightly nutty sage butter and lots of parmesan
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