Investigations

Withdrawn: Hate Not Hope: Analysis Of Shukman's Passport

This article has been withdrawn. The Restorationist voluntarily offers a full and complete apology to Mr Shukman and Hope Not Hate.

Alex Coppen

20 Jul 2025

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This article has been withdrawn upon receipt of further information invalidating its claims. The Restorationist voluntarily offers a full and complete apology to Mr Shukman and Hope Not Hate. We will continue to criticise both in good faith should the circumstances merit it.

They Borrowed Against the Rain

Britain’s biggest water company has debt of roughly £17.6 billion and gearing of 85.9%: far above the level Ofwat says is consistent with long-term resilience. It serves 16 million customers and has been kept afloat by emergency funding while creditors and regulators search for a rescue.

Only 1% Of Councils Have Produced Audited Accounts

England abolished its local auditing body in 2015 and replaced it with a market nobody wanted to supply. By 2024, only one per cent of councils had published audited accounts on time. The government's fix: tell auditors to sign off without auditing. The backlog shrank. The books stayed unchecked.

SEND: On April 1st, 68% Of Councils Were Bankrupt

England's councils owe billions for children they were ordered to educate and refused the money to teach. The government's answer: an accounting trick keeping the debt off the books. The trick was due to expire in March. So ministers extended it two years. The crisis was deferred, not solved.

15-Part Series: The Autopsy Of Ruinous Managerialism

During March, The Restorationist will be publishing a fifteen-part series going much deeper into understanding how the country you love brought itself to its own knees by replacing competence with paperwork. The story is lamentable. It was preventable. Yet still, it is fixable.

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They Borrowed Against the Rain

Only 1% Of Councils Have Produced Audited Accounts

SEND: On April 1st, 68% Of Councils Were Bankrupt

15-Part Series: The Autopsy Of Ruinous Managerialism