Yes I can see that point. But making claims about the impact on the referendum does to me to be veering away from his remit & into the politics.

That's what I would have thought. I'm not sure in particular how MI5 (who as far as I know don't employ polling scientists) can be confident either way.

Is it within MI5's remit & expertise to collect & assess evidence of whether the interference swayed the result?

Monday quiz: who's the author? (No looking it up.)

Plus given his close involvement with brokering the Windsor Framework agreement, he’ll be well aware of the importance of the ECnHR to the GFA, & therefore the risks to peace in NI in leaving.

*my

Something very odd happening with that hand.

You're going to wind up in the same care home, aren't you - immobile in the lounge, forced to listen to endless recounting of past glories.

Thanks for this - yes that does help explain. (I think with Trump I still struggle with the mental hurdle of 6 Jan in comprehending all this, but I can certainly understand the strength of feeling about some Democratic positions.)

On the List of Woke.

To some on the liberal/left side of politics, it can seem unfathomable why anyone supports Trump or Reform, & I wondered whether this sort of thing might help understand it: that some see a catastrophic threat from the modern left, justifying support for some very flawed politicians on the right.

Thanks for looking at my q, & sorry (entirely my fault) for so poorly expressing it. I was interested in that article partly because of the point about Orr in particular, but partly also the wider issue of "the lesser of two evils", eg this bit.

Presumably it's already worked out how to remove you, if you fail a "benefits" test?

Though presumably there will be pressure in the other direction too, not to give the UK overly-generous terms? It'll depend how much EU countries want the UK in? Including, as Sam says, who's in power in France & elsewhere, & the wider geopolitics.