Luthori

[hyraemous]

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Liberal leader Patricia Holmes dies in car accident, Whip Alexander Hawthorne MP to take over as acting Lib Leader
2 January 5660

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A sudden tragedy has fallen on the Liberal Party of Luthori as leader Patricia Holmes was hit in a head-on collision off a highway near Fort William. The crash, which killed both Holmes (who was driving her car) and the other car's driver, was caught on dashcam video by cars nearby. The car driven by Holmes was driving with the light about to turn amber, whilst another car suddenly rammed into her car, instantly killing her.

Paramedics were at the scene within minutes; however, the injuries sustained by Holmes were too dire, and she was declared dead at the scene. The driver was pronounced dead at the hospital after suffering from various injuries to the chest. It was reported that said driver was speeding and had barely avoided another car just an exit ago.

The Liberal Party has been thrown into chaos because of the sudden death of its longtime leader. MPs from the Liberal Party have announced a halt to campaigning for the next week, with the Liberal Party announcing that, for the time being, the Liberal Whip Alexander Hawthorne MP will take over pending a snap conference to determine the next leader. Obviously, this has also thrown into chaos the campaign of the Liberal Party with the general election about to happen in a few weeks' time. When asked about the campaign, acting leader Hawthorne said that he was looking to the future and that he stood with the Holmes family during this tragic time.

Holmes' funeral is scheduled for later in the week.

[Ligbruderkrieg]

It seems that the 5660 campaign has become a lot more intense, following the unfortunate demise of longtime Liberal Party leader, Patricia Holmes, political parties stopped their respective campaigns in a rare moment of unity within this cruel environment. But today, as the funeral passed on and Mrs. Holmes is dead and buried, the campaign went on, with both the Labour and Conservative parties delivering their respective manifestoes in large rallies, one in the working-class and traditionally leftist Principality of Orange and the other in the more conservative-friendly territory of Northriding, where the Tories are projected to suffer losses at the next election cycle.

On one hand, there was the Labour Party’s delivering its manifesto from the Francis Kensington Stadium in Downtown Fort William, the atmosphere was ecstatic, with thousands of Labour supporters cheering from the stadium’s terraces in support of party leader, Kathy Miles, who was delivering a fiery speech addressing the last years of Conservative governance over Luthori, which, for her part, described as being “disastrous”. Mrs. Miles stated in her speech that the Tories had “made Luthori weak by inaction”, stating that over 10% of Luthori’s population was living below the poverty line.

She moreover stated that the “inequality present in our nation is a stain in our nation’s conscience”, vowing that Luthori “needed a bold action plan, not words, but action, something that hasn’t been delivered by two Conservative governments in the last 20 years”, the manifesto of the National Labour Party calls for the following policies to be enacted during a possible Miles Administration:

• Reforming the Constitutional and Supreme Courts, combining them into one single judicial court tasked with reviewing bills passed by Parliament.
  
• Reforming the Senate into a more representative body of the Luthorian population - aims at removing the right for hereditary peers and archbishops of the Holy Luthori Church to sit in the Senate.
  
• Increase the hourly minimum wage from £10.5 per hour to £13.25 per hour.
  
• Enact a bold environment-friendly program called “the Green Pact”, promises to pass a Bill in Parliament to invest £200 billions into renewable energies over a period of 15 years.
  
• Enacting a complete ban on the opening of new coal mining pits and vowing to close all operating coal mines by 5675.
  
• Pass an euthanasia bill, providing government help to people in need and wishing for an euthanasia, and providing legal guidelines to secure the legal practice of euthanasia.
  
• Reinvigorate Luthorian state-owned corporations by providing sweeping government investments to help their long-term recovery.
  
• Pass an infrastructure bill that would dedicate £300 billions in infrastructure building and renovation throughout the nation.
  
• Invest over £500 billion over reinvigorating the dying Luthorian industry, through providing subsidies to failing companies and grants for the construction of more factories throughout Luthori.
  

These policies are widely considered as being “radical” and “out-of-touch” by numerous economics, who warn about the “reckless spending” supported by the Leader of the Opposition during her address, economics argue that such spending might lead to an explosion of the debt ceiling “beyond recognition", although others are much less worried, stating that the Luthorian debt has “historically” been very low and that even with £1 to 1.5 trillion invested in both industries, green energy and infrastructure renewal might “not lead to the economic catastrophe that numerous economists are foreseeing”, but even as the experts bickered among themselves, in general, the populace loved the message of the National Labour Party, even though some communities such as minorities and farmers felt to have been “swept under the rug” by the Labour leadership, although the Opposition Leader vowed that “every community shall be represented under a Miles Administration”.

Meanwhile, in the Conservative Party, in a sharp contrast to the buzzing and ecstatic crowds that were cheering Mrs. Miles during her speech delivering Labour’s manifesto, the Prime Minister delivered the Tories’ manifesto for the 5660 general election, called “A Safe, Secure and Reliable Future”, before a panel of high-ranking scientists, economists, journalists, students and Tory supporters at the University of Northminster. Prime Minister Windbury stated that “Luthori’s prosperity was only assured through continued Conservative governance”, while the Labour manifesto was considered by many as being “bold”, “hopeful” and “yearning for change”, the Conservative manifesto was mostly remarked as being "unimpressive", “economically moderate” and “tired down from 20 years of uncontested governance”. The Tories’ manifesto included things like:

• An enactment of a full nuclear revision and renovation program in hopes of increasing security in Luthorian nuclear power plants.
  
• Empowerment of the Federal Nuclear Operations Agency through a reassessment of its objectives and a clear reform being laid out in Parliament.
  
• Restore effectiveness in Luthorian social services and state-owned corporations through investment packages and increased subsidies.
  
• Restore Luthorian economic growth through increased subsidies towards corporations, and aim at cutting corporate tax by 2.5% by 5675.
  
• Increase national combat abilities through a “reflection” on the state of Luthori’s armed forces and increase the military budget by 3% by 5675.
  
• Enhance productive relations between the Federal Government and the Provincial Governments through a series of “round table talks” between the Prime Minister and Minister-Presidents where matters of high importance to the Provinces could be discussed.
  
• Cement the independence of the Bank of Luthori through law, by removing the Prime Minister’s ability to advise the Emperor on the nomination of the Chair of the Bank of Luthori.
  
• Investing heavily into infrastructure works to provide new job opportunities for numerous Luthorians.
  
• Invest £50 billion into an “Agricultural Saving Plan”, aiming at reinvigorating the Luthorian agriculture industry by 5675.
  

Political columnists agreed that, while this plan is typically what the Conservatives would propose in average general election, this wasn’t your average general election, Labour is currently ahead in every polls, and every metric points out at an exclusion of the right from government after the next election cycle, this manifesto lacked purpose, it lacked the unity needed for the Tories to rally the right-wing vote fully behind them.

Other political parties are currently in the process of releasing their own manifestoes during the week, with the Liberal, Communist and Nationalist Parties projected to deliver unto their manifestoes during this week.

[Ligbruderkrieg]

The 5660 Luthorian general election approaches and in the final week of the campaign, the Luthorian media has begun to take an active stance in the campaign, with newspapers officializing their party endorsements at this stage. These endorsements are awaited with great anxiety by all Luthorian political parties, as with more parties entering the race for control over Parliament and 10 Crown Street, any major newspapers betting on these new political upstarters instead of the traditional duopoly (Conservative and Labour) or even triopoly (Conservative, Labour and Liberal) might be seen as a worrying trend for the establishment.

It shouldn’t be forgotten that the Conservatives are running as a tired-out political party, who just ran the nation for the last 2 decades and of whom people are actually getting tired of, so newspapers that are normally in the Tories’ pockets such as the Daily Mail, the Telegraph or the National are now considered to be “unknown”, as no one is yet aware of these three giants of Luthorian media establishment. Here at the LBC Daily Review, we’ll be reviewing some national newspaper's endorsements for the next general election and discussing what these endorsements might mean, as of the state of political parties, their popularity, their effect on the nation and others.

To begin, there is the Telegraph. The Weekly Telegraph, Luthori’s number one conservative-aligned newspaper, which, for this election, once again, provided its support for the Conservative Party in an editorial, detailing the reasons why the Weekly Telegraph had decided to stick with the Conservatives.

While it’s undeniable that the last 4 years were rough, and frankly, disappointing in terms of policy being delivered to the Luthorian people by Darlington Palace, the threat of radical left-wing forces seizing the Luthorian Parliament by storm and forming the first government with support or direct involvement of the Communist Party of Luthori, forces us to give our endorsement to the Conservative Party to lead us into a new era, where conservative principles will be enshrined in the nation and where political sanity, after a few years, will return.

The Telegraph’s declaration of support for the Tories is mostly unsurprising, as the newspaper has been derogatorily known as the “Torygraph” due to its long-standing support of the Conservatives. Last time the Telegraph backed a Labour administration was during the Premiership of Olivia Hall in the 5630 general election, exactly 30 years ago. For the last 3 decades, the Telegraph has supported the Tory Party in an also religious way, and today, while the Party is struggling in the polls and every metric seems to point towards a Labour landslide in the next general election, with some pollsters even projected a Labour majority government in their more ambitious forecasts for Labour, the Telegraph nonetheless remains loyal to the cause. Although, it should be noted that the Telegraph’s editorial also expressed disappointment at the term of Lord Porchey’s government, hoping that the government would make a “right-wing pivot” after election day in order to push for more conservative-minded policies.

Another newspaper that is considered to be “loyal” to the Conservative Party interestingly made a bold choice for this election. The Financial Inquirer has traditionally been the voice of right-wing big business and the financial system, has traditionally been supportive of the party with these criteria, the first being the chance of the party in question to win a sizeable number of seats in the First Chamber to claim the Premiership and the second being their amiability towards the financial world, for much of the elections, it was the Tories that crossed both of these criteria, but, for this election, the Inquirer seems to have decided to support the Liberal Party. In their declaration of support of Mr. Hawthrone’s Liberal Party, they explained that while the Financial Inquirer had an “affinity” with the Conservatives, it was not their “puppet”, a subtle criticism of the Weekly Telegraph.

“The Liberal Party, today, represents the greatest ally of the Empire, their sensible moderate policies, their free market alignment and sensible social policies meant to alleviate Luthori’s social tensions known in the last decade, caused by the Conservatives’ mishandling of the situation, means, that today, a vote for the Liberal Party is a vote for enhanced personal and economic freedom, greater security overseas and national stability, something that disappeared under 20 years of continued Conservative hold over the Great Offices of State.”

Yeah…high criticism from one, if not the most, only behind the Telegraph, pro-Conservative newspaper throughout the Empire. It always reveals deep division within the Tories, the Financial Inquirer’s reading base is politically composed of mostly center-right readers who are deeply involved in the world of finance, business or commerce. These voters are mostly satisfied with the status quo, hence the refusal of the Inquirer to support both the Tories, which they find to have moved towards a far more “radical rightist” direction than first expected or the Labour Party, which in their opinion, will conduct policies and govern in a way that hurts the entrepreneurial class and slow down technological innovation in Luthori. While they officially backed the Liberals, they also wished to state that in a race that has either the Tories, the Moderates or Labour in a good spot of winning that said race, voters should turn to a “moderate, center-right incentive”, the Moderates.

The Financial Inquirer isn’t the sole newspaper which used to support the Conservatives and will not be supporting them this time around. Both the Daily Mail and the National called for voters to vote “upon their conscience”, withholding an official endorsement of a political party for the first time since 5616 for the National and the first time in the history of the Daily Mail. This lack of support has been justified by both newspapers by stating that the Luthorian political environment had become "too radicalised [for them] to make a choice”. The Daily Mail also sharply criticised the handling of the Conservative Party over the nation for the last 2 decades, simply stating that “20 years of continued failures over 2 Prime Ministers. Even a monkey could have better run this nation”. 

Other newspapers flipped towards the National Labour Party, the Independent Observer officially released a statement in its front cover officiating its support for Mrs. Miles’s National Labour, as well as the Fort William Inquirer, both newspapers stressed the need for a “bold leadership, capable of inspiring hope over a wary and tired nation”, something that, in their way, the Labour campaign successfully embodied. In the editorial, detailing the decision of the Independent Observer, stated that:

“The National Labour Party of today isn’t the same as the National Labour Party of Hall, instead of asking for change, they embody change. The Labour Party, while our newspaper does not agree with most of its programs as proposed in its manifesto, is, without a doubt, the sole which is capable of restoring trust and hope into our nation and creating a new age of enthusiasm for our nation.”

This support for the National Labour, from traditionally neutral (Fort William Inquirer) or Tory-aligned newspapers (the Independent Observer) is shown as a clear of Tory weakness going forward to this election, nobody, and I mean, nobody, could foreseen both the Observer and Inquirer to not support the Conservative Party, and for the former, nobody could have seen coming their support for what is widely considered to be a radical National Labour Party. 20 years of Conservative domination of both the executive and legislative branches have left scars upon the party, with a divided base, the moderate fleeing the sinking ship and more radical voters looking for alternative options. All of this means that the Tories are weakened significantly, but also the Labour populist message is slowly getting into the mainstream.

[Ligbruderkrieg]

Vote Tory on February 14th, to preserve our nation.

[Ligbruderkrieg]

Labour, now more than ever.

[Ligbruderkrieg]

LBC News is ready to project that the National Labour Party will secure a commanding plurality of seats in the Chamber of Representatives, placing itself at the forefront of future negotiations for the formation of a coalition agreement that will lead to a coalition government in the next few days or months. Today, Luthorians were called up to their polling stations in order to elect the next Luthorian Parliament, they were electing 2 MPs today, one elected through regional party list proportional representation and another elected through a direct first-past-the-post election. 

The passage of the Political Openness and Fair Competition Act changed Luthori’s electoral system by a bit. Formerly, half of the Chamber of Representatives was elected through proportional representation and the other half was elected through direct election using the first-past-the-post electoral system. With the passage of the Act, this system was slightly modified, with 40% of the Chamber of Representatives being elected through proportional representation and 60% of seats being elected through a direct election using the first-past-the-post electoral system. That means that 260 seats are elected through the latter and 174 MPs are elected through party-list proportional representation. On top of that, the Bill also added an electoral threshold for political parties to ascend to Parliament. If a party fails to win at least 2.25% of the national popular vote, it is denied representation within the Chamber of Representatives, an exception is made for political parties who successfully won three electoral districts in that said election.

Through this law, all political restrictions on the activities of far-right and far-left parties were removed, allowing new competitors to enter the political scene such as the Communist Party of Luthori and the newly-founded Luthorian Nationalist Party, both parties drew voters from either the Labour Party or the Conservative Party into their ranks, although, it should be stated that the biggest losers are the so-called “radical” political parties that were on the fringe sections of the parliamentary spectrum, namely the Radical Democratic Party and the Hosian Democrats. 

To begin with the former, the Radical Democrats registered their worst election performance since the foundation of their political movement, only securing 2.33% of the national popular vote at the proportional level, merely winning 4 seats in the Chamber of Representatives, which under parliamentary rules isn’t enough to form an independent parliamentary group. Members of Parliament affiliated with the Radical Democratic Party will either have to sit with the Labour Parliamentary Party in Parliament or sit as independents. The Radical Democrats’ loss has mostly been caused by both an high-energy campaign made by the National Labour Party of Mrs. Miles and the rise of the Communist Party of Luthori, the latter securing a good performance.

The Communist Party of Luthori is highly controversial here in Luthori, mostly due to its support for revolutions that culminated in the overthrow of the established status-quo or monarchical nations, such as Baeguk, the Communist Party congratulated Baegukian socialists for the overthrow of the monarchy and “breaking off the chains of the proletariat”, in this election, the Communist had already a strong popular appeal within the working class who was feeling betrayed by both the Labour and Conservative parties, but their momentum got trashed by the surprisingly left-wing and radical Labour campaign, which capitalised the hearts of many through promises of bold action, nevertheless, the Communists still received a lot of support from farmers and workers alike, gaining ground with these two communities. It led to the Communist Party winning 13 seats in the Chamber of Representatives and 4.3% of the national popular vote, winning 7 seats through proportional representation and 6 directly elected seats in the First Chamber, cementing itself as a national party.

To finish up with our overview of the results for the left, we need to cover both the National Labour Party and the Green Party, both of whom made substantial gains during this year’s electoral process. To begin with the biggest winners of the night, Labour, riding off a high-energy campaign and mixed feelings about the Tory management of the Luthorian economy, amid concerns for a decrease in living standards, the National Labour Party, led by its charismatic left-wing President, Mrs. Kathy Miles won one of its biggest victories in its history, likely taking back the Luthorian Premiership for this time around, if successful in forming a government. The National Labour won 35.97% of the national popular vote, winning 62 seats through proportional representation and sweeping over the constituencies, winning 112 out of 260 constituencies that were in the race. In total, that means that the National Labour Party won over 174 seats in the Chamber of Representatives, a resounding plurality for a party that is likely to control the Great Offices of State for the next five years.

The cause of this victory mostly lies within the Party’s impressive scores in both Orange and Erneshire, with even city centres in Northriding, Shipleyriding and Middenriding, which are all Conservative strongholds, flipping towards the National Labour Party, strong performances from individual candidates in constituencies held by Tories also helped in winning seats in the so-called “Blue Coast”.

The Greens, while they didn’t run a formidable campaign like their left-wing counterpart of the Labour Party still managed to pull out a respectable performance of their own, winning 12.5% of the national popular vote and winning over 49 MPs in Parliament, a sizeable bloc that will be needed for Mrs. Miles to form a government. The Green Party managed to secure 22 seats from proportional representation and 27 seats from single-member constituencies, snatching some constituencies from both the Labour Party and Conservative Party in urban and suburban areas. Green Party leader, Mr. Thomas Coverty seemingly already entered contact with the National Labour Party and Mrs. Miles to begin negotiating for the formation of a “people’s government” in the next few days.

The stunning victories of the Luthorian left, which won 55,1% of the national popular vote and 54,83% of the seats in the Chamber of Representatives, hands them over the keys of power and also reveals deep resentments against the Tories and the overall right-wing political parties. In fact, the right only secured 31.4% of the national popular vote and “30.87% of the seats in the First Chamber. While a victory of the National Labour Party was expected, such a landslide, where the Labour Party only needs the support of the Greens or Liberals to secure a working majority, wasn’t, and could likely lead to the formation of the most radical left-wing government that Luthori has ever known to date.

Moving onto the center of the political spectrum, we find the Liberal Party, the biggest party in the center, weakened by the death of its longtime leader, Patricia Holmes and now thrust into the campaign by Acting Leader Hawthrone. Following a respectable campaign and an honourable debate performance, the Liberal Party settled down with a result of 13.5% of the national popular vote, winning 23 seats through national proportional vote and 37 seats through single-member constituencies, winning an impressive 60 seats in the First Chamber out of 434 seats available. Mr. Hawthrone’s impressive campaign culminated in the Liberals taking seats from the Conservatives, Greens and Moderates, while losing ground to the Labour Party in some key urban areas, it shouldn’t understated that the Liberals were helped by the context of their campaign, the aftermath of Mrs. Holmes’s unfortunate demise saw the Liberals winning points in the polls out of sympathy and while the Tory Party imploded due to the loss of supporters, especially in the newspapers, the Liberals saw themselves endorsed by big names such as the Financial Inquirer and other newspapers that have backed them for this election cycle. The results are sure to mean that Mr. Hawthrone will get confirmed as party leader in the next Liberal National Conference, as the party which was likely to suffer its worst electoral defeat in ages during the leadership of Mrs. Holmes has now won one of its largest victories in its entire history.

Finally, moving on to the four last political parties that won seats in the Chamber of Representatives, the right-wing and the upcoming far-right. 

First, let’s talk about the Moderates, the Moderates is a centre-right political party that attempts to place itself against the Tories as a centre-right alternative, the thing is, that description while true, has been less real as the Moderates always participate to the Conservative-led governments since their foundation as a splinter of the Conservatives during the brief Rodgers premiership. 

The Moderates were also a part of the current governing coalition assembling the Liberals, themselves and the Tories. While the Liberals successfully increase their seat share with their campaign, the Moderates got the shorter deal out of it, as the Liberals increased their seats numbers, it was them and the Tories that were the primary targets, in consequences, and adding the overall unpopularity of the outgoing Porchey administration, of which the Moderates were a key part of, you get a party that barely won 5.1% of the national popular vote, winning 8 seats in the Chamber of Representatives, the worst ever result for the party. The Moderates barely passed through the 5-seat threshold to constitute a parliamentary group, remaining in Parliament as an independent group, although one that is very weakened and will likely be unable to force through big changes.

The Conservative Party. Luthori’s dominant and most successful electoral force in its history, ever since its founding in 5458, Luthori has been governed by the Conservatives for the most part of these 2 centuries, with the Tories having just completed a 20-year dominance of Luthorian politics ever since the election of the Earl of Windbury in 5640, defeating incumbent Prime Minister, Olivia Hall. Today, the Tories lied defeated, after 20 years of dominance, they were decisively beaten by their left-wing rivals in the National Labour Party. This is also the second worst result for the Conservative Party, behind the wipeout that was the 5640 election, but nonetheless, it is still a wipeout, the Conservatives gathered the support of 20.2% of the national popular vote, winning 35 seats through proportional representation and 72 seats through single-member constituencies race that the Tories won, in total winning 107 seats out of 434. This result was bad enough to cause the resignation of Prime Minister Porchey as party leader, the 5302 Committee, tasked with electing a new leader will assemble after the State Opening of Parliament in April, before then, the sitting Prime Minister shall continue to serve as party leader until a suitable replacement can be found.

Finally, in a short paragraph, the Hosian Democratic Alternative, like its left-wing counterpart of the RDP has seen a lot of its influence being reduced, merely winning 3% of the national popular vote and being able to gather 7 seats, barely to pass the 5-seats threshold to form an independent parliamentary group. 5 out of 7 seats came from proportional representation and the 2 remaining were two Hosian Democrats beating out Labour and Conservative politicians in their respective constituency. Finally, the Luthorian Nationalist Party, while only winning 5.1% of the national popular vote, won 12 seats in the Chamber of Representatives, marking the first time that an open far-right party won seats in Parliament ever since the Fatherland Front.

[Ligbruderkrieg]

Miles successfully forms new government after forming coalition with Greens.
17 March 5660 (backdated)



After weeks of negotiations, it has been announced that the National Labour Party of Mrs. Miles, which had triumphed in the last general election over its rivals in the Conservative Party, winning an impressive 174 seats out of 434 in the First Chamber, had successfully reached an agreement with the Green Party of Luthori. Following their electoral victory, the leftist forces achieved an impressive feat of gathering 55% of the seats in Parliament, with both the Labour Party and Green Party achieving to gather more than 50% of seats in the Chamber of Representatives. Mr. Thomas Coverty, who has been appointed by Emperor Richard II as Secretary of State for Foreign Affairs in Mrs. Miles’s new Cabinet had called upon the then-Leader of the Opposition to begin negotiations between both [Labour and Green] parties at once to form what he has dubbed as a “people’s government”.

Immediately after election day, Mrs. Miles signaled her “openness” at negotiating an agreement with the Greens, recognising that the situation of the Luthorian left was “at a crossroads” and moreover recognising that if a leftist government was to be formed, it would be under these lines, a coalition between the National Labour and Green parties, a coalition that wouldn’t see its leftist agenda being watered down by compromises with centrist forces in the lower house. As, even though the Miles Administration currently enjoys a majority in the Chamber of Representatives, it doesn’t currently enjoy the same status in the Senate, where the Tories holds a plurality of seats, even though, per convention, the Senate only has a right of veto for budget laws and constitutional laws, the Government’s first budget that will be introduced in Parliament in September might find an easy way passing the First Chamber, but will surely face a hard time in the Second Chamber. 

Newly-appointed Chancellor of the Exchequer, Dr. Thomas Rosenbach, stated that he “expected” resistance from the upper house to his proposed budget, citing “differences” in the fiscal philosophy between the Senate and the Chamber, he nevertheless, stated that he, on behalf of the Government, would push for a “complete rethinking” of Luthorian fiscal policy and enact a policy of investments into “critical fields” that warrant the Federal Government’s attention, chiefly the domains of agriculture, education, social welfare, healthcare, industrial renewal and technological innovations, with a first emphasis being placed upon 4 domains, namely agriculture, education, social welfare and industrial renewal, these four domains will be the main focused points of the Autumn Budget, with the Government directing large and critically-needed federal investments into these areas. 

Fort William also expressed “interest” at working with Provincial Administrations to have a “local standpoint” on these investments. The Prime Minister called all five Provincial Minister-Presidents and expressed renewed interest at separate meetings with the five Premiers before the organisation of an “Intra-Luthorian Conference” where all provinces and federal representatives will be able to negotiate of a “new social contract” that also includes rethinking the Luthorian government’s position within its borders. Secretary of State of Intra-Provincial Relations, Mrs. Rebecca Howle stated that “...the Prime Minister aims at renegotiating the federal government’s role in devolving roles and competences by creating a forum where federal and provincial governments would be able to freely express their diverging views on the question…”, while adding that such a conference will “finally put an end to childish debates about Luthorian status as a unitary or federal state, with the upcoming conference aiming at creating “solutions” to devolve responsibilities from Darlington Palace into the Provinces.

Mrs. Miles’s government is likely going to be a “breath of fresh air” in Luthorian diplomacy, with the Luthorian Foreign Office falling right into the hands of the Green Party, who have different ideals of foreign actions than the long-time holders of the Office, the Conservative Party. Foreign Secretary Coverty stated that the Foreign Office’s priorities would be “..underlined..” during an address to the Luthorian people, where he’ll outline his foreign policy agenda. Nevertheless, Mr. Coverty stated the Luthorian Government would not “repudiate any agreement signed under the Conservative administrations”, Mr. Coverth stated that the goal of the Red-Green alliance remains the “preservation of Luthorian interests worldwide”, although this will also add up to new causes such as the promotion of democracy worldwide and peaceful co-existence.

Finally, the new administration will be completed with the foundation of a government ministry aimed at institutional reform, according to the Home Ministry, this ministry that would be under the supervision of that said ministry will be tackling the “great question of the day” in terms of institutional reform, engaging in "consultative process” to engage in discussion towards a potential reform of the Senate and a “consolidation” of Luthori’s judicial system, which the Government described as being “archaic”.

All and all, the Miles Administration probably hopes to be inspiring a new dawn of hope and of bold reform in Luthori, like the Hall Administration hoped to be during the beginning of their term, now, the question remains. Will the Miles Administration know the same tragedy as Hall’s?

[Ligbruderkrieg]

Following the swearing-in ceremony of cabinet ministers by Chamber Speaker-elect John Pastrow, Miles’ government has already begun working on its “great tasks”, with the Prime Minister allegedly putting most of her fresh political capital upon working on institutional reform programs, with newly-appointed Secretary of State for Institutional Reform, Gregory Bercow, announcing that the Government would introduce legislation to tackle both the issue of Senate and High Court reforms, with ambitions to transform both of these institutions into neutral institutions aimed at correcting and supervising actions enacted by the elected lower house.

Amid all of that, the Prime Minister also entrusted her Foreign Secretary, Mr. Thomas Coverty (Greens) with ways to conduct reforms over Luthori’s foreign service, one of the oldest running institutions within Luthori’s government and having risen to prominence during previous administrations, with many considering the Luthorian Foreign Ministry as a mere stepping stone for ambitious politicians before their eventual ascension at the Premiership. Secretary Coverty was explicitly critical of the way that Conservatives ran foreign policy, during an interview back in 5642, when he was merely an activist and student at the University of Alchester, he was one of many which descended upon Luthorian streets to demand an immediate withdrawal of Luthorian naval forces posted within miles of the former Beiteynu’s shores.

Now as Foreign Secretary, Mr. Coverty already went down to work to draft a new policy for the Foreign Office, with the Great Office of State releasing a 35-page document outlining Luthori’s “new” foreign policy as will be enacted during the Miles Administration’s tenure. The document outlined and stressed over perceived policy failures over the last 20 years of Conservative-dominated governance, stressing that a “new dawn” was necessary to bring Luthori to new heights. While the Prime Minister made it clear that her focus as head of government remained upon internal politics rather than foreign policy, her government began a program towards reforming both the Luthorian judicial system and the Senate. At the difference of previous Tory administrations, the Miles Administration made it clear that foreign policy was on the backstage compared to internal policy.

The Foreign Secretary, aware of that state of affairs, seems to have taken the opportunity to actively reform the Foreign Office during his tenure, replacing more conservative-minded and Old Guard civil servants by younger civil servants, he has also undertook serious employee reduction within the ministry, with him announcing that 200 jobs would be cut by 5661. These layoffs came after the release of the long manifesto released by the Foreign Office, with the Secretary’s focus being on building a “new, smaller and more responsible” Foreign Office, describing the move as being “necessary” for the development of his long-term vision. 

In terms of policy, his long-term vision is to change Luthori’s foreign policy goals towards more broader and set goals than the one which were known as of now. The Foreign Secretary reportedly called Luthorian policy objectives “headless” and lacking a vision, which he deemed harmed Luthorian policy decisions more than anything. The Foreign Office would undergo, what was called a “transition period” during the first term of the Miles Administration, noted that this plan made explicit reference to a potential second term, which is far more difficult than could be expected, even the relatively popular Hall administration only got a second term after suffering heavy losses in both the Chamber of Representatives and the Senate, reducing the administration to a lame duck one that was only salvaged through the outbreak of the Second Kundrati War in 5636.

Regardless of the political feasibility of remaining an active administration after 5 years or less, if given a second term, the Miles Administration’s foreign policy aims at refocusing Luthori’s policy from an “unspeakable mess” that former Conservative ministries have left it into, according to the Green-held ministry towards a policy designed towards the promotion of worldwide peace and stability, through the expansion and protection of international human rights, democratic values and the expansion of regional stability and cooperation. The Foreign Secretary stated that Artania became the world’s laughing stock for a while, citing that Dorvik’s declining status as a world power and the inability or unwillingness of following major Artanian powers such as Kundrati, Luthori, Dundorf and Narikaton & Darnussia to take on the mantle of leadership led to what he described as the one of the “darkest periods” in terms of regional stability and leadership.

“Two wars in Kundrati, one war in Kirlawa, one war in Ikradon. All of that in the mere course of 300 years. Failure of dreams of unity to characterise have been precipitated by a failure of Artanian statesmen to take their time for building that said process of continental unity and harmony, such failures led to the continent dooming itself in four wars and never reaching to her potential.”, were the words used by the Great Office of State. While this view has supporters within Bismarck Palace, it also has a lot of critics, mostly coming from the Old Guard forming the Foreign Office, which criticized this document as being “detrimental” to Luthorian security and foreign prestige. 

[Ligbruderkrieg]

Vascanian military coup makes investors worry about state of worldwide oil markets.
14th, July 5660 (backdated)



The recent military takeover of the Government of Vascania has stunned the international community, apart from Vascanian claims that the Democratic Republic of Xsampa had sent spies in the country to “help” opposition leaders to orchestrate “anti-imperial activities” and support Xsampa’s rise in influence in the region, something that has been dubbed as the “Xsampan plague” by Vascanian officials. Worldwide reactions have mostly been muted to the coup, with the Xsampan People’s Commissariat of Foreign Affairs releasing a statement condemning the coup and expressing worry about the situation in Vascania.

In the financial markets, news of the coup sparked immediate concern for the state of oil production in Vascania, with repercussions if a cut in oil production was observed, potentially reaching up to a worldwide effect. At the end of the day, the stocks for the PetroLuthor company, which owns some stakes within the Vascanian oil markets were down by 6%, alongside other minor private gas and oil companies trying to compete in this market heavily dominated by the recently-privatized Luthorian Petroleum.

The formerly state-owned corporation, privatized after years of efforts by the Conservatives to see this change, has seen the biggest dip in stock value ever since its introduction in the Fort William Stock Exchange, due to fears about potential production decrease and the company’s role within Vascanian oil industry, as due to an agreement with Imperial Vascanian Oil (IVO), the company holds direct stakes within that said corporation.

The corporation’s General-Director addressed over the “potential” disruption of shipping through both the Sovereign Sea, caused by a potential rise in tensions with Xsampa over the course of a few years if current sentiments and apprehension remains between the two shores of the Sovereign Sea and also, in the strategic Traitor’s Depth, that could see disruptions in its shipping, adding yet another worry in the minds of investors as the dust settles in Vascania.

With Vascanian Prime Minister Vikas having seemingly tamed the opposition and the legislature into complying with his demands with the support of both the Imperial Vascanian Army and the Vascanian Emperor, it seems that stability will once again be the norm in the Far East, with the last months of instability being quickly replaced with a sentiment of “business as usual” returning as the dominant mindset when dealing with Vascania as was the case before the coup.

Both Chancellor of the Exchequer and the Director of the Bank of Luthori urged investors to remain “calm” and avoid “overreacting” to events with eventually insignificant events in the world stage, the Foreign Office remained “aware” of the events unfolding in Vascania, but has yet to officially comment on them.

[Ligbruderkrieg]

Miles Administration condemns Vascanian military coup - following on Bianjie and Xsampa's steps.
7th August 5660



The Miles Administration has stated through an official statement of the Foreign Office, Luthori’s disapproval of the recent coup in Vascania. Parliamentary Under-Secretary of State for Southern Dovani, Temania and Vascania, Mrs. Taylor Trevalyn expressed, on behalf of both the Foreign Secretary and Prime Minister, the Administration’s point of view on the matter.

The Miles Administration’s foreign policy was outlined by Foreign Secretary Cassing in an 35-page document detailing Luthori’s new policy during the Miles Administration, citing previous failures in the realm of foreign policy, overreliance on military action and overall lack of thought for a coherent long-term strategy, the Miles Administration placed itself in a sharp difference compared to its Conservative predecessors, who were blamed for that state of affairs within the Foreign Office, who according to the document, needed a complete “re-thinking” over the course of the next few years. In that aim, the document aimed at “completely changing” the outlook of Luthori’s foreign policy, going from an “old-fashioned foreign policy” towards a foreign policy dominated by the ideals of “democracy, international cooperation, humanitarianism”.

Knowing this, the decision of the Administration seems clearer, even if some Luthorian companies have interests in the nation, the first being the Imperial Oil Company (IOC), Luthori’s largest oil corporation, privatized by the Windbury Government, which currently holds stakes within the Vascanian national petroleum company, Imperial Vascanian Oil, due to an 200-year old agreement between both nations. The Board of the IOC expressed worry about potential “instability” in the Southern Cone expanding to the oil markets, a sentiment that has been shared within financial networks, with the Financial Inquirer running a piece about it.

Mr. Trevalyn stated that the latest self-coup in Vascania represented a “dangerous precedent” that could potentially “plague any form of Vascanian democracy”, he added that Luthori firmly “disagreed” with the Vascanian Government’s decision to jail left-wing opposition leaders, expressing wishes for the “swift release from their arbitrary detention”. The Under-Secretary nonetheless hoped that “internal dysfunctionments” in Vascania wouldn’t cause “ripple effects throughout the oil markets” and hoped that oil markets remained stable, even with this evident self-coup and lack of information from Vascania creating worrying sentiments in markets. 

Fort William’s declaration came as the third reaction to the full takeover of the government by the Vascanian Prime Minister, helped by the Imperial Vascanian Army. The first reaction where from both Bianjie and Xsampa, the latter taking a strong stance against Vascanian officials, with the Xsampan press targeting Vikas and other Vascanian government officials, the official government gazette labeled them as being “fascists”, while the former mostly called for a “return to normalcy” with the Vascanian Gov’t committing itself to the full release of its political opponents and vowing to help Bianjie citizens in Vascania “no matter what”.

Of course, while these two nations’ concerns were mostly due to the proximity and possible concern for the instability in Vascania to expand, Luthori’s statement was much economic-driven. While the Luthorians also called for the release of political prisoners and the full restoration of democratic governance in Vascania, the statement was mostly pushed by Luthorian economic presence in Vascania and Luthori’s overall reliance upon Vascanian oil for the time being. This sentiment was matched by the Under-Secretary’s statement, which confirmed economic motives and fear of a global repercussion in case of further instability happening in Vascania.