(Text-only) Rhondda Records Home Page

Cuba: Ending the blockade

is an ethical requirement

Havana, October 23rd 10:33am

(Prensa Latina)

The doctor of the National Institute of Oncology and

Radiobiology of Cuba, Josefina Prosper, alluded to

the effects of the U.S. blockade on cancer health

and assured that its end is - today - an

ethical requirement.

These statements to Prensa Latina took place on the

occasion of the Parliamentary Public Hearing, based

in this health institution, in which sensitivity and the

struggle for life ...are palpable, in every corner.

"Between March 2025.. and February 2026, the blockade

caused losses of around 367 million dollars, in damages

to Cuban health, but the highest cost is not measurable

in figures, but in the time.. that a sick person does not

have," Josefina said. Of the 395 drugs, that oncology

needs in its basic health system, 300 are in shortage

- due to the difficulty of accessing the supplies and

raw materials necessary for their manufacture.

Behind these numbers are the families -------

desperately looking for the medicine

they need, she said.

Prosper spoke about child care and the challenges

it imposes on a day-to-day basis.

She noted that, in neonatology, in which the most fragile

children are cared for over 95 percent of the equipment

depends on energy that is often unstable which forces

health personnel to take measures to sustain life,

which is the most important thing.

She recognized an increase in infant mortality from four per

thousand live births, in 2018, to 9.9 in 2026. "Behind these

figures there are households that do not hear the cry of

their babies today," she said.

The doctor spoke about the complications that can be faced

in an operating room, in which, if an anesthesia machine is

turned off, doctors must work miracles to continue with

the surgical act, because it cannot be stopped.

In addition, it meant that in order to make way for oncological

operations, on which the patient's life depends, the health

system is forced to postpone other surgeries, and that

each postponement represents a person who will not

receive the treatment they need.

"Today there are more than 100,000 patients waiting for

an operation, and of them 12,000 are infants," she said.

She also said that more than 30 thousand children have

seen their vaccination treatments affected not only by

the shortage of medicines but also by the lack of fuel

or the absence of refrigeration vehicles... that

guarantee their transport to all corners of

the island.

Every year, between 300 and 400 Cuban children and

adolescents are diagnosed with cancer whose lives

depend on missing medicines or equipment that

runs on energy, she said.

Although for them, she added, there are treatments in

other parts of the world that could work in their

clinical picture --- it is not possible for us to

access them, because they contain US

components in their formulation,"

lamented the doctor.

She invited us to reflect on what we would feel if our

son, our mother, a brother or a close friend were in

this situation, and just imagine how devastating

it is.

She also mentioned the specific case of Diego, a teenager

diagnosed at the age of 15 who has spent four years in

treatments from Villa Clara to Havana.

His mother, Liset, wakes up startled every day, because

her son's life depends on his treatment not failing and

for that ...fuel is necessary.

The results are not long in coming. Survival for childhood

cancer patients fell from 85 percent ....to 65 percent.

A Cuban child deserves the same access to services

and medicines --------- as any other child in the world.

For the doctor, no mother deserves to fear that the

machine that sustains her child's life will be

turned off - and no people in the world

deserves as much punishment - as

that of an economic, commercial,

financial and energy blockade.

"Lifting the blockade is today an ethical requirement

rather than a political decision. Cancer does not

wait, the newborn does not wait, the patient

who needs dialysis to live ...does not wait.

For them, their families and those of us

who continue to fight for life ---- we

demand an end to this genocide

today," Prosper concluded.

Image: People hold up a banner as they protest against Israel at the entrance of the International Criminal Court.

The Houthis (Ansar Allah)

said that they attacked

the building of the MoD

of Saudi Arabia with
a ballistic missile

October 27th, 3:11pm

(rt.ru

The Yemeni Houthis said they attacked the building

of the Ministry of Defense of Saudi Arabia with a

ballistic missile.

This was stated by the spokesman for

the Houthi movement, Yahya Sari.

______________________________________________

Pentagon in Shock: Iran Unveils

Upgraded Arash Attack Drone

With 100 KG Warhead

October 27th, 2:47pm GMT

(Pravda.En)

Iran has unveiled an upgraded Arash one-way attack drone,

described in reports as Arash-3, with a heavier warhead,

navigation designed to work without GPS and a jet-

powered variant under development.

Warhead weight increases from 50 to 100 kg, according

to Iranian state media. Changes to its explosive and

incendiary materials are intended to make

successful hits more destructive,

alongside improvements in

targeting accuracy.

The combined upgrades could inflict roughly 2.3 times the

damage, an Army specialist said in the unveiling footage.

That is an Iranian assessment of the overall upgrade,

not a claim that doubling the warhead weight

automatically doubles destruction.

Additional GPS-independent navigation options are intended

to help the drone continue toward its target when satellite

signals are disrupted. This addresses a practical

vulnerability of long-range attack drones:

carrying a large warhead means little

if jamming sends it off course.

AI-assisted targeting is intended to improve precision, but

Iran has not detailed the technology’s exact role. The

announcement does not establish whether it assists

navigation, recognizes targets or performs other

guidance functions.

A jet-powered version would broaden the Arash family beyond

piston-powered models. Higher speed could leave defenders

less time to detect, track and intercept it, although the new

variant’s speed, range & exact engine remain undisclosed.

Images suggest a revised airframe with delta-shaped wings

and twin vertical stabilizers. Composite materials.... and a

honeycomb internal structure have also been suggested,

potentially reducing structural weight, but those

construction details remain unconfirmed.

The aircraft appeared in October 22 footage from an

underground drone production facility, visited by

Army chief Amir Hatami. Showing production

alongside the upgraded weapon highlights

Iran’s effort --- to keep building and

replenishing its drone arsenal ---

under attack; monthly output

has not been disclosed.

The upgrades aim to give air defenses a tougher job

by making Iran’s drones harder to divert through

GPS jamming -- and more damaging when they

get through.

Do you think Western defense

systems can handle ARASH?

Source: Telegram "newrulesgeo"

___________________________________

US rapper Macklemore vows to fight

for Palestine ...until his ‘last breath‘

October 27th, 11:03am

(PressTV)

Brendan Yates of Turnstile holds up a Palestinian flag

as Turnstile performs at the Washington Monument

on October 24, 2026. (Photo by AFP)

US rapper Macklemore - has vowed to fight for Palestine

until his “last breath,” following his fallout with English

singer Ed Sheeran over his support for Palestinians.

Speaking during the opening of his Free Palestine tour

in Dublin on Tuesday, Macklemore declared that he is

proud to stand with the Palestinian people.

While waving a Palestinian flag, he said he will continue

to fight for “collective liberation” until his “last breath.”

Fans came to the concert from all over the country, wearing

pro-Palestinian T-shirts, hats featuring Palestinian flags,

and keffiyeh scarves, a symbol of Palestinian identity.

They chanted “Free, free Palestine” ---- throughout

the show.

Tickets for his concert sold out quickly, with 13,000

tickets for Dublin’s 3Arena snapped up, in minutes.

Macklemore has pledged to donate the proceeds

from his tour .......to organizations supporting

the Palestinians.

The three-city tour comes after his removal from

Ed Sheeran’s concerts following the rapper’s

pro-Palestinian remarks.

The fallout between the two singers began when

Macklemore, performing as the opening act for

Sheeran at a concert in New Jersey in

September, said he wanted to say

two words that are “very dear”

to him ---- “Free Palestine.”

“Those two words are so threatening to some people that

we’d rather silence those two words than confront what

they actually mean... Somehow those words have

become more controversial than the suffering

that made them necessary,” he said on

stage during the Free Palestine tour.

The tour also included other pro-Palestinian singers

and bands, and it will continue in Paris and London

this week. A US tour is also planned, with dates
to be announced later.

Macklemore has repeatedly censured Israel over its

genocide against Palestinians. In May of 2024, he

released “Hind’s Hall,” a protest song honouring

Hind Rajab, a five-year-old Palestinian girl

killed by Israeli forces in Gaza.

Since the Israeli regime’s genocidal war began..... against the

Palestinians in October 2023, more than 74,000 people have

been killed by the regime. UN Commission of Inquiry stated

recently that Israel has committed war crimes and crimes

against humanity in the occupied Palestinian territories.

______________________________________________

US ‘guarantees’ proven ineffective;

region must rid itself of foreign

interference: Rezaei

October 27th, 10:11am

(PressTV)

Iran’s top security official - says the US's "guarantees" on

regional security have benefited none of the states

trusted Washington's promises

“The United States has failed to bring security to any country

in the region ---- and the ineffectiveness of Washington’s

security guarantees has become evident,” Secretary

of Iran’s Supreme National Security Council, Major

General Mohsen Rezaei, wrote in an Arabic-

language post on X on Tuesday.

“Security in West Asia must be endogenous, and any form

of foreign interference must be prevented,” he added.

Iran responded to the latest round of unprovoked US-Israeli

aggression that lasted from February 28 until April 7 with

at least 100 waves of decisive, successful retaliatory

strikes against hostile targets across the region.

The reprisal either caused substantial damage or completely

laid waste to US outposts in countries such as Qatar,

Bahrain, Saudi Arabia, the United Arab Emirates,

and Jordan --- with Washington’s logistical

facilities in Bahrain ...being among the

facilities that suffered exceptional

destruction.

US officials themselves ....have admitted to the debilitating

extent of the damage, and now, Washington is reportedly

revisiting the extent of its regional military presence.

Rezaei’s comments came a day after he hosted a 4-day

security meeting - between senior officials from Saudi

Arabia, Türkiye, and Pakistan. Iranian officials hailed

the development as a positive step towards

regional cooperation.

Meanwhile, Alaeddin Boroujerdi, a member of the Iranian

Parliament’s National Security and Foreign Policy

Committee, spoke to Lebanon’s al-Mayadeen

television channel -- saying the three states

had announced their respective intentions

to send security delegations to the

Iranian capital.

He noted that regional countries had lost confidence in

Washington’s ability to guarantee their security and

were reassessing their policies.

The lawmaker urged regional governments to

understand that “the United States cannot

help [them] provide their security.”

________________________________________

Oman FM: Persian Gulf states, Iran, Iraq

should form security pact excluding US

October 27th, 8:12am

(PressTV)

Oman’s Foreign Minister Badr Albusaidi - has called for the

formation of a non-aggression security pact involving six

Persian Gulf states plus Iran and Iraq ------- slamming US

attempts to demonize the Islamic Republic as a threat.

Speaking at Girton College, Cambridge, on Monday, Albusaidi

stressed that Washington has promoted ......for almost half a

century the false image of Tehran as a threat to the Persian

Gulf states ----- holding back West Asia's ability to solve its

own problems.

The Omani foreign minister, speaking to break the deadlock

over the region’s future, stressed that the US would no

longer be the region's primary security provider.

“Issues such as the Strait of Hormuz have become impossible

to resolve -- because external powers continue to define the

terms of engagement -- while regional powers are unable to

take collective responsibility for making their own security

arrangements .......and reach a consensus on them,”

Albusaidi noted.

Iran has so far refused to ease its restrictions on transit

through the strategic Strait of Hormuz, saying the key

international energy waterway will be fully reopened

once the US permanently ends its aggression and

lifts its maritime blockade and sanctions

against Iran.

Iranian authorities have also indicated that the country

would not back down from its conditions and would

respond decisively to any new act of aggression

against its territory.

“What holds us back is that issues which ought to be

handled at a regional level by the states of the

[Persian] Gulf themselves..... are made more

complex, more intractable and sometimes

simply impossible to resolve because the

region’s security arrangements ----- are

insufficiently developed,” Albusaidi

further stressed.

“And they are insufficiently developed because they

have relied - for too long - on the involvement of

external powers,” he added.

Oman’s top diplomat noted - that the Islamic Republic

''had been systematically excluded from playing any
meaningful role in the security arrangements of

the region.''

Albusaidi also stressed that such exclusion had led to

“profoundly negative consequences, not just for Iran,

but for the region as a whole”, including the

imposition of priorities on the region, by

external powers such as “the entirely

false perception ------ that there is a

fundamental regional antagonism,

between Iran & the Arab states

of the [Persian] Gulf.”

According to the Omani foreign minister, the most

“damaging” ...of the priorities imposed on the

Persian Gulf region from the outside, has

been the requirement that the Islamic

Republic be excluded.

“Not just.... excluded. Worse. Positioned -- as the threat

against which regional security had to be organized,”
Albusaidi stressed, speaking on the day high-level

defense and intelligence officials - from Türkiye,

Pakistan and Saudi Arabia gathered in Tehran

in an attempt to prevent a renewed act of

aggression by the US against Iran.

Iran and Oman, both coastal states bordering the strategic

waterway, engaged in intensive negotiations for months

over arrangements for safe shipping through the
Strait of Hormuz.

Tehran and Oman finally reached a temporary agreement

on how shipping traffic should be managed in the strait,

but the plan is on hold..... as Iran keeps the waterway

closed due to US acts of aggression and violations.

Roughly one-fifth of global oil demand... passes through the

Strait of Hormuz, making the waterway one of the world's

most strategically important maritime chokepoints.

Oman’s foreign minister - without mentioning by name - also

challenged US President Donald Trump’s case for a further

war of aggression against Iran by saying that he believed

the previous round of Oman-mediated negotiations

between the US and Iran in February were

“making significant progress, and that

an agreement was within reach. We

still stand by that judgment today.”

The US and the Israeli regime waged their first war of

aggression against Iran, which lasted 12 days, in

June 2025. Their second aggression began on

February 28, 2026, and came to a halt in

early April after 40 days.

Iran has been defending itself by targeting US bases

and energy infrastructure in the Persian Gulf states

with missile strikes and drone attacks.

‘War criminal promotion tactics’: Adidas

faces boycott calls ---- over campaign

featuring an Israeli trooper

September 4th, 9:45pm

(PressTV)

Calls for a boycott of Adidas are growing after the sportswear

company featured an Israeli trooper in a global campaign.

The campaign has prompted criticism from pro-Palestine

organizations and activists --- because of the trooper

Shaliv Biton’s participation in the Israeli regime’s

bloodletting in Gaza.

The campaign has been rolled out in Adidas stores,

including its outlets in the occupied territories.

Biton took part in an Israeli assault in Gaza in 2021 that

claimed the lives of more than 200 Palestinians and

destroyed numerous buildings.

Critics have reminded Biton’s military background and his

social media activity. He has shared photographs and

videos of himself and other Israeli forces in Gaza,

including footage of troops singing and dancing,

while his profile also contains images of him

carrying weapons.

Sports journalist Leyla Hamed criticized Adidas’ choice of

campaign representative, arguing that the company

chose to bank on Biton’s having lost a leg, while

it should have considered the wider context

of limb loss in Gaza.

“Gaza has the highest per capita rate of child amputees in the world.

More than 5,000 traumatic limb amputations have been estimated

since October 2023, as a result of Israeli attacks carried out by

soldiers like the one Adidas chose to model for them,”

she wrote on X.

US-based political commentator and activist Guy Christensen also

condemned the campaign, writing, “Actually disgusting when you

know kids in Gaza who might not ever get to walk again.” He

subsequently called for a boycott of Adidas.

Another activist denounced the company for

associating itself with the Israeli military.

“The German sportswear brand Adidas is using Zionist war

criminals from the "Israel" army, who lost a foot while

invading Gaza..... to promote their new single-foot

sneakers. More than 4,000 Palestinian children

have been amputated by "Israel's" bombs,

but Adidas and other millionaire

multinationals ignore them,”

the activist wrote on X.

Other critics similarly condemned Adidas

for associating itself with genocide

and apartheid.

Earlier this year, the NGO Humanity & Inclusion reported that

between 70 and 80 percent of patients admitted to the 12

hospitals that were still partially functioning in Gaza...

had lost limbs or suffered spinal cord injuries.

UNICEF estimated in January 2024 that about 1,000 children

in Gaza had lost one or both legs, equivalent at the time to

approximately 10 children losing a limb each day during

Israeli bombardments. The figure is believed to have

risen since then.

The shortage of medical supplies and the continuing blockade of

Gaza have also complicated the treatment and rehabilitation of

amputees. Healthcare workers have resorted to producing

homemade prosthetics as temporary aids for people

who have lost limbs.... while waiting for access

to appropriate prosthetic devices.

______________________________________

UK legislators call for comprehensive

arms embargo, settlement trade ban

on Israel

July 27th, 6:06am

(PressTV)

A coalition of 80 British lawmakers and peers has called on

newly appointed British Prime Minister, Andy Burnham, to

impose sanctions on Israel -- including a comprehensive

arms embargo and a ban on trade that supports illegal

settlements in the occupied Palestinian territories.

In a letter, spearheaded by MP Kim Johnson, they urged the

government to “decisively change its stance to uphold the

rights of the Palestinian people and to prevent Israel’s

continued violation of international law.”

It also called on the government to acknowledge the UN

Independent Commission of Inquiry report, which

validated Israel’s ongoing genocide in Gaza.

Alongside recognition of the UN finding, the lawmakers urged

the government to fully enforce the International Court of

Justice' advisory opinion, delivered on July 19, 2024.

It holds that Israel’s occupation of the Palestinian territories

is unlawful, that Israel should put an end to that occupation,

desist from creating new settlements, and evacuate those

already established.

“The previous administration ---- has willfully ignored the rulings of

international courts. It has still failed to issue a formal response

to the July 2024 International Court of Justice judgment

- which requires Britain to cease all actions that aid or

assist [Israel’s] grave violations of international law,”

the letter read.

It added, “Now is the opportunity for this government and for you,

as the new Prime Minister, to truly turn a new page.”

The letter bore the signatures of prominent legislators,

including Diane Abbott, Jeremy Corbyn, Baroness

Jenny Jones, and Baroness Warsi.

In an op-ed for Labour Outlook, Johnson stated that Palestine

has emerged as the “defining test” of the Labour Party’s

commitment to the notion --- that international law

applies to all.

“If we condemn violations in one part of the world while excusing

or ignoring them elsewhere, we undermine the very rules-based

international order that Britain claims to defend,” she said.

“Burnham tells us --- he has a plan to renew confidence in Labour. If

that renewal is to mean anything, it must begin by making a clean

break with the failures of Starmerism on Palestine. If we are truly

serious about turning the page, there could be no clearer place

to begin,” Johnson noted.

The letter is supported by the Palestine Solidarity Campaign, which

has been advocating for Burnham to distance himself from former

Prime Minister Keir Starmer’s disgraceful legacy by implementing

extensive sanctions against Israel - comprising a complete arms

embargo, a cessation - of all military collaboration &
diplomatic support - and a total ban on all trade.

Rhondda Records exists to express the Rhondda's
vision --- when it was confident, powerful, caring,
and socialist.

A Rhondda very aware of the media's poisonous
tricks -- how they con working class people into
attacking each other, or racial groups, or often
even their best allies and friends.... instead of
seeing their real enemies:- an elite who hate
the very idea that working people can think
or create, or achieve ------- a fairer society.

Thatcher said her proudest achievement was
Blair and New Labour - who parachuted in
careerists and expenses fiddlers - to stop
local Labour members having a say, and
who made genuine socialist MPs leave
the Labour party in disgust and many
members and voters to despair...
and the young to stop voting.

Jeremy Corbyn was always attacked because
he was trying to reverse all that New Labour
corruption --- that's why membership was
flooding in all over the UK.

______________________________________

Get Involved!

– If you feel you’ve been ‘purged’,
take this online survey:

https://www.surveymonkey.co.uk/r/857YMDK

or this one:

https://docs.google.com/forms/d/e/1FAIpQLSc0du5YuhPZ8ahI
oxC_b6pvBprmGA4XFdG-0r2dOVYyc4UNFg/viewform?c=0&w=1

– Request all your own data that
the Labour Party holds on you:

http://www.labour.org.uk/pages/privacy

_______________________________________

IF - YOU THINK you HAVE
BEEN UNFAIRLY BARRED:

“Any member who is suspended & intends
to appeal the decision should throw in a
‘Subject Access Request in accordance
with the Data Protection Act’ --- for ALL
data that the Labour Party hold on them.

The Labour Party are Data Controllers and
therefore have to, by law, provide you with
all material/information they hold on you.”

If anyone is in contact with anyone who
was barred from voting --- please can
you pass this info on:

The Labour leadership election was under the
jurisdiction of the electoral reform services.

If you were unfairly deprived of your vote you
can call them on 0208 365 8909 and lodge
your complaint, and inform them of your
Data Protection request.

https://www.electoralreform.co.uk

The notification letters barring new members,
did not give a clear reason, or information on
how to appeal, so Vox Political suggests that
anyone in this situation... could also contact
Liz Davies at: http://www.whycantivote.com

She is a barrister -------- who can
advise members on what to do.

**************************************

PONCY LABOUR MPS PROBLEM?

A huge drop in working-class Labour MPs,
caused a massive drop in support among
voters with similar backgrounds, reveals
research seeking to explain why support
has dwindled in the party’s heartlands.

The study says past leaders - like Kinnock
and Blair made a concerted effort to pick
“more and more middle-class candidates
to run for office, during the 80s and 90s,
as part of an effort to rebrand” -- which
had initial successes at the ballot box.

But this “conscious electoral strategy”
stored up problems, as working-class
voters who initially, just didn’t vote in
response, now seek an alternative.

The solution? Trust each constituency to put
forward its own candidates, and don't impose
‘party-approved’ choices who can't do the job.

Now, unfortunately, there are "entryist" MPs who, for
decades, have been groomed by CIA cold war relic
organisations -- like the Atlantic Council -- and are
now trying to misdirect the Labour Party towards
cuts, a militarised police, and a US war agenda...
- their anti-Corbyn slant is still hobbling Labour.

‘How Can I Deselect My Labour MP?’ A Short Guide
to Reselection and Democratic Accountability
by Eric Sim, excellent free advice here:

http://novaramedia.com/2016/07/13/how-can-i-
deselect-my-labour-mp-a-short-guide-to-
reselection-and-democratic-accountability/

CHRIS BRYANT - SUPPORT THE MEMBERS'
LEADERSHIP CHOICE & POLICIES - OR GO!

Chris Bryant, the Rhondda's dodgy MP,
was on TV -- as soon as the PLP coup
started: telling us that Jeremy MUST
go because it was the ONLY way to
act in the Labour Party's interest...

Chris Bryant's voting record:
from TheyWorkForYou.com

On Tuition Fees:

On 27 Jan 2004:
Chris Bryant voted in favour of university tuition
fees increasing from £1,125 per year, to up to
£3,000 per year.

On 31 Mar 2004:
Chris Bryant voted to allow university tuition fees
to increase from £1,125 per year, to up to £3,000
per year.

On 31 Mar 2004:
Chris Bryant voted for the introduction of variable
university tuition fees (top-up fees) of up to £3,000
per year in place of the previous fixed fee of £1,250
per year.

On 31 Mar 2004:
Chris Bryant voted to allow university tuition fees
to increase from £1,125 per year to up to £3,000
per year - and to make other changes to higher
education funding & regulation arrangements.

On 14 Sep 2004:
Chris Bryant voted against: the immediate abolition
of all tuition fees, the re-introduction of maintenance
grants of up to £2,000 for students from low-income
homes, and changes to the country's higher
education system.

On 14 Sep 2004:
Chris Bryant voted to reject the Liberal
Democrat policy of abolition of tuition fees.

On 25 May 2016:
Chris Bryant was absent for a vote on the Queen's
Speech - Forcing Schools to Become Academies
- and Further Rises in University Tuition Fees.

On Human Rights:

Consistently voted for introducing ID cards

Almost always ------ voted for requiring the mass
retention of information about communications

Generally voted for mass surveillance of
people’s communications and activities

On the Environment:

Generally voted against greater regulation
of hydraulic fracturing (fracking) to
extract shale gas

On Special Interests:

Almost always voted against limits
on success fees paid to lawyers
in no-win no fee cases.

Generally ------- voted against a
statutory register of lobbyists

On War or Peace:

Generally - voted for use of UK military
forces in combat operations overseas.

Consistently voted for the Iraq war.

Consistently voted against - an
investigation into the Iraq war.

Generally - voted for replacing Trident
with a new nuclear weapons system.

On 2 Dec 2015:
Voted to support UK airstrikes in Syria
[without UN authorisation]

On 2 Dec 2015:
Voted to support UK airstrikes in Syria
[without UN authorisation]

On Independence:

Generally voted for more EU integration

____________________________

Chris Bryant Labour MP
From Wikipedia

(aka 1962-1986: Mr Christopher John Bryant
1986-1991: The Reverend Christopher John
Bryant, 1991-2001: Mr Christopher John
Bryant, 2001-: Mr Christopher John
Bryant MP.)

Born in Cardiff, to a Scottish mother & a Welsh
father, Bryant grew up in Cardiff, Wales (where
his father worked for 5 years), & Cheltenham.

He was educated at Cheltenham College, an
independent school for boys in the spa town
of Cheltenham in Gloucestershire, where he
was captain of the school swimming team,
and Mansfield College at the University of
Oxford, where he graduated in 1983, with
a Bachelor of Arts (BA) degree in English.
This was later ''promoted'' to a Master
of Arts degree (MA (Oxon)), as
per tradition.

After completing his first degree -- Bryant began
training to be a priest in the Church of England
at Ripon College, Cuddesdon, in Oxfordshire.
There, he obtained a degree in theology.

Although a member of the Conservative Party,
and an elected office-holder in the Oxford
University Conservative Association....
he joined the Labour Party in 1986,
after leaving Oxford.

He was ordained deacon in 1986 and priest in
1987. He served as a Curate at the Church of
All Saints High Wycombe,from 1986 to 1989;
then as a Youth Chaplain in Peterborough,
as well as travelling in Latin America.

In 1991 Bryant left the ordained ministry, after
deciding that being gay and being a priest,
were incompatible. Statements made by
Richard Harries, then Bishop of Oxford,
also influenced his decision.

After leaving the priesthood... in 1991, Bryant
worked as the election agent to the Holborn
and St Pancras Constituency Labour Party,
where he helped Frank Dobson hold his
seat in the 1992 general election.

From 1993... he was Local Government officer
for the Labour Party; he lived in Hackney and
was elected to Hackney Borough Council in
1993 serving until 1998. He became Chair
of the Christian Socialist Movement.

He is both... a member of the Labour Friends
of Israel and Labour Friends of Palestine &
the Middle East. From 1994 to 1996 he was
London manager of the leader-grooming
"charity", Common Purpose.

He was Labour candidate for Wycombe, in the
1997 general election (he lost by 2,370 votes),
and Head of European Affairs for the BBC,
from 1998.

His selection -- for the very safe Labour seat of
Rhondda, South Wales in 2000, shocked many
people given Bryant's background; gay, an ex-
Anglican vicar, and someone who was a Tory,
while studying at Oxford, and a member now
of the Henry Jackson Society 'think tank' ---
described by The Guardian newspaper, as
'neoconservative'. It is pro-US, pro-NATO
& pro-military intervention, as well as
being fundamentally anti-socialist.

Fifty-two people applied for the candidature
and a local councillor was hot favourite to
win, before Bryant ....was parachuted in.

In 2004, a photograph of Mr Bryant.. in his
underpants which he had posted to a gay
dating website was published in 'papers.

When an interviewer suggested he was
a 'disgrace to the Rhondda', he said:
"They can't get rid of me."

His pay, allowances and some expenses:

The basic annual salary for an MP -- from
April 1st, 2016 is £74,962. MPs also get
expenses: to cover the costs of running
an office, employing staff, having some-
where to live in London, plus, in their
constituency and travelling between
Parliament and their constituency.

His MP's expenses story:

Chris Bryant changed second home,
twice to claim £20,000: the deputy
leader of the House of Commons,
"flipped" his second home twice,
in 2 years allowing him to claim
almost £20,000 for renovations
and fees.

Chris Bryant, MP for the Rhondda, split over
£92,000 of expenses between 3 properties
in Wales and London --- within five years.

In 2004, he attempted to claim £58,000 to
overhaul his second home in Wales, after
allegedly complaining that properties in
his constituency were "terrace or mine
owners' houses".

Mr Bryant, a former Church of England clergyman,
wanted the money for a new bathroom & kitchen,
and to demolish his conservatory. He'd bought the
detached house for £97,500, under a year earlier.

He submitted a claim to the Commons fees office for
£58,493.26 --- almost 3 times the annual maximum.
He noted that the claim exceeded his allowance.

His alleged justification was disclosed....... in
correspondence between Commons officials.
By email, an official wrote: "He had problems
finding a suitable property because in the
Rhondda there is a choice mainly -- of
terraced property.. or mine owners'
houses." When approached by the
Daily Telegraph, Mr Bryant said:
"I have never said or thought
anything of the sort".

In all ----- he successfully claimed over £13,000
for renovations, repairs & appliances, in 2004.
Along with other bills, his annual claim was
£20,902.

In April 2005 ---- he flipped his expenses to his flat in
west London, which he bought for £400,000 in April
2002. He also claimed £630 a month, for mortgage
interest along with other bills. After claiming over
£3,600 over 3 months, he sold the flat in July
2005..... for £477,000.

Mr Bryant used his profits to buy a more expensive
flat in west London, which was valued at £670,000.
He immediately flipped his second home expenses
there, claiming almost £6,400 in stamp duty, legal
fees and mortgage fees incurred in the purchase.

He then began claiming interest of £1,000 a month,
on the mortgage. He also claimed a further £6,000
a year, for the flat's service charge & ground rent.

In all, he claimed £92, 415 in second
home expenses, from 2004 to 2009.

Mr Bryant said at the time: "I moved flat in
London, so as to be closer to Parliament."

Research by Channel 4 News in 2015 - found that
at least 46 MPs had this kind of system in place
a move one Labour backbencher described as
“a new fiddle”. Channel 4 reported then:

“Our investigation ---- found that many of the MPs
bought their London properties with the help of
taxpayers, when a previous expenses system
let them claim back the mortgage payments.
But when those claims were banned, after
the expenses scandal - they switched to
letting out their properties, in some
cases for up to £3,000 a month.
They then started claiming
expenses... for rent and
hotels in the capital.”

Among those identified was Chris Bryant, shadow
leader of the House of Commons. He had already
bought a penthouse in London back in 2005 and
claimed around £1,000 a month in mortgage
claims under the old system.

But after the expenses scandal ----- he started renting
the property out. It’s since been advertised by estate
agents as having a private lift and porter, with rent
at about £3,000 a month. Meantime, Bryant moved
into a new flat claiming his own rent on expenses.

Russian/Scottish scientists hail long-range
secure quantum communication system.

A group of scientists from ITMO University
in Saint Petersburg, Russia, has developed
a new approach to constructing quantum
communication systems for secure data
exchange.

The experimental device based on the results of the
research is capable of transmitting single-photon
quantum signals across distances of 250 klmtrs
or more, which is on par with its cutting edge
analogues, the ITMO press-service says.

"Now researchers are on a mission -- to create
a fully-fledged quantum cryptographic system,
that will generate & distribute quantum keys
and transmit useful data simultaneously",
ITMO says.

Information security is becoming more and more
of a critical issue not only for large companies,
banks and defense enterprises but even for
small businesses and individual users.

But the data encryption algorithms we currently
use for protecting our data are imperfect - in the
long-term, their logic can be cracked. Regardless
of how complex and intricate the algorithm is,
getting around it, is just a matter of time.

Unlike algorithm-based encryption, systems
that protect information, by making use of
fundamental laws of quantum physics, can
make data transmission totally immune to
hacker attacks, in the future.

Information in a quantum channel is carried
by single photons that change irreversibly
if an eavesdropper tries to intercept them.
The legitimate users will instantly know
about any kind of intervention.

Researchers at the Quantum Information Centre
of the International Institute of Photonics and
Optical Information Technology at ITMO Uni.,
Russia, along with their colleagues from the
Heriot-Watt University, in Edinburgh, have
devised a new way to generate and
distribute, quantum bits.

This makes it possible to share quantum signals
--- via optical fibres --- 250 kilometres in distance.

"To transmit quantum signals, we use the so-
called side frequencies," says Artur Gleim,
head of the Quantum Information Centre,
at ITMO University,

"This unique approach gives us a number
of advantages -- such as a considerable
simplification of the device architecture
and the large pass-through capacity of
the quantum channel. In terms of bit rate
and operating distances, our system is
comparable to absolute champions in
the field of quantum communications."

According to Robert Collins, research associate
at the Institute of Photonics & Quantum Sciences
at Heriot-Watt University, and one of the authors
of the study, this may become a pivotal point for
the whole field of quantum communication and
cryptography:

"Down the track, this new approach can enable
smooth coexistence of numerous data streams
with different wavelengths in one single optical
cable. On top of it, these quantum streams can
be fed into the already existing fibre optic lines
--- along with conventional communications."

The research paper is published
in the Optics Express journal.

Scottish universities are to be
congratulated for their strong
& growing links with Chinese
and Russian universities....

What a shame, that Wales is
lying low --- with academics
too scared to break from
US military research.