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I think this puzzle had some of the most inane clueing I have seen. I was guessing the answer from the available letters, and then spending my time trying to figure how it fitted the clue. And it never quite did. The purpose of a clue is to lead one to the answer - not the other way around. Does anyone else think the standard of cluing has plummeted in the last few months?

I agree. I have lots of answers that I feel are right and fit part of the clue but the rest does not seem to make sense!

I agree that the standard of clueing has been pretty low lately. I particularly dislike deletion clues and those involving proper nouns, as these are almost impossible to solve just from the wordplay - I have to guess the answer and work backwards to figure out the parsing.

I'm relieved to learn that I'm not alone.

Totally with you on deletions and proper nouns. I’m not that keen on anagrams either, and some of the synonyms beggar belief - like really?

This one had a few internal deletions which I find easier than external ones but I did think the puzzle as a whole wasn’t great.
Quite a few of those words that none of has ever used and not many that you could build from the wordplay.
I’ve finished but I really don’t understand 25d
During riot, steal wheels before fight in storage area (7)
I have the answer and can see how the last three letters mean fight but the first four? And it may be a storage device but I don’t think it’s a storage area!!

In a riot, steal is LOOT and that “wheels” as in it reverses

Think definition is just about ok as it’s a storage area for tools

Thank you. I hadn’t twigged the “wheels” bit.
But I still reckon you might keep one of these in a storage area (shed, garage) but it’s a weak definition for the answer myself.
I don’t think you’d call a pencil case or a suitcase a storage area.