How to beat cancel culture
One of the most extraordinary features of the ‘cancel culture’ is how well it works. All decent people hate it,…
The BBC has given up properly reporting on China
Totalitarian powers mostly want foreign journalists to go, but sometimes they want them to stay. China recently detained Michael Smith…
Are we seeing the last push against Brexit?
Large parts of the senior civil service regard Brexit as almost illegal. Some of them regard loyalty to the EU…
Boris needs to do more to fight back in the culture war
As one battles on, a reluctant volunteer in the culture war which the left is fighting on every front with…
In defence of Hans Sloane
‘The British Museum stands in solidarity with the British Black community, with the African American community, with the Black community…
Without Black Wednesday there would have been no Brexit
Last Sunday, BBC Radio 4’s The Reunion devoted 40 minutes to ‘Black Wednesday’, as our exit from the ERM was…
Should Gavin Williamson resign as a career move?
Amid all the puzzlement and recrimination about why the government got into this mess about A-level and GCSE results, one…
Coronavirus and the BBC's anti-American bias
One keeps hearing, particularly on the BBC, that the United States is ‘the worst in the world’ for coronavirus, stated…
Is Chris Packham finally facing facts on shooting?
Chris Packham is widely seen as the most extreme of well-known animal rights activists. His obsessions against hunting and shooting…
Will HSBC protect its pro-democracy staff in Hong Kong?
Noel Quinn, the chief executive of HSBC, declines to say whether his bank will disown pro-democracy staff who fall foul…
Why poetry matters
Juan Carlos, ex-King of Spain, behaved foolishly in relation to money and sex, and so his decision to leave Spain…
Jesus College’s China problem
Although Stephen Toope, vice-chancellor of Cambridge University, is committed to openness, it is a struggle to get information out of…
The politics of email sign-offs
I think Anne Applebaum is a friend of mine. I certainly hope so, since I have always admired her writing,…
The ruthlessness of Huawei
Huawei’s 5G path is blocked. In a few months’ time, Huawei may no longer see the point of paying six-figure…
Why did we not ban Huawei earlier?
‘Just rejoice’, as Mrs Thatcher once said about something else. The government’s decision to debug our national security by getting…
Will Cambridge stand up for free speech in China?
Last month, Dr Priyamvada Gopal, of Churchill College, Cambridge University, tweeted ‘White Lives Don’t Matter’. She was abused online and…
Now Gladstone must fall?
There are far more Chinese students in British universities than there are from the entire Commonwealth. Many universities have been…
Michelangelo’s David must fall
‘White Lives Matter Burnley’ said the plane’s banner as it circled the club’s stadium just after the teams had ‘taken…
The grand names on Huawei’s payroll
Why is it wrong, some ask, for senior British businessmen, former civil servants etc to work for Huawei UK? After…
What is Dominic Raab not telling us about Hong Kong?
The government’s promised ‘pathway to citizenship’ to Hong Kong people is wonderful, but has the Foreign Office arranged a get-out…
What is it about Chinese totalitarianism that makes clever people so silly?
There is something about Chinese totalitarianism which brings out the silliness of many clever people. I suspect it is to…
The Spectator’s proud history of standing up for Hong Kong
This week in 1989, the Chinese authorities massacred protestors in Tiananmen Square, Beijing. I was editing this paper. It struck…
The ferocious bias against Dominic Cummings
At Dominic Cummings’s press conference on Monday, reporters tried two lines of attack. One was to behave like local detectives,…
Cambridge University is kowtowing to China
Last month, writing elsewhere, I quoted the website of the China Centre at Jesus College, Cambridge: ‘Under the leadership of…
Mixed messaging is good for us
A friend, a senior retired mandarin, emails. He complains that rural lockdown means that he and his wife have ‘got…
