Columns
The hypocrisy of the Farage outcry
Much heartened by the barrage of criticism I’ve been receiving from both Spectator and Times readers, I’m returning to the…
The Tories’ tax burden
Last summer, all the Tory party could talk about was tax. It was at the heart of the leadership contest…
Across Europe by train
I found Jean-Pierre standing at a half-open window gulping down lungfuls of stale Dutch air as our night train chuntered,…
The dangerous cult of ‘toxic parents’
Complaining about ‘toxic parents’ has been a viral hit on TikTok with videos on the topic racking up several billion…
Cooking up a storm
I don’t always watch ‘Strongest Viking’ competitions on cable. But the other day I was channel-hopping and became mesmerised by…
Intersectionality is a dud
The almost complete absence of anything remotely resembling an intersection in the progressive doctrine of intersectionality poses a problem for…
The price of populism
Friedrich Merz, the leader of Germany’s Christian Democratic Union (CDU), dropped the bomb last weekend. In a TV interview, Merz…
Was I right about Iraq?
Back in March there was a glut of pieces about the 2003 Iraq war. The 20th anniversary seemed to much…
Why would you ever leave?
For British taxpayers perturbed by their £6 million daily bill for housing asylum seekers in hotels, New York City mayor…
Coutts, Farage and the trouble with choice
Dame Alison Rose should not have resigned as head of NatWest over the Nigel Farage affair – and ministers who…
Labour’s reality check
Rishi Sunak goes into the summer holidays in the same position he began the year: 20 points behind in the…
The BBC’s biggest problem
As I write this, the director-general of the BBC is being quizzed on the corporation’s future by people who were…
Canada’s lovely, liberal solution
My favourite Martin Amis novel was his 1991 book Time’s Arrow. It is a pyrotechnically brilliant work in which all…
‘There is no plan! You’re on your own!’
The first LNER train I booked on Sunday from Durham to London was cancelled due to ‘action short of a…
Labour vs the unions
The Labour party is preparing for power and the unions are deciding what role they might play. Friend or foe?…
The BBC is self-destructing
There are still 27 people left in the British Isles – at the time of writing – who are unaware…
Don’t write off Rishi
Were I sure this was about me alone, I’d hardly bother to mention it: but I may be typical of…
The high price of public service
The news has been coming so thick and fast of late that every week there are dozens of stories we…
Heritable guilt is in vogue
I made a poor excuse for a Presbyterian even as a kid. I resented religious indoctrination every precious school-free Sunday.…
National health disservice
It’s a rare occasion that sees politicians put aside their feuds and rivalries to gather together at Westminster Abbey. These…
French racism is not the problem
Last week we learned that a woman in a park in Skegness was dragged into the bushes and raped by…
A narcissist eyes up the White House
Back in the late 1990s, when I lived in Dallas, Texas, I became fascinated by television evangelists. They were hucksters…
Reshuffle season
Keir Starmer and Rishi Sunak have something in common: both men are under pressure to reshuffle their front benches and…
The myth of intersectional politics
A few years ago I mentioned the profusion of moaning women on BBC Radio 4, after a longish car journey…
The unspeakable truth about housing
Earlier this year I was a panellist for Any Questions, and a young man in the audience asked what could…
