Columnists
The skulking assassins of the London Stock Exchange
The revenge tragedy at the London Stock Exchange whose plot I outlined last month has reached its third act, but…
This £50 billion EU ‘divorce bill’ is more like a ransom
A ‘bill’ is not commonly subject to negotiation. It arrives after a customer has contracted for the purchase of goods…
A sensible Budget and stronger banks – what could go wrong?
One week you’re fighting to survive the dance-off amid vicious backstage rivalries, the next you’re scoring a perfect ten from…
Raising awareness for enraged ‘victims’ always ends in lunacy
The deaf are beginning to annoy me. They seem, paradoxically, more voluble than the blind. Perhaps this is because, understandably,…
The Tories’ fate is in their own hands
How will the Tory party remember 2017? Will it be the year it lost its majority, alienated key sections of…
Meghan Markle ticks almost every modern box. Let’s not pretend she’s a tough sell
We are congratulating ourselves and the royal family on overcoming prejudice by welcoming Meghan Markle’s engagement to Prince Harry. But…
If you voted Remain, you’ll never ‘get’ Trump
How do you defend Donald Trump without coming across like a rabid lunatic? This was my challenge as the only…
The Queen and Prince Philip’s 70th anniversary party sounds glorious
Windsor Castle on Monday night sounds like a children’s party magnified. The rooms were filled with golden-leaved trees. A giant…
The Irish stance against Brexit is a dangerous gamble
Never has a European Council been so important to a British prime minister as this December’s is to Theresa May.…
Divorce destroys society. Don’t let’s make it easier
I went to Relate once, the counselling service formerly known as the National Marriage Guidance Council. I wasn’t married at…
The era when you could love a car is over
There are four of us in this relationship: my partner and I, his horse and my truck. His horse is…
Dear Chancellor, we can’t make the bricks to build your homes
The Chancellor sounded purposeful when he declared that he’ll do ‘whatever it takes’ to boost the rate of housebuilding —…
Let’s hear more of Parliament and less of pundits
Although we all see rather too much of the present Mr Speaker, it was a good innovation that he and…
The Tories urgently need a boost from Philip Hammond’s Budget
The Budget this Wednesday represents this government’s best, and perhaps its last, chance to regain the political initiative. Ever since…
Security overkill is terror’s real triumph
The moment the news broke on Halloween that an Uzbek in a rental truck had just killed eight people on…
Why oh why didn’t I buy more Bitcoin?
Every time I write about Bitcoin you can probably take it as a major sell signal. The last time I…
Armageddon is coming – how real-life employers are preparing for life under Corbyn
Numerous readers told me they liked my recent tale — offered as an antidote to ‘media sniping at corporate capitalism’…
If the Duchy of Lancaster has been so bad, why didn’t Labour notice before?
Let us assume — which we shouldn’t — that it is automatically wrong for the Queen to benefit financially from…
Why can’t Theresa May get a grip on Westminster scandals?
How much longer can things go on like this? That is the question on the lips of Tory ministers and…
The Westminster sex scandal is what psychologists call ‘displacement activity’
There are three reasons why Britain’s political and media world finds itself in the present ludicrous uproar over sexual misbehaviour…
When the liberal media omit a crucial fact, it’s always worth dwelling on
News programmes are as interesting, these days, for what they don’t tell you as for what they do. So, the…
The iciness behind the heart of the #metoo movement
On rolls the Harvey Weinstein horror show with no finale in sight. The next episode looks likely to star Uma…
Yes, Jay Powell is the compromise candidate for the Federal Reserve – but not a bad one at that
Perhaps we should be relieved that Donald Trump has made a dull appointment to succeed Janet Yellen as chairman of…
Women used to forgive men their defects, but the quality of mercy is under strain
Poor Gordon Brown. He embodies the problem traditionally associated with being male, which is that our sex finds it difficult…
What to do about the returning jihadis
In normal times, the reported return of 400 Isis fighters to Britain would be the biggest story out there. But…
