Columnists
Does anyone know how we can entice our house martins back?
Newsmax, the magazine of the eponymous US conservative multiplatform network, carries a full page advertisement for ‘The Presidential 1911 Pistol’,…
Can Brexiteers stomach May’s Brexit blueprint?
It isn’t just Brexit that worries the government, as the cabinet meeting this week demonstrated. Much of it was taken…
I’m off to Woman Fest (I’ll be self-identifying for the day)
At last I have found a summer festival I can attend in good faith without the possibility of Jeremy Corbyn…
The term ‘marriage’ needs to be untangled
Rebecca Steinfeld (37) and Charles Keidan (41) have a moral objection to marriage. They’ve been together since 2010, have two…
You don’t win an argument by getting personal
‘If you see anybody from that cabinet in a restaurant,’ Democratic Representative Maxine Waters railed to a California rally last…
Enjoy your feelgood summer while you can – there may be trouble ahead
I’ve been on a mini-tour, full of echoes and warnings. First, to the Grange Festival in Hampshire, where we might…
The internal logic of the NHS makes it ruthlessly cold-hearted
Gordon Brown, echoing Aneurin Bevan, says that the greatest gift that the NHS brings to people is ‘serenity’. He is…
July 2018 could prove to be Theresa May’s cruellest month
Theresa May is about to embark on the toughest month of her premiership to date. Next week, she must persuade…
There’s a reason restaurants everywhere are failing: Red Hen Syndrome
Anxious to find out what food they served at the Red Hen restaurant in Lexington, Virginia, I clicked on the…
My encounter with the self-righteous cry-bullies of Cambridge
There’s a Tracey Ullman comedy sketch about the extreme and ugly form of political correctness afflicting the youth. It’s set…
Carmakers are an undeniable voice in the Brexit debate
The voice of business has been all but silent in the Brexit debate ever since former Marks & Spencer boss…
The government’s pledge to increase NHS spending is disgusting
Seen from almost any point of view, the government’s decision to increase spending on the NHS is disgusting. It is…
How the NHS cash bung is being hijacked by Remainers
The cabinet’s trip to Chequers next month will be a tense affair. Things always are when Brexit is the only…
‘Virtual referees’ are turning the World Cup into a farce
Flies, millions of them, vast swarms of them, spawned in the filthy Volga river: mutant flies, probably. Gathering in clouds…
How does anyone manage to navigate the maze of our second-rate NHS?
Next month the National Health Service turns 70. The institution is greatly loved, and not for nothing. The fear of…
The myth and menace of cryptocurrencies
‘So, Professor Shin, tell us what you really think about cryptocurrencies.’ I’m guessing that’s the brief the Bank for International…
The pressure on Theresa May is rising
Cans kicked down the road, last–minute concessions made, the process kept on track — just. This is how many people…
Justin Trudeau is far more pointless than Donald Trump
‘Trudeau or Trump?’ was a choice which Theresa May, with unusually ready wit, evaded in Parliament on Monday. No doubt…
What kills migrants on boats? The left’s good intentions
I have been scouring the internet trying to find a right-wing festival to take the family to this summer. I…
Is it ok for Muslim parents to stop their kids having non-Muslim pals?
Is it all right for the Muslim parents of children at British state schools to prevent their sons and daughters…
How to raise and train a teenage daughter
‘Dad, am I driving like a normal driver yet? Are you relaxing like a normal relaxed passenger or are you…
For Pester of TSB, like Patterson of BT, the only way is exit
Should he stay or should he go — or will he already have gone by the time you read this?…
This period of British history is like the first months of the second world war
A distinguished retired EU diplomat from a small EU member state sends me a thoughtful letter. He complains that Brexit…
Brexiteer MPs know it’s going badly wrong but can’t agree what to do next
Brexit could look very different by the end of this month. In the coming days, the government is expected to…
There are too many women on Radio 4 and they’re always moaning
We had a long drive back from the north-east last weekend. Six hours or so, including a stop halfway, just…
