Columnists
Why binding shareholder votes on pay should be a manifesto promise
Will executive pay pop up in Theresa May’s manifesto? An objective of her snap election is to secure a larger…
Labour’s election strategy – vote for us and watch us lose
The crapness of Corbyn’s Labour is a phenomenon. It fascinates me. Frankly, it does my head in. For there is…
Thanks, Jamie Oliver – you’ve stolen my childhood
Whenever I want to travel back in time to my 1970s childhood, all I need is a glass of Lucozade.…
Never mind the election – Corbynism isn’t going away
General elections are meant to produce a government and an opposition — ideally, a decent version of both. It is…
Diane’s grey matter and Labour’s sticky votes
I awoke the other morning to hear Diane Abbott’s brains leaking out of her ears and all over the carpet…
The Spectator’s Notes
Guy Verhofstadt, the European Parliament’s main Brexit negotiator, tweeted on Monday: ‘Any #Brexit deal requires a strong & stable understanding…
Capping prices to win votes is no substitute for a serious energy strategy
Is capping domestic energy prices an equitable way to help the ‘just about managing’, or an electoral gimmick with a…
What would Darwin make of trainspotters?
Why are men so much more likely to be interested in trains than women? I believe this to be a…
Why Tories are talking up Labour
Considering that their party is expected to win by a landslide, the Tory spin doctors sound unusually panicked. They are…
Tim’s a Christian, so he’s not allowed an opinion
Maybe I’m wrong about this, but I don’t remember the BBC running a documentary 100 days into Barack Obama’s first…
The Spectator’s Notes
With Emmanuel Macron and Marine Le Pen through to the final in France, people of a conservative disposition might feel…
What can May say to the Tory Remainers?
I don’t see it. I do not see the anatomy of how it all pans out. Theresa May will be…
Is Trump’s revolution already over?
There were three reasons why I so badly wanted Donald Trump to win the US presidential election. One was that…
Disaster versus chaos for France’s economy? My village neighbours don’t seem bothered
The lovely Dordogne village of St Pompon that is my holiday hide-away has only 350 voters, but is a perfect…
What I expect from this pointless election
A general election is called and in a matter of hours a neutral and unbiased BBC presenter has likened our…
The Spectator’s notes
The fact that nothing leaked about Mrs May’s snap election tells you much of what you need to know about…
What message do Trump’s missiles really send?
Let me take this opportunity to join with our Prime Minister and Foreign Secretary in commending President Trump’s swift and…
A whistleblower mystery that illuminates the inner turmoil of the banking sector
What troubled places banks have become, I thought as I listened to two news stories, one concerning a formal reprimand…
Who dares face down the teenage gangsters?
The baby, unbothered by diesel fumes, enjoys an outing down the main road through London N1. Each passing bus is…
Give me the Anglican option
The Algerian government’s official tourist guide describes ‘the walled town of Beni Isguen — normally closed to foreigners — where…
If Trump’s listening to his generals, that’s great news for Britain
‘Great Britain has lost an Empire and not yet found a role’. Fifty-five years on, Dean Acheson’s remark has not…
The Spectator’s notes
Each Easter, I think of David Jones (1895-1974). He was a distinguished painter and, I would (though unqualified) say, a…
Let’s rein in Brexiteer triumphalism before we all go mad
According to archaeologists and all the papers last week, the 11th-century villagers of Wharram Percy, North Yorkshire, used to mutilate…
Britain’s most hated man isn’t all that hateful
‘Christ, I would be shot for buying this if people knew,’ says an anonymous fan in the comments below Amazon’s…
On balance, I’d vote for a rate rise and a stronger pound
Since Article 50 was triggered last week, City traders have been avidly watching the fluctuations of the pound. Analysts at…
