Leading article
What David Cameron must do to win (properly this time)
Almost exactly five years ago, the Conservatives fired the starting gun for a general election — and shot themselves in…
Why do the Liberal Democrats see the over-65s as a "time bomb"?
We are living longer, healthier and more prosperous lives than ever — it’s one of the greatest advances of our…
George Osborne's ambition deficit
When George Osborne first became Chancellor, he asked to be judged on his ability to reduce the deficit. He does…
Playing chicken with Vladimir Putin
An official end to the Cold War was declared at a summit between President George H. Bush and Mikhail Gorbachev…
Spare us a Bob?
Anyone listening to the BBC this week could be forgiven for thinking that the musician Bob Geldof had just emerged…
Thank heavens for Justin Welby!
For decades, interventions of the Archbishop of Canterbury in national debate were like a sporadic bombardment of small pebbles against…
Say no to devolution without democracy
Imagine if, in one of her first acts as First Minister of Scotland, Nicola Sturgeon announced that, in spite of…
How to fight Ukip
In the 2005 general election this magazine supported the Conservatives, with one exception — we urged voters in Medway not to…
Deal with the debt, George Osborne? You’ve hardly started
George Osborne has declared victory over Ed Balls, the IMF and all the others who warned that his austerity measures…
If Turkey turns on the West, what hope is there for Syria and Iraq?
Turkey has long been a bridge between the West and the Middle East. Its record on free speech may be…
There is a way to beat Ebola (and we're already doing it)
There is something depressing about the fact that it has taken a sick Spanish nurse to put Ebola back on…
Britain doesn't need hateful laws to defeat hate preachers
If the Labour party conference in Manchester felt like a funeral, the Conservatives’ gathering in Birmingham had the air of…
The good fight
It is a mark of the uncertainty of our policy in the Middle East that just over a year ago…
Alex Salmond's success is just a symptom of our age of rage
In his short and infrequent visits to Scotland this year, the Prime Minister should have found time to speak to…
One week to save Britain
Next week, the most important vote in recent British history will be held. Indeed, it may well turn out to…
Nato must rediscover its purpose, or it will end up losing a war
This week’s Nato summit was originally intended to look back on lessons learned from Afghanistan and reflect on the notion…
Who will be held to account for the horror in Rotherham?
If Rotherham council were a family, its children would have been removed by social services long ago, and Ma and…
Asylum seekers are dying in British ports. It’s time we looked after them properly.
The tale is now familiar: shouts are heard from inside a freight container and police are called. A cargo of…
Violence, fear, confusion: this is what comes into a leadership vacuum
The old cliché that ‘nothing happens in August’ has again been brutally disproved. From the centenary of the outbreak of…
Sorry, but trains can’t really replace welfare lines
George Osborne proposed an attractive idea this week: that spending on state benefits should be diverted into new infrastructure in…
Stricter benefits limits shouldn't stop with immigrants
With Ukip snapping at the Conservatives’ heels, it is not difficult to see why David Cameron has hit upon the…
The democratic deficit at the heart of the Human Rights Act
Dominic Grieve was a worthy attorney-general whose career was helped by this magazine: nine years ago, he was named Spectator…
Have David Cameron’s Etonians just given up on state school reform?
During his time as Education Secretary, Michael Gove would often have occasion to quote a passage of Machiavelli: ‘There is…
In apologising for having Nigel Lawson on to discuss climate change, the BBC has breached its charter
Listen to ‘Is climate change a factor in the recent extreme weather?’ on Audioboo It is only a matter of…
It's time for Britain to abolish slavery – again
Who would have expected to find slavery on the outskirts of Cardiff? Not the locals, who were shocked when police…
