The Week
How the Roman plebs made modern democracy
For otherwise healthy plebs in the Roman world, survival depended on the four ‘Fs’: farming (your sole source of food…
Letters: Why I quit Your Party
Party’s over Sir: My departure from Your Party, described as ‘disputed’ by Douglas Murray (‘Where was my invitation to Your…
Should a two-bedroom flat worth £2m be called a ‘mansion’?
Many mansions Does a two-bedroom flat worth £2 million deserve to be called a ‘mansion’? — The word ‘mansion’ is…
Why does the Latin mass prevail?
The Pope is visiting Lebanon and Turkey. Will anyone be raising the vexed question of the Latin mass and sacraments…
Labour’s dereliction of duty over defence
Last week, our political editor, Tim Shipman, revealed a recent meeting between Air Chief Marshal Sir Richard Knighton, the Chief…
Singapore’s future is in capable hands
I was in Singapore last week, a city that hums with energy. It feels efficient, cosmopolitan and yet personal –…
Portrait of the week: ‘Misleading’ Reeves, trial without jury and Great Yarmouth First
Home What Rachel Reeves, the Chancellor of the Exchequer, told voters about the economy in a special press conference on…
Letters: How to clear the courts backlog – without scrapping juries
Tried and tested Sir: Your otherwise excellent leading article opposing proposed restrictions on jury trials (‘Judge not’, 29 November) misses…
What the newspapers reported in ancient Rome
Nero’s personal amphitheatre, recently discovered near the Vatican, was praised to the skies in the ancient Romans’ ‘newspaper’. The historian…
Could ‘Your party’ become the shortest-lived political party in British history?
Party poopers ‘Your party’ holds its inaugural conference this weekend in a state of internal wrangling. Could it become the…
I sympathise with Rachel Reeves
The British establishment cuts its deals with fish knives. If you want to catch this country’s business leaders and political…
Portrait of the week: a shambolic Budget, Ukrainian plan and justice overhaul
Home Before Rachel Reeves, the Chancellor of the Exchequer, delivered the Budget, the Office for Budget Responsibility accidentally released its…
What is a ‘fair’ trial, Mr Lammy?
Why are jury trials so precious? According to one prominent alumnus of Harvard Law School, who was writing in protest…
Letters: Britain’s energy policy is unsustainable
Unsustainable energy Sir: Sir Richard Dearlove (‘Net cost’, 22 November) succinctly sums up the views of many of us who…
Aristophanes would have loved Zohran Mamdani
Mr Zohran Mamdani, the 34-year-old elected mayor of New York, who has described the police as ‘racist, anti-queer and a…
I regret my intolerance over Brexit
Cannabis smoke lingering along the sidewalks of Washington D.C. was the most palpable fruit of liberty since my last visit…
Portrait of the week: an immigration overhaul, Budget chaos and doctors’ strikes
Home Shabana Mahmood, the Home Secretary, proposed that refugees would only be granted a temporary right to stay and would…
It’s not science if you can’t question it
Follow the Science. The Science is settled. Two phrases which invoke the power of open inquiry to close down open…
How many illegal migrants does Britain return?
Condemned leaders Former Bangladeshi prime minister Sheikh Hasina was sentenced to death for crimes against humanity, for using lethal force…
Letters: can you ever come back from Siberia?
Cross channel Sir: As a supporter of the BBC, it pains me to say that Rod Liddle and Lara Brown…
The golden thread between Donald Trump and Nero
Donald Trump has knocked down the east wing of the White House and is turning it into his Golden Ballroom.…
Ireland is looking for its own Nigel Farage
A few years ago, I watched an Irish-made drama on Netflix called Rebellion. Given that it was about the 1916…
Portrait of the week: BBC vs Trump, a plot against Starmer and a weight loss deadline for North Sea oil workers
Home Tim Davie, the director-general of the BBC, resigned, as did Deborah Turness, the CEO of BBC News. Samir Shah,…
Labour isn’t working
Labour: the clue should be in the name. In March, Keir Starmer branded Labour the ‘party of work’. If ‘you…
Letters: The case for decriminalising cannabis
Back to reality Sir: The harms caused by cannabis are not a result of a failure to police it properly…
