World
Is Jeremy Hunt right that tax cuts are ‘virtually impossible’?
No one was expecting a big tax cut this year. Rishi Sunak’s government has been clear that 2023 is for…
Labour will regret handing more power to the OBR
The Office for Budget Responsibility (OBR) will have to sign off on any changes to taxation. It will need to…
Why the new right is like the old left
F.H. Bradley, perhaps the most self-aware philosopher who ever lived, once dismissed metaphysics as “the finding of bad reasons for…
Can Poland and Ukraine end their grain spat?
Poland has said it will no longer supply Ukraine with weapons, that it may cut aid to refugees and that…
Why dry Sauternes are the next big thing
It is my sense that the popularity of sweet wines like Sauternes, Port, Tokaji and all the German Auslese wines…
Falling wages aren’t stopping shoppers from hitting the high street
It looks like a case of recession postponed – again. Figures from the Office for National Statistics this morning show…
After Covid, it’s not surprising kids aren’t coming back to school
The Education Act of 1880 made it compulsory for all children in the UK to attend school between the ages…
What happens after Rupert Murdoch?
Orderly, understated and out of a clear blue sky. From a comms point of view, Rupert Murdoch’s retirement bombshell was…
The danger of politicians trying to demonetise Russell Brand
We must have the most unprincipled, illiberal crop of politicians ever to grace Westminster. Within hours of the House of…
The Rupert Murdoch I knew
I was astonished when Rupert Murdoch announced he was stepping down after 70 year as chairman of News Corp. He…
Why I’m stepping down
The following email was sent to Rupert Murdoch’s staff today Dear Colleagues, I am writing to let you all know…
Trudeau is right to hold India to account
Justin Trudeau was on the receiving end of nonstop media attention last week. There was a slew of difficult meetings, stilted photo-ops…
The problem with Burberry
It was raining on and off, but that was only fitting, as guests waited for the Summer 2024 show of…
Have interest rates finally peaked?
The Bank of England has voted to maintain interest rates at 5.25 per cent, rather than opt for a 15th…
Why don’t we talk more about sexual morality?
The Russell Brand story shows, once again, how sexual morality is only usually debated in relation to allegations of abuse…
Can Rishi Sunak afford a pre-election tax cut?
Will the government have room for tax cuts before an election? Politically, it’s thought to be non-negotiable that they must.…
Poland’s relationship with Ukraine reaches breaking point
Poland is Ukraine’s best friend in Europe. But no alliance can ever be entirely unconditional, and this is as true…
Radio 4’s In Our Time is still the best thing on the BBC
For 25 years, Melvyn Bragg and his guests on Radio 4’s In Our Time have discussed most things from antimatter…
A month in the Baltics
On Joe Biden’s first day in Lithuania, he skipped the opening dinner of world leaders at the NATO summit and…
The woke mob is ruining Oktoberfest
Cockburn wouldn’t be so skeptical of the radical left nearly as much if they didn’t have an insatiable need to…
Sunak’s climate climbdown puts Labour in a pickle
Rishi Sunak hadn’t wanted to announce the first part of his ‘vision’ for government this way. He was bounced into…
Oh, how Emmanuel Macron wishes he was a king!
King Charles arrived in Paris today on the first stage of a three day state visit to France, a country…
The BMA isn’t striking to protect patients or the NHS, just itself
What a fall from grace. Three years ago, the British Medical Association (BMA) could barely put a foot wrong. It…
Boris leads Tory backlash against Rishi’s net zero climbdown
It’s back to the good old days of Tory wars. Rishi Sunak hasn’t even got to the microphone to unveil…
It’s time for President Biden to grant Robert F. Kennedy Jr. Secret Service protection
Presidential candidates don’t normally receive Secret Service protection until the summer before the election. But these are not normal times.…
