Net moderate
The old carmakers were slow to realise the potential of electric cars and didn’t innovate. So Elon Musk, an internet…
Portrait of the week
Home Rishi Sunak, the Prime Minister, proposed reaching net zero in 2050 ‘in a better, more proportionate way’ such as by…
Diary
With the boiling, broiling summer here in Provence now at an end, it’s time to start thinking about rehearsing for…
The Minister for Hard Truths
The last time Tory activists and MPs gathered for their annual party conference, it didn’t end well. Liz Truss had…
The Spectator’s Notes
In 2014, Rolf Harris was convicted of sexual offences against girls. I wrote in this space that this would have…
The inequality of sex
As we all shroud ourselves in grief at being unable to watch Russell Brand any more on terrestrial television stations,…
Barometer
Within limits Do 20mph speed limits save lives? – A 2018 report by Atkins/AECOM/UCL found that 51% of motorists conformed…
Lessons from Lampedusa
It is eight years now since The Spectator sent me to Lampedusa to see the boats coming in. That was…
Argue away
Excited crowds of youth, encouraged by adults who should know better, take the view that opinions with which they disagree…
The price of honesty
This is my brother’s story and, like many telling stories, it’s small. Tim lives in Iowa, as our mother’s family…
Letters
Whose victory? Sir: Politicians are often accused of engaging in doublespeak, and I fear in the case of Boris Johnson’s…
Snus
As the government considers banning disposable vapes because they are thought to appeal to children, it is worth reflecting on…
Australia’s disastrous referendum
My partner and I have just returned from the most magical trip. As guests of Western Australia’s tourist board we’ve…
The lesson of Looney: every board should prepare for scandal
Bernard Looney, the fallen BP chief, always had a certain swagger about him. I’ve no idea whether he was unsafe…
The bloody prequel
Following her translation of the Odyssey, Emily Wilson has turned her hand to the Iliad – and it is a triumph, writes A.E. Stallings
