Uk politics

Sunday

David Blackburn

The Lib Dems: not as nice as you think

From our UK edition

A story that has escaped largely unnoticed this weekend is the creation of the Liberal Democrat party's sinisterly named ‘anti-Tory attack unit’. Sam Coates has the details in the Times: ‘Nick Clegg has created an anti-Tory attack unit which will focus Liberal Democrat firepower on exposing George Osborne’s “complete inexperience”. In an interview with The Times, Chris Huhne said that specialist staff will be seconded to the new group, which he will chair and will include all the party’s most effective attack dogs, including Norman Baker, Norman Lamb and Lord Oakeshott. Mr Huhne, the party’s home affairs spokesman, will lead the party’s attack at their conference, which begins today in Bournemouth.

Fraser Nelson

The Budget bombshells revealed

From our UK edition

An interesting spat is just breaking out over cuts. The Conservatives have a leak from the working of the Budget showing detailed projections in government revenue to 2013-14 covered by all the main Sundays. This suggests income tax rising from £140bn this year to £191bn in four years' time. The Tories say this is not explained by economic growth and that the gap - £15bn - is equivalent to 3p in the basic rate of income tax. Liam Byrne is pushing back, saying Osborne is trying to "mislead the British people" (as if the government would try to do such a thing) and that the increase was accounted for “the economy returning to growth, no more, no less”.

Saturday

Fraser Nelson

Why Vince Cable is not too sexy for his party

From our UK edition

For all his celebrity, Vince Cable is not exactly an economic genius - as those who have read his book, The Storm,  will know all to well (Specator review here). But he is seldom tested on this point, as he encounters broadcasters whose line of questioning is normally "tell us, Sage of Twickenham, what is happening." For those who don't regard him as the new Oracle and have wanted  see him put through his paces, Andrew Neil - Cable's former student - gives his old master a grilling on the BBC News Channel. In the interview, Cable gets steadily more irritated (and rumbled) and admits to having flip-flopped. The Cable phenomenon illustrates the gulf between economic and political reporting. As a business hack to went into politics, the contrast has always struck me.

David Blackburn

Liberal moment or Liberal Democrat dilemma?

From our UK edition

It’s not often that a man who claims to have bedded and satisfied over 30 women declares that the nation is on the cusp of ‘its liberal moment’, and it’s drawn attention to the Liberal Democrats. With Labour seemingly returning home to the house that Jack Jones built, Nick Clegg should be sweeping the country, but his earnest predictions about a progressive liberal future have made no impression and his party still trails. Why are the Lib Dems doing so poorly? Lloyd Evans’ appraisal that they failed to use the expenses scandal to push their long-standing reform agenda has much to commend it. And today, Polly Toynbee writes a brilliant analysis in the Guardian, observing that the Liberals are caught between a split right/left voting base.

Peter Hoskin

Is Osborne worth it?

From our UK edition

Fresh from winning GQ's Politician of the Year award last week, George Osborne now has an accolade he may be even happier with: heavy praise from both Peter Oborne and Matthew Parris.  Both commentators write columns today which dish out the superlatives for Osborne's response to the fiscal crisis, and suggest he has been vindicated by events.  Here's the key passage from Oborne's article, by way of a taster: "Slowly Osborne began to win the argument. First (as I revealed in this column last March), Bank of England governor Mervyn King sent private warnings to the Treasury that he feared extra public spending would damage the official credit ratings that are awarded to the Government as an independent yardstick of the health of the nation's finances.

Peter Hoskin

The Tories will be thrilled if Brown starts playing the World Saver again

From our UK edition

Patrick Wintour has an insightful article in today's Guardian, setting out how and why Brown has dithered when it comes to deploying the c-word.  So far as the current landscape is concerned, this passage is particularly striking: "There is tension between Brown and Darling on how far the campaign can be based on Brown's achievements in saving the world economy, and how far it must be based on visions of the future. Brown's determination to dwell on the fact that he made the correct big decisions in the recession has been one cause of his past reluctance to address the future deficit mountain, and how to deal with it.

Friday

Peter Hoskin

Cable separates his own brand from the Lib Dems

From our UK edition

So are Vince Cable's public spending cuts his own, or are they Lib Dem policy?  In his Straight Talk interview with the Lib Dem treasury spokesman this weekend, Andrew Neil tries to get to the bottom of it all.  The result?  Well, according to Cable, Nick Clegg "approved" his pamphlet for the think tank Reform, and some of its contents could find their way into the party's manifesto: "A lot of it is already Lib Dem policy, a lot of it already is, the rest of it will have to be considered and we’ll go into an election with a manifesto, we have a due process.  Maybe because of who I am a lot of it will be there, but some of it may not be, it has to be agreed with my colleagues of course.

Peter Hoskin

Will the Tories abolish the RAF?

From our UK edition

Over at his new blog for the Wall Street Journal, Iain Martin ups the provocative factor by asking: "Will the Tories axe the RAF?"  Here's the key passage: "It has long been the dirty little secret of the U.K. defence establishment that a way to streamline the command structure, reduce duplication and slash costs is to close the RAF. There are two options for how it could be done: 1) Abolish the traditional three services and switch to a single marine corps model, with all three services effectively merging under new leadership. Or, 2) Split the RAF’s capacity between the two remaining services, giving the army the lift and delivery components and the navy responsibility for the strike capability, meaning fighters etc.

The Spectator

Web Exclusive article: Lloyd Evans’ party conference preview

From our UK edition

With the Lib Dem party conference kicking off this weekend, Lloyd Evans has written a Web Exclusive preview of what the main party leaders can expect over the next few weeks.  You can access it in the Essays section of the site, under the Spectator tab in the navigation bar, or by clicking here.

David Blackburn

Another calamitous set of polls for Brown and Labour

From our UK edition

A Populus poll for The Times shows that the Conservatives are more trusted to run vital services than Labour. Here are the details: ‘The Tories are now in a strong position on most public services, which have traditionally been vote-winners for Labour. On doing the best job of improving the NHS, the Tories are on 37 per cent (up 10 points since last March) against 34 per cent for Labour (down 1 point).

Peter Hoskin

How quickly things change

From our UK edition

Spot the difference: 5 September, 2009: Gordon Brown warns G20 countries against reining in spending, The Telegraph "Britain is resisting pressure from Germany and other Euro-currency countries who are planning to moves towards an 'exit strategy' that would see some of the planned anti-recessionary spending programmes being scaled back to cut rising national debts." 18 September, 2009: Gordon Brown to call for international agreement to cut public spending, The Telegraph "Mr Brown says 'exit strategies' from the emergency fiscal measures that were introduced to stave off the worst excesses of the recession need to be agreed by all the leading nations.

Martin Bright

Is it Time to Call for Shami (Again)?

From our UK edition

With the Baroness Scotland housekeeper mini-scandal still in the air, I hear a delicious rumour. I'm told that in a surreal extension of Labour big tent policy, Gordon Brown approached Shami Chakrabarti about the job of Attorney-General. The hammer of the government's civil liberties turned down the offer. But the latest events provide the  perfect opportunity for Gordon to offer it to her again. Of course he would have to ennoble her first. This would leave Shami in the Lords to act as a convenient thorn in the side of the Tory Party should it win the next election.

Peter Hoskin

An April election is on the cards

From our UK edition

A couple of weeks ago, Kevin Maguire told us that No.10 is thinking about a March or April general election.  And now Steve Richards follows up by suggesting April is most likely: "Speaking to influential ministers and aides I get the impression that their favoured month for an election is next April. In theory they could hold out until June, but that would mean going to the country in the immediate aftermath of the May local elections when Labour is expected to do badly. This option is already ruled out. There will be no June election. Obviously a general election could be held on the same day as the May local elections and it is still a likely option. But that date is the equivalent of going right up against the buffers when the media and perhaps voters will be getting impatient.

Thursday

David Blackburn

The Baroness Scotland’s housekeeper scandal exposes the mess our immigration system is in

From our UK edition

The news that the UK Border agency will launch an investigation into allegations that the Attorney General, Baroness Scotland, employed an illegal immigrant is, obviously, highly embarrassing for the government. With his customary lack of style, the Tories’ attack-dog Chris Grayling commented: "This is a Government that says all small employers should be prosecuted if they don't know the immigration status of their employees and yet we have senior ministers who can't be bothered to make the checks themselves. There is a real 'one rule for them, one rule for us' attitude at the heart of this Government and it is a disgrace." That overstates the case.

David Blackburn

The Good Old Cause

From our UK edition

Paul Waugh’s beaten us to it, but Ed Ball’s New Statesman article is a rallying cry to the left. He writes: ‘As we approach the most important general election for a generation, this is no time for introspection or defeatism. There's never been a moment when Labour's values and experience have been more relevant or necessary.’ And what are those values? Well, they’re not Blairite: ‘In public-service reform, we sometimes sounded as though private-sector solutions were always more efficient; and who can now doubt that, despite the tougher measures we brought in, financial regulation was not tough enough?

Peter Hoskin

Which Miliband’s star is ascending?

From our UK edition

For the Kremlinologists among us, Andrew Grice has an insightful article in today's Independent on the growing support for Ed Miliband in the Labour Party.  He kicks it off by asking the pivotal question when it comes to the Brothers Miliband - "Will Ed Miliband eclipse brother David?" - and follows that up with some affirmative evidence: "...the word in Labour circles is that Ed is no longer trailing in his brother's wake. Indeed, some senior figures believe he has already overtaken him in the game that increasingly occupies Labour minds as the party appears to head for a general election defeat – its future leadership stakes... ...friends are quietly telling [Ed] that David will not be leader because he is seen as too Blairite.

Peter Hoskin

Why ministers block cuts

From our UK edition

After Michael Fallon's claim last week that the shadow cabinet hasn't got "the faintest idea" of the commitment necessary to tackle the debt crisis, this anecdote from Benedict Brogan's column should act as another warning to David Cameron: "Whitehall is gripped by short-termism, yet in a world dominated by the targets culture introduced by Labour, is this any surprise? When ministers themselves prioritise short-term results that can be ready for the Six O'Clock News or the autumn conference, how can the Civil Service hold out for the long view?

David Blackburn

In defence of Hank Paulson, by Hank Paulson

From our UK edition

Did Bush or Paulson have a clue what they were doing? It’s an intriguing question. James flagged up the view of Bush’s speechwriter Matt Latimer that Paulson, not Bush, was to blame. But, in this month’s Vanity Fair, Todd.S. Purdum flips the coin. Based on interviews with Paulson, conducted as the bailout unfolded, the article’s a brilliant piece of long-form journalism: describing the chicanery on Capitol Hill as Paulson, Tim Geithner and Ben Bernancke sought desperately for a deal with Democrats Nancy Pelosi and Barney Frank. Paulson was in no doubt that Congressional Republicans were responsible for the foul up.

David Blackburn

Clegg: Are you one of the millions who turned to new Labour in 1997?

From our UK edition

Nick Clegg joins the ‘progressive’ debate with a double of salvo in The Times and in a pamphlet, titled ‘The liberal moment’, published by Demos. The philosophically anachronistic Labour party is his target. He writes: ‘The contrast between Labour and liberals is starkest in their different approaches to power. While Labour hoards at the centre, liberals believe that power must be dispersed away from government - downwards to individuals and communities, and upwards to the international institutions needed to tackle our collective problems. State-centered, top-down solutions are wholly out of step with the demands of our age.

Wednesday

Peter Hoskin

All political parties must face up to the debt crisis’ severity 

From our UK edition

The Independent's Hamish McRae writes a superb column today on just how far the next government will have to go to tackle Brown's debt crisis.  His main point is that unless severe action is taken over the coming years, we'll be stuck in a perilous position by the time the next global downturn hits.  But it's this passage which stands out: "To what extent will the deficit fix itself, and how much more needs to be done? We don't have to do the full 13 per cent of GDP and the present government proposed in the Budget that it should cut about half, 6.4 per cent of GDP, of that over an eight-year period. Vince Cable, who seems to have become the nation's favourite financial GP, suggests an eight per cent correction over five years.