Elliot Keck

Elliot Keck is a Conservative councillor, political commentator and former head of campaigns at the TaxPayers' Alliance

Sunday

Elliot Keck

Reform have become the right-wing Lib Dems

From our UK edition

A lazy framing of British party politics portrays Reform UK playing the equivalent role on the right of British politics that the Green Party does on the left, with each outflanking the Conservatives and Labour, their respective rivals on the centre-right and centre-left. It’s lazy in that it takes far too little account of the way in which the traditional distinction between left and right - the size of the state, and how heavily regulated and taxed an economy is - is no longer the main ideological fracture between the different parties. Increasingly, it’s wrong. Whoever gets into government after the next election will only have one shot The evidence comes from Reform's rapidly emrging vision.

Monday

Elliot Keck

Cancelling council elections means taxation without representation

From our UK edition

For 350 years it has been established in the British constitution that taxes can only be levied for the crown with the consent of parliament. Ever since the Bill of Rights this principle - articulated most famously by the American revolutionaries in their call for no taxation without representation - has been core to our understanding of what it means to be a democracy. Delaying elections, unless as a result of a national emergency, should be considered an extraordinary act That principle is clearly being breached with the delay of local elections in 29 local authorities across England. These councils, many of them delaying elections for the second time, from May of this year can no longer be considered democratically elected.

Thursday

Elliot Keck

‘Have Yourself a Merry Little Christmas’ is far from merry

From our UK edition

Here is a great festive pub quiz question for you. Which film was the song ‘Have Yourself a Merry Little Christmas’ written for? It’s likely, particularly if you’re below a certain age, that your first reaction will be surprise that it was written for a film in the first place. That’s a reflection not so much of the failure of the film in question – Meet Me in St Louis, which was the second highest-grossing film of 1944 – but of the enduring popularity of the song itself. In 2023, it was the 11th most played holiday song, according to the American Society of Composers, Authors and Publishers. But just as the song has transcended the film, it has become unmoored from its original meaning.

Monday

Elliot Keck

Revealed: the extent of Sadiq Khan’s splurge of taxpayers’ cash

From our UK edition

Londoners don't agree on much, but on one subject many of the capital's residents are united: Amy Lamé, the mayor’s 'night czar', is a colossal waste of money. Whether you’re on the left or right, a cyclist or motorist, religious or not, it's hard to defend her £120,000-a-year salary for 'ensuring London thrives as a 24 hour city'. But Lamé isn't the only beneficiary of the Mayor of London Sadiq Khan's largesse: more than 1,100 staff working for various public sector organisations in the capital, including City Hall, Transport for London (TfL) and the Metropolitan Police, were paid more than £100,000 last year. Khan certainly thinks these fat cats are worth it Under Khan's watch, sky-high public sector salaries in London are spiralling out of control.