The soft bigotry of low expectations
In response to Iain Dale – I do, of course, mean lively by Brown’s standards. For him to say stuff that solicits any response from the reader is a result.
Fraser Nelson
Fraser Nelson is a Times columnist and a former editor of The Spectator.
Thursday
Brown gets lively
Normally, interviewing Gordon Brown is like drawing blood from a stone. In the old days, the interviewer had to rely on someone like Charlie Whelan to call up afterwards and give a real story (like joining the Euro) to compensate for his boss’s reticence. I don’t know what the Times trio slipped into his tea
Wednesday
Brown's artful dodger act
This time, Brown came ready for Cameron. If asked about one of the many embarrassing issues dogging him, he’d say “he has missed the opportunity to talk about substance” then indulge in his list of fake economic greatest hits. Cameron thought on his feet, pointing out that the substance is going wrong for the PM
Monday
Brown's betrayal of Basra
When it comes to Iraq, we know all about the US surge and its effect – there are facts, figures and reporters in the US-controlled zone. But what’s happening in British-controlled Basra? We have little idea. When Brown pitched up yesterday to say he was handing over the security file because Iraqi police are now
Saturday
Labour would get rid of Gordon — if the plotters had a real candidate
There is conspiring in the corridors once again in Westminster. Who could replace Gordon, they ask. Labour’s problem is that the young pretenders are too young and the idea of caretaker leader seems slightly ridiculous, it would look absurd for the government to change Prime Minister twice in the same Parliament. So, Brown will solider
Friday
The economic storm clouds gather
I’m not superstitious, but if I was Gordon Brown I wouldn’t take much comfort in tonight’s figure for the one-month LIBOR interbank interest rate. It’s an ominous 6.66% – having fallen just 0.09 percentage points since the 25-point cut in Bank of England base rate. The more important three-month LIBOR is down a paltry 3
The Jewish Chronicle on how they got the Abrahams interview
The Jewish Chronicle calls to explain further following my earlier post. Jenni (with an i – my apologies) had heard Abrahams might be at the dinner and had set out to corner him. But the interview in question was not that night. It had come in dribs and drabs. “We had several conversations with him,”
Dinner with Abrahams
Amidst all this mystery about the Jewish Chronicle’s interview with Abrahams, an interesting aside springs to mind. I am told that Abrahams was a late arrival to the Anglo Israel Association dinner at the Savoy on Tuesday. For a laugh, they pointed him in the direction of all the hacks – including one Jenny Frazer
Thursday
Will the rate cut work?
“Interest rates are cut for the first time in two years, so does that mean we can spend more this Christmas?” so runs the headline from Radio One’s Newsbeat. As so often, it cuts to the chase. The million dollar question is how will lenders respond to the rate cut? How much clout does the
What the rate cut tells us
The Bank of England’s decision to cut interest rates is an acknowledgment that the UK economy is in a far worse condition that Gordon Brown makes out. It’s so important, because he’s getting away with murder. His skill was not in managing the economy well, but in making people believe it had been managed well.
Why 42 days?
It seems only yesterday that Jacqui Smith was saying “I don’t know” when asked how long terror suspects should be detained without trial. Now it seems she has decided on 42 days. The government needed to reclaim the news agenda, and this was a button waiting to be pushed. Why not 56 days? Why not
A debatable triumph
Last night I was at a Policy Exchange debate where I was proposing the motion that Cameron has changed the Tory party for good. They expected 40 guests, but had 300 applications so we moved to a larger venue. Why the crowd? Part of it is this strange, voracious appetite for debate in London right
Wednesday
Brown finally wins a round
I normally review PMQs from the chamber, and conclude Brown has bombed. So I tried a TV view for a bit of balance. Labour does looks better from this vantage point. In the gallery, you can compare the volume of roars (Tories far better) and see every face (Labour glum, Tories exuberant). But on TV
Tuesday
The government's damning report card
Gordon Brown likes to say people will judge this government not on day-to-day scandal but its record on public services. So the OECD’s study on education is devastating. It is the world’s most comprehensive assessment of pupil knowledge and skills – and it finds that English standards have fallen between 2000 and 2006. Our 15
Why the snob smear matters
One of the joys of blogging is that you can take a kicking instantly from people who disagree with you. I had this pleasure yesterday when I recommended that CoffeeHousers read the Daily Mirror piece accusing David Cameron of being a snob for holding a party and then just inviting the middle-class people to stay
Monday
Cameron strong on party funding, vulnerable on dinner party etiquette
The monthly Cameron press conference is far more congenial than Brown’s. Coffee is offered at the door, together with biscuits made by the chef in downstairs kitchen. But for all that, it’s quite thinly attended and short (30 mins). Cameron called every journalist in the room by their first name, being utterly at ease. I
Sunday
How much will Northern Rock end up costing the taxpayer?
I notice how, in the full-page adverts he has taken out today, Richard Branson says his Northern Rock bailout plan will place no “additional” burden on the taxpayer. Even he does not suggest there will not be a burden – ie that the taxpayer won’t be out of pocket for a vast amount by the
What Gordon needs for Christmas
On Marr, David Cameron rightly said that the question on funding is “Who Knew?” This is also the title of a song last year by Pink which has been irritatingly replaying in my head since this all erupted. For my News of the World column (not online), I put this down as one of the
Tories must say no to more state funding
Hazel Blears’s appearance on Marr provides yet another example of how Team Brown likes putting up women on TV when it’s in real trouble; perhaps, it is because the women have more guts. Anyway, she was making the case for state funding. “Politics does cost money” she says, and if the public will not supply
Saturday
Paper chase
Having trawled the papers for a 7am slot on Sky News, I can perhaps save you some trouble. Buy The Times today: it is simply brilliant. It’s splash tells us that MI5 has confirmed that British businesses are the subject of internet espionage by Chinese state organisations. This is laden with implications, especially in an
