Fraser Nelson is a Times columnist and a former editor of The Spectator.
Libya has been in the news again over Christmas: the UN Security Council has endorsed a new government but as Peter Oborne found out when he visited Benghazi, the city that David Cameron addressed after his 2011 bombing campaign (video above), there isn’t much government to speak of. The World Food Programme says that 2.4m
In the Christmas special edition of The Spectator we ask various luminaries about their traditions on the day itself. For David Cameron, it’s gathering the kids in bed to open presents. For Jacob Rees-Mogg it’s mass at Downside Abbey then the Queen’s Speech. For me, it’s watching a short American film about Christmas in Britain in
“Spain is not going to be the same anymore and we are very happy,” declared Pablo Iglesias, the leader of Podemos, last night. He’s right: the two-party system which has governed Spain since its emergence from dictatorship in 1975 has just ended. Podemos, an anti-austerity populist party that didn’t exist two years ago, has taken 20pc of the vote in
Like most political journalists, I regard Jeremy Corbyn’s leadership of the Labour Party as an unalloyed disaster. But it is, perhaps, time to admit that this view is not so widely shared amongst the public. “Almost a third of Labour supporters do not think that Jeremy Corbyn will lead Labour into the next election,” says
Anyone hoping for an inflation-linked pay rise in the new year can forget it. The only good news in today’s data is that, at least it won’t be a pay cut: Britain is out of deflation – prices rose by 0.1pc year-on-year last month, according to the CPI (and were up 1.1pc on RPI). But that’s
Can Britain reorder Europe? When James Forsyth and I interviewed the Prime Minister on Monday we were struck by his line of argument. Yes, he said, seeing the immigration crisis coming straight after the Euro crisis may make voters want out. But this, he said, was an instinctive reaction. There was a better response:- The longer term
This is an extended version of an interview with the Prime Minister from the Christmas special issue of The Spectator. The last time David Cameron sat down with The Spectator for an interview, he was on a train and looking rather worried. There were just weeks to go until the general election and the polls were not
The last time David Cameron sat down with The Spectator for an interview, he was on a train and looking rather worried. There were just weeks to go until the general election and the polls were not moving. At the time, almost no one — and certainly not him — imagined that he was on
Great steps have been made in open data in the last few years. Most figures for the UK economy can be found online and the creation of the Office for Budget Responsibility means that official forecasts, too, are now available. But they have not, so far, been expressed in a way that’s easy to understand.
This evening Isabel Hardman was named Journalist of the Year by the Political Studies Association, becoming the youngest winner in the history of the awards. The judges had this to say: ‘Hardman’s contribution to political journalism over the past five years has been truly impressive. The breadth of her work across both a wide range of
Right now, the junior doctors have public support. But that would fast change if any NHS patient died during the strike in any way that could be linked to lack of junior doctor. Even as things stand, the very threat of a strike has seen up to 20,000 NHS patients having treatment postponed. The British Medical Association has other strike dates in
What is it about war that makes normally sensible politicians prone to hype and exaggeration? No10 is today briefing that Cameron has instructed the RAF to ‘decapitate’ the leadership of the Islamic State in Syria – as if the thought hasn’t occurred to the Americans, who have spent the last 17 months (and $11 million-a-day) bombing Isil positions
Politically, the story was George Osborne’s (wise) retreat on tax credit cuts. Economically, here’s the upshot:- 1. The end of austerity: state spending is shooting up. [datawrapper chart=”http://static.spectator.co.uk/FOVmc/index.html”] Everyone expected a hatchet day; instead, this was a tax-and-spend budget. Total state spending is now on the rise, and will be for the foreseeable future. The
Mary Wakefield, our commissioning editor, leaves for six months’ maternity leave on Valentine’s Day. We’re looking for someone to cover her, which will be a real challenge. The job involves thinking of fresh, original features – and finding authors whose writing reaches the standards required of Spectator readers. And, where necessary, working with writers to
Today, George Osborne stepped back from the brink. The Chancellor has reversed his calamitous plan to tear away tax credits from the working poor, and will instead phase in the new system so no one will lose out. And he has also abandoned his reserve plan: to pay for this by raiding Universal Credit. In other words, he
The complications of acting in Syria have just become more apparent. The Russians are fighting in support of Assad – but Turkey, a Nato member, is backing anti-Assad rebels and has just shot down a Russian Su-24 jet. The Turkish foreign ministry says that the pilots were warned ‘ten times in five minutes’ that they were violating Turkish
Update: it’s a small church and we only have a few dozen tickers left – reserved for subscribers. One of the MANY benefits of subscribing! Join us now. The nights are drawing in, and mini santas are already in the shops. For Coffee Housers who do their Christmas planning early, I’d like to extend an invitation: to The
As Spectator readers know, James Forsyth is the most insightful and best-informed political columnist around. Today, he also becomes the best-read – starting a column in The Sun, the country’s favourite newspaper. It has dropped its paywall, so you can now read it here. His column is, as you’d expect, a mixture of his brilliantly-sourced insights into
The Spectator: if you’re a princess with only space for one magazine in your royal helicopter, accept no substitutes. The Duchess of Cambridge certainly doesn’t. As the above picture shows, she has insisted on the new edition tucked safely in the door of the helicopter (you can see it peeking out in the corner). She’s
The Spectator is creating a new position, fusing together the work of print, digital and broadcast journalism. We’re looking for someone who can write, loves language and loves intelligent debate – but the emphasis, for this job, will be on audio and video. It’s a great time to join Britain’s most influential magazine. We recently
