Britain’s place in the world is under increasing scrutiny. There’s the continuing debate over the Lisbon Treaty; mutterings that the “special relationship” may break down; and questions about the viability of Brownite free trade. And now – in a comment piece for the Independent – Mary Dejevsky notes the lack of major British players on the diplomatic stage: “It is
After a wave of criticism, Alistair Darling’s said to be considering a rethink over the Treasury’s non-dom tax proposals. He’s right to do so – the current plans are a mess – but it’s likely to just increase the speculation surrounding Darling’s job. After all, his Chancellorship has been little more than a series of copied polices followed by
Earlier, Fraser mentioned the work of the think-tank Reform, and today that same group released an insightful – and scathing – report on the state of the NHS. Download it, read it, and internalise it, as it should set the healthcare agenda for the momentous year ahead. The report’s key message is that the
After the grim speculation over the weekend, there’s little comfort for Alistair Darling in today’s papers. The Telegraph runs with the finding that the Chancellor’s tax crack-down on non-doms will actually cost the Treasury some £2 billion. Whilst the Times lands a triple blow via a leader on the “misguided” tax proposals; an article by William Rees-Mogg, entitled “Why Mr
Be sure to check out some of the posts made over the weekend: Matthew d’Ancona charts how the Archbishop of Canterbury’s recent proclamations have kickstarted a political row. Fraser Nelson laments Britain’s endemic lack of leadership. Rani Singh discusses how Pakistan’s PPP party is moving on from the death of Benazir Bhutto. I look at the
Gordon Brown has a comment piece in today’s Observer. It rehashes the usual statements about skills, schools and the global economy (“in a globally competitive national economy, there will be almost no limits to aspirations for upward mobility”). And outlines the Government policy relevant to these areas – more academies; an expansion of the Teach
Malcolm Rifkind writes an acerbic article over at Comment is Free, on why Tony Blair shouldn’t fill the role of EU President. He has two key points: 1) The role’s not that powerful, and 2) Blair spells bad news for Europe. Rifkind lets loose on the second of these: “Ultimately, however, the question is whether Blair is the
Nick Clegg’s certainly proving his worth as a newsmaker; something the Lib Dems have lacked in recent times. After his we-could-possibly-enter-a-coalition-with-the-Tories revelation in the FT, he has a very-readable piece in today’s Times on “how to stop future funding scandals”. The article’s more noteworthy for it’s punchiness than for its ideas (although Clegg does recommend that non-doms should be banned from “taking a position in Parliament”).
In his overview of PMQs yesterday, Fraser picked up on Ed Miliband’s startling facial gymnastics (and Coffee House regulars Austin Barry and Nicholas Millman identified the parallels with Japanese Noh theatre). Now here’s video footage of Miliband’s performance (you’ll have to navigate an advert first):
William Hague delivered a masterful speech on “The Conservative agenda for Europe”, at Policy Exchange today. In short, it’s the definitive statement of why Britain deserves a referendum on the Lisbon Treaty, although it skips around many of the key questions. I’ve identified some of the best bits below, but the whole transcript’s well worth reading (when, that is,
On Tuesday it was tax credits. And now the Public Accounts Committee delivers a boot to another of Gordon Brown’s pet projects – the New Deal. The findings should (but won’t?) put pay to those claims that the UK’s achieved “full employment”. Some six million people now live in homes where “no-one has a job
Immigration Minister Liam Byrne confirmed the final details of the UK’s point-based immigration system today. The Australia-style scheme – first outlined in 2006 – will be rolled-out as of 29th February. I was struck by Byrne’s claim that: “The points system means only those migrants Britain needs can come to the UK” Which jars a bit with
Irwin Stelzer writes a great piece in today’s Telegraph, characterising Gordon Brown and George Bush as united by their strident belief in free trade: “Both have a relaxed attitude towards the free movement of people, and are therefore reluctant to prevent immigrants from joining their nations’ workforces. Both resist efforts to raise barriers to the free
Following Fraser’s earlier comments on Tory spending, I thought I’d point out Iain Martin’s excellent post on tax credits over at Three Line Whip. Martin rightly characterises Brown as a “wasteful spendaholic”: “The next time the PM calls the Tories a bunch of lunatic cutters who will defile the public realm, they should call him a spendaholic who
The Lewis islanders up in arms against the 181 wind turbines planned for their little slice of Hebrides have many aesthetic reasons to object. Environmentalists are torn between the green windmills, and their supposed threat to the island’s ecology/wildlife. The MoD fears that turbines block radar signals, creating “holes” in the national defence network. But
Thanks to Rachel Sylvester over at Three Line Whip, Tim Montgomerie’s tortoise-and-the-hare analogy has now been mapped onto the Labour Party. Sylvester characterises the Blairite reformers as “hares”, whilst those who stand in the way of reform are “tortoises”. On this account, she argues, Brown is increasingly acting like a hare: “Now, there are increasing signs
John Rentoul writes a typically-perceptive piece in the Independent on Sunday, doubting that Gordon Brown will ever seize back the political initiative. For Rentoul, Brown’s major problem is that he’s not engaging in “the drama of a dialogue in his own defence” – mainly because he hasn’t identified a position to defend: “If he was a ‘change’ from Blair,
Another poll, another decreased lead for the Tories. The latest ICM/Sunday Telegraph poll – the first conducted after both Peter Hain’s resignation and the Derek Conway furore – puts Labour on 32 per cent (down 1 from last month); the Conservatives on 37 per cent (down 3); and the Lib Dems on 21 per cent (up three). I suspect
Be sure to check out Rani Singh’s Coffee House coverage of the forthcoming Pakistani elections. Rani’s first post is an unmissable primer in the issues, parties and individuals that will dominate the contest. She will continue to provide insight and commentary until election day, on February 18th. And for views on the US Presidential race, head over to the Spectator’s latest
There’s an essential interview with David Freud in today’s Telegraph. Freud wrote a review of welfare for the DWP, and many of its reforming proposals are being adopted by the two main parties. Now, however, Freud wants the policymakers to go further, particularly on incapacity benefit: “When the whole rot started in the 1980s we had 700,000 [people on