Books and Arts – 12 April 2017
From our UK edition
The Spectator
Wednesday
Friday
Jeremy Corbyn’s response to US airstrikes in Syria
From our UK edition
The US missile attack on a Syrian government air base risks escalating the war in Syria still further. Tuesday’s horrific chemical attack was a war crime which requires urgent independent UN investigation and those responsible must be held to account. But unilateral military action without legal authorisation or independent verification risks intensifying a multi-sided conflict that has already killed hundreds of thousands of people. What is needed instead is to urgently reconvene the Geneva peace talks and unrelenting international pressure for a negotiated settlement of the conflict. The terrible suffering of the Syrian people must be brought to an end as soon as possible and every intervention must be judged on what contribution it makes to that outcome.
Watch: Donald Trump’s full statement on US airstrikes in Syria
From our UK edition
My fellow Americans, on Tuesday Syrian dictator Bashar al Assad launched a horrible chemical weapons attack on innocent civilians. Using a deadly nerve agent, Assad choked out the lives of helpless men, women and children. It was a slow and brutal death for so many. Even beautiful babies were cruelly murdered in this very barbaric attack. No child of God should ever suffer such horror. Tonight, I ordered a targeted military strike on the airfield in Syria from where the chemical attack was launched. It is in this vital national security interest of the United States to prevent and deter the spread and use of deadly chemical weapons.
Thursday
Barometer | 6 April 2017
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Nice littler earners Cressida Dick, the new Commissioner of the Metropolitan Police, will take a voluntary pay cut from £270,000 to £230,000 compared with her predecessor. Some others voluntarily taking less: — Richard Pennycook, CEO of the Co-op Group, last year took a cut in his base salary from £1.25 million to £750,000. His incentive plan also became less generous. — Keith Skeoch, CEO of Standard Life, last year took a cut in his bonus, which will now pay a maximum 400 per cent of his £700,000 base pay instead of 500 per cent. — In 2015, the board of Credit Suisse took a 25 per cent cut after America fined the bank for helping citizens avoid taxes.
Letters | 6 April 2017
From our UK edition
All-round education Sir: While much of Ross Clark’s analysis of the direction that independent education has taken is spot on (‘A hard lesson is coming’, 1 April), he could not be more wrong on one issue. Many (or even most) parents who choose a private education for their children do not do so simply to achieve top academic outcomes: one look at the results league tables would disabuse him of this notion. What the average independent school does deliver is a rounded education (drama, sport, singing, D of E, CCF, debating and so on) with an emphasis on self-reliance, character and values, and competitive reward systems which acknowledge success rather than mediocrity.
Regressive Conservatism
From our UK edition
Jeremy Corbyn’s leadership of the Labour party is coming to resemble a drunk trying to get home on a bike. Most of the time he just pushes it along, but occasionally he mounts the saddle and whirls into action — only to find himself swiftly spread-eagled on the road. Take next month’s local elections. Corbyn launched his party’s campaign trying to bemoan the state of Britain. There are plenty of statistics which he could have trotted out to depict a country underperforming on living standards, debt levels and social mobility. But he chose to cite a supposed decline in life expectancy — which is demonstrably and famously wrong.
Portrait of the week | 6 April 2017
From our UK edition
Home Theresa May, the Prime Minister, visited Saudi Arabia without covering her hair, or even wearing a hat. Earlier, asked whether Britain’s response to Spain’s ambitions to rule Gibraltar meant war-war or jaw-jaw, said: ‘It’s definitely jaw-jaw.’ She was responding to a hoo-ha over remarks by Lord Howard of Lympne, a former leader of the Conservative Party, about a paragraph at the end of draft negotiation outlines circulated by Donald Tusk, the president of the European council, that said: ‘No agreement between the EU and the United Kingdom may apply to the territory of Gibraltar without the agreement between the Kingdom of Spain and the United Kingdom.
Books and Arts – 6 April 2017
From our UK edition
Friday
The EU’s Brexit strategy, full text
From our UK edition
On 29 March 2017, the European Council has received the notification by the United Kingdom of its intention to withdraw from the European Union and Euratom. This allows for the opening of negotiations as foreseen by the Treaty. European integration has brought peace and prosperity to Europe and allowed for an unprecedented level and scope of cooperation on matters of common interest in a rapidly changing world. Therefore, the Union's overall objective in these negotiations will be to preserve its interests, those of its Member States, its citizens and its businesses. The United Kingdom's decision to leave the Union creates significant uncertainties that have the potential to cause disruption, in particular in the UK but also in other Member States.
Thursday
Letters | 30 March 2017
From our UK edition
No blanket solution Sir: Paul Collier is right to say that the refugee crisis will not be solved with tents and food alone (‘The camps don’t work’, 25 March). But context is everything, and aid remains vital. In middle-income countries such as Jordan and Lebanon, getting refugees into jobs is essential. Businesses are part of the jigsaw. So is government legislation to ensure, for example, that refugees get work permits or can register as self-employed. So too are labour market interventions that generate incentives to get refugees working. However, in fragile and impoverished states that lack functioning markets and governments, different forms of aid are required.
Barometer | 30 March 2017
From our UK edition
First through the exit Is Britain the first country to leave the EU? — As a full part of France, Algeria was effectively a member of the Common Market between 1957 and 1962. That ceased upon independence in 1962. — Greenland joined as part of Denmark in 1973. After winning home rule it held a referendum on membership in 1982, and 53 per cent voted to leave. — The Caribbean island of Saint Barthélemy became a member of the EU as part of Guadeloupe, an overseas department of France. This ceased when Guadeloupe seceded. Deal or no deal International Trade Secretary Liam Fox’s department has set up working groups with 15 countries to develop post-EU trade agreements. But do such deals boost trade?
Moving on | 30 March 2017
From our UK edition
Most people are glad to see the end of a referendum campaign, but the losing side always wants to keep going. Nicola Sturgeon has this week demanded a second vote on independence, in defiance of public opinion. And as Brexit talks begin, the country is still divided, with many people wishing to see the negotiations break down and the referendum result be overturned. The Prime Minister will need to fight these two battles in different ways. In Scotland, she must take care not to fall into the nationalists’ traps. Ms Sturgeon ran for office promising not to call a second referendum unless it was ‘clear’ that a ‘majority of people wanted a referendum’. At the time, the SNP expected support for independence to rise.
Portrait of the week | 30 March 2017
From our UK edition
Home Theresa May, the Prime Minister, wrote a letter to Donald Tusk, the President of the European Council, with formal notification of Britain’s withdrawal from the European Union under Article 50 of the Lisbon Treaty. If no agreement is made sooner, Britain would cease to be a member in two years. The other 27 member states had celebrated the 60th anniversary of the Treaty of Rome. Asked by the BBC if Mrs May would be the ‘elephant in the room’ at the shindig, Jean-Claude Juncker, the president of the European Commission, said: ‘She’s not an elephant.
Books and arts – 30 March 2017
From our UK edition
Ballots and bullets
From our UK edition
From ‘The golden opportunity’, 31 March 1917: The proposal not to give women votes till they are 26 might well be modified by making all persons come of age politically at 26, but with the proviso that any man who had served in His Majesty’s Forces, naval or military, during the war should be given a vote whatever his age. There can be no better basis for a vote than such service for the state. Those male persons who from the impediment of ill-health or engagement in a special trade failed to join the combatant forces should not enjoy the suffrage till 26. Those who have gone through the fire of war or prepared themselves to go through it deserve to come of age politically at 21.
Wednesday
Transcript: Andrew Neil’s Brexit interview with Theresa May
From our UK edition
Andrew Neil: So, Prime Minister the negotiations to leave the European Union begin. It’s a historic moment for our country. In what ways will Britain be a better country for leaving the European Union? Theresa May: Well you’re absolutely right, Andrew, that this is a historic moment for our country. We’re putting into place now the decision that was taken in the referendum on the 23rd of June last year to leave the European Union and the formal process has begun. I’ve written to, as they say, invoke this Article 50 that people will have heard about which starts the process of formal negotiations. As we look ahead to the outcome of those negotiations I believe that we should be optimistic as a country about what we can achieve.
A generous, globally-minded Brexit could reunite a divided country
From our UK edition
Public opinion on Brexit remains evenly balanced, and there’s no point in any Conservative pretending otherwise. About half the nation did not want their Prime Minister to trigger Article 50 today, and Theresa May should primarily concern herself with her fellow Remainers – especially in Scotland. Many of them will see, in Brexit, the triumph of ugly nativism or a nostalgic isolationism. Her Lancaster House speech in January laid out a compelling, globally minded vision of Brexit. Emphasising that message will be key to addressing the worst fears of Remain voters. The triggering of Article 50 represents a great opportunity. We can now move on from whether Britain should or should not leave the EU: Article 50 has served irrevocable notice of our doing so.
Theresa May’s full Article 50 speech: ‘A day of celebration for some and disappointment for others’
From our UK edition
Mr Speaker, Today the Government acts on the democratic will of the British People. And it acts, too, on the clear and convincing position of this House. A few minutes ago in Brussels, the United Kingdom’s Permanent Representative to the EU handed a letter to the President of the European Council on my behalf, confirming the Government’s decision to invoke Article 50 of the Treaty on European Union. The Article 50 process is now underway. And in accordance with the wishes of the British People, the United Kingdom is leaving the European Union. This is an historic moment from which there can be no turning back. Britain is leaving the European Union. We are going to make our own decisions and our own laws.
Article 50 letter: full text
From our UK edition
On 23 June last year, the people of the United Kingdom voted to leave the European Union. As I have said before, that decision was no rejection of the values we share as fellow Europeans. Nor was it an attempt to do harm to the European Union or any of the remaining member states. On the contrary, the United Kingdom wants the European Union to succeed and prosper. Instead, the referendum was a vote to restore, as we see it, our national self-determination. We are leaving the European Union, but we are not leaving Europe – and we want to remain committed partners and allies to our friends across the continent.
Monday
Theresa May’s Brexit speech in Scotland, full transcript
From our UK edition
It is very good to be with you here with you today, and particularly to be able to thank you all for the work you do on behalf of the Government and on behalf of the British people. Vital work that helps millions around the world and speaks strongly to the values that we share as a country. And it is vital work. Not just because the things you do here have a material impact on the lives of some of the poorest and most vulnerable people around the world. But also because the work you do here – in conjunction with your colleagues at the Department for International Development in London – says something important about Britain. It says that we are a kind and generous country.
