The Spectator

Thursday

The Spectator

Britain needs small government, not weak government. That means strong flood defences

From our UK edition

[audioplayer src="http://traffic.libsyn.com/spectator/TheViewFrom22_13_February_2014_v4.mp3" title="Christopher Booker discusses the failures behind the floods" startat=61] Listen [/audioplayer]There is nothing inevitable about the by now familiar sight of residents being towed away from flooded homes, of shops and businesses submerged, and all the misery and economic turmoil which follows. A short hop across the North Sea is a country which has been having much the same weather as we have recently and has even more low-lying land vulnerable to flooding. Yet there has been a remarkable lack of footage of Dutch homeowners being forced to gather their possessions and flee their homes. Why?

The Spectator

Spectator letters: Fears for Scotland, and John Cornwell answers Melanie McDonagh

From our UK edition

Save our Scotland Sir: Matthew Parris is quite right to praise Lord Lang’s speech in the Lords on Scottish independence 9 (‘The End of Britain’, 8 February) and there were other notable contributions, especially from Lord Kerr, on the European dimension, and Lord Robertson, the former secretary-general of Nato. But is anyone listening? The debate got virtually no coverage in the Scottish editions — and I suspect even less in the English ones. Meanwhile the SNP publicity machine rolls on here and is now promising an annual ‘Indy bonus’ of £600 for every man, woman and child in Scotland, exceeding the £500 threshold at which (as Alex Massie pointed out in the same issue) surveys suggest the average Scotsman will sell his British soul.

The Spectator

Portrait of the week: as the waters continue to rise

From our UK edition

Home Floods grew worse in the West Country. The village of Moorland, Somerset, was abandoned. Then the Thames flooded, from above Oxford to Teddington. Eventually, David Cameron, the Prime Minister, declared from Downing Street: ‘Money is no object in this relief effort.’ Some 1,600 troops were deployed. By midweek 1,000 houses had been evacuated. A storm had broken the rail line from Cornwall at Dawlish, which would take months to mend, as would the broken line from Barmouth to Criccieth. Landslides closed lines between Tonbridge and Hastings, between Machynlleth and Welshpool, and from Portsmouth via Eastleigh. Villagers at Wraysbury, Berkshire, complained of looting of abandoned houses.

The Spectator

Barometer: The kamikaze pilot who retired after three missions

From our UK edition

A kamikaze pilot at 80 The Japanese city of Minami-Kyushu was attacked for wanting to add the letters of 1,036 kamikaze pilots who died on suicide missions in the second world war to a UN archive. Not all kamikaze pilots died, and a few are still alive. — Shigeyoshi Hamazono, who is now in his eighties, achieved the unique distinction of surviving three kamikaze missions. — In the first two he developed technical problems with his plane and turned back. This did not lead to court-martial but to his being sent on a third mission. — On this occasion he was intercepted by US fighters before he could find his target. They holed his plane but failed to cause it to crash. Instead, Hamazono limped home. — The war ended before he could be sent on a fourth mission.

The Spectator

George Osborne’s speech on whether Scotland could keep the pound – full text

From our UK edition

In a speech in Edinburgh today, the Chancellor launched an attack on the ‘yes’ campaign's intention to keep the pound as the currency of an independent Scotland. Here's what he said:- In just over 7 months people in Scotland will decide whether or not to walk away from the United Kingdom. The stakes couldn’t be higher, or the choice clearer. The certainty and security of being part of the UK or the uncertainty and risk of going it alone. At the very heart of this choice is the pound in your pocket. Why? Because the currency we use is about so much more than notes and coins. It’s about the value of our savings. Our power to purchase the everyday things we need and how we make the wheels of trade and commerce turn.

Friday

The Spectator

David Cameron’s speech on Scottish independence – full text and audio

From our UK edition

At the Lee Valley Velopark today, David Cameron gave a speech where he called on people across the UK to speak out for the UK and against Scottish independence. Here's what he said:- listen to ‘David Cameron's speech on the importance of Scotland to the UK’ on Audioboo I want to thank Glasgow Caledonian for co-hosting this event. This is a fantastic, forward-looking university – and we are very grateful for your support today as we are to the Lee Valley VeloPark, for hosting us in this magnificent space. Less than 2 years ago, this Velodrome was a cauldron of excitement. Chris Hoy was ripping around at 40 miles per hour I was up there, I had a whole seat but believe me, I only used the edge. 3 more golds – an incredible night.

Thursday