The Spectator

Wednesday

The Spectator

Nick Clegg says we’re losing the war on drugs. But is there even a war?

This country is losing the war on drugs, according to Nick Clegg. The Deputy Prime Minister told the BBC's Free Speech programme that he was frustrated that his Coalition partners were not prepared to be more imaginative on the issue, given clamour from other quarters for a new direction: 'I don't think we're winning the drugs war; I think we keep banging our head against the wall and in fact I find it very frustrating that my Conservative coalition partners are not prepared to look more openly, imaginatively. You've got very senior police officers now coming out saying that the war on drugs is failing, that we should treat drug addiction as much as a health issue as a criminal justice one.' But that assumes that there is war on drugs that is being fought at all.

Tuesday

The Spectator

Melanie McDonagh: This is why our abortion laws are a joke

There’s been much chatter today about Keir Starmer’s declaration that it was right not to prosecute doctors who authorised abortions that were requested because of the gender of the foetus. You won’t read a better piece on the subject than the article by our new regular blogger Melanie McDonagh. She describes the full implications of Mr Starmer’s thinking: ‘As Mr Starmer made clear it’s possible for doctors to authorise an abortion without actually ever having seen the woman concerned. On this basis, pretty well any abortion is justified, on the basis that any pregnancy, carried to term, would be worse for the mental or physical health of the mother than not carrying on with it. Which may of course be true.

Monday

The Spectator

Reshuffle: the full list of jobs | 7 October 2013

In Rob Wilson - PPS to George Osborne Gavin Williamson - PPS to the Prime Minister Judith Jolly - whip in the House of Lords (LD) Anna Soubry - Parliamentary Under Secretary at Ministry of Defence (Con) Tina Stowell- Parliamentary Under Secretary at DCLG (Con) Kris Hopkins -  Parliamentary Under Secretary at DCLG (Con) Wayne David - PPS to Miliband (Lab) Amber Rudd - assistant whip (Con) Claire Perry - assistant whip (Con) Gavin Barwell - assistant whip (Con) John Penrose - assistant whip (Con) Karen Bradley - government whip (Con) Douglas Alexander - chair of General Election strategy, as well as shadow foreign secretary (Lab) Emma Reynolds - shadow minister for Housing, attending shadow cabinet (Lab) Gloria de Piero -.

The Spectator

As it happened: Government and shadow cabinet reshuffle

The Conservatives, Labour and Liberal Democrats undertook reshuffles today. As it happened, here is how Fraser Nelson, James Forsyth, Isabel Hardman and Sebastian Payne reported the day's events. You can see a list of who's in and out here. 1839:  So in the end three reshuffles that could have toiled on all week are pretty much wrapped up by the end of play. Here are our top lines from tonight's Evening Blend: All three parties reshuffled their frontbench ranks, with a cull of the Blairites in Labour and jobs for rising stars and allies of George Osborne for the Tories. …while Nick Clegg showed his brutal side by sacking popular Home Office minister Jeremy Browne with a terse letter. The new appointments include a beefed-up whips' office.

Thursday