Home The Health and Social Care Bill, which changes the organisation of the National Health Service, passed its second reading by 321 votes to 235. Lawyers opined that the European Court of Human Rights required the government to give prisoners in Scotland and Wales the right to vote in May’s elections or risk claims for
Does it matter if prisoners are allowed to vote or not? Save for in the odd council ward in Brixton or on Dartmoor, some 84,000 prisoners — among an electorate of 46 million — are unlikely to have a material effect on the outcome of British elections. Does it matter if prisoners are allowed to
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Experts debate what happens next in Egypt and the countries around it In his retirement, Dwight Eisenhower admitted that the biggest foreign policy mistake of his presidency had been not supporting Anthony Eden over the Suez crisis. How right he was. If Arab nationalism had been strangled in its cradle in 1956 by the vigorous
Here are some of the posts made at Spectator.co.uk over the past week. Fraser Nelson treads the road to recovery. James Forsyth reports on the wheeler dealing over the AV bill, and bemoans the strange consensus at PMQs this week. Peter Hoskin gives 10 things you need to know about the IFS’ Green Budget, and
Welcome to the latest CoffeeHousers’ Wall. For those who haven’t come across the Wall before, it’s a post we put up each Monday, on which – providing your writing isn’t libellous, crammed with swearing, or offensive to common decency – you’ll be able to say whatever you like in the comments section. There is no
…here are some of the posts made on Spectator.co.uk over the weekend: Fraser Nelson fears for the outcome of the Egyptian protests, and says that jihadis thrive on Islam’s lack of definition. James Forsyth says that Andrew Lansley needs to explain his reforms better, and watches the situation in Egypt turn from revolt to revolution.
The scale of the loss Sir: You state that ‘the British army was defeated in Basra’ (leading article, 22 January) as though it were a re-run of Alamein or Waterloo. Would it not be more true to say that the undermanned and under-resourced segment of the army in Basra was insufficient to cope with the
No such thing as society The government’s ‘Big Society’ project is partly inspired by a desire to undo the damage created by a remark made by Mrs Thatcher in an interview with Woman’s Own on 31 October 1987. Here are some extracts from the transcript: ‘I think we have gone through a period when too
Home The gross domestic product of the United Kingdom shrank by 0.5 per cent in the last quarter of 2010 compared with that quarter the previous year, according to initial figures from the Office for National Statistics. Home The gross domestic product of the United Kingdom shrank by 0.5 per cent in the last quarter
David Cameron has said he is determined not to lead a cuts-only coalition. He has spoken about promoting entrepreneurship, rightly hailing small businesses as the engine of Britain’s economic recovery. At the last Tory party conference, he paid homage to ‘the doers and the grafters, the inventors and the entrepreneurs’. He was fully behind these
So everyone is going to live much longer and will therefore have to work much longer to pay for their pensions. But what is so wrong with dying, Greeks and Romans would ask? So everyone is going to live much longer and will therefore have to work much longer to pay for their pensions. But
Here are some of the posts made on Spectator.co.uk over the past week: Fraser Nelson explains why the GDP drop may not be as bad as it first appears, and reveals what’s inside this week’s Spectator. James Forsyth wonders what the Tories must do to win in 2015, and reports on the shrinking GDP figures.
Welcome to the latest CoffeeHousers’ Wall. For those who haven’t come across the Wall before, it’s a post we put up each Monday, on which – providing your writing isn’t libellous, crammed with swearing, or offensive to common decency – you’ll be able to say whatever you like in the comments section. There is no
…here are some of the posts made at Spectator.co.uk over the weekend. Fraser Nelson exposes the con man, Ed Balls. James Forsyth says that all extremism is a problem, and sizes up the runners and riders to replace Coulson. Peter Hoskin asks how the Lib Dems have fared in recent days, and explains why Coulson’s
The plot thickens It is as if we are stuck in a hideous loop. The plot thickens It is as if we are stuck in a hideous loop. Every few months, it seems, Tony Blair is once again hauled up to give evidence to the never-ending Iraq inquiry. Each time he is dragged from a
Here is a selection of posts made at Spectator.co.uk over the past week. Fraser Nelson warns against under-estimating the two Eds, and watches the inflation crisis deepen. James Forsyth says that appointing Balls as Shadow Chancellor is a gamble on Miliband’s part, and reflects on a bad morning for the government. Peter Hoskin asks if
Welcome to the latest CoffeeHousers’ Wall. For those who haven’t come across the Wall before, it’s a post we put up each Monday, on which – providing your writing isn’t libellous, crammed with swearing, or offensive to common decency – you’ll be able to say whatever you like in the comments section. There is no
…here are some of the posts made at Spectator.co.uk over the weekend. Fraser Nelson explains how it is going right for Ed Miliband. James Forsyth watches Ed Miliband deliver a speech to the Fabian society. Peter Hoskin argues that Ed Miliband is still dodgy on the public finances. David Blackburn doubts that a Tory-Lib pact
Top dogs Sir: I very much enjoyed the excerpts from Dean Spanley (The Spectator’s Notes, 8 January). Hitherto my favourite depiction of the canine mindset had come from Three Men in a Boat, by Jerome K. Jerome: Montmorency’s ambition in life is to get in the way and be sworn at. If he can squirm in