The Spectator

Saturday

The Spectator

Letters | 9 August 2008

From our UK edition

Part-time heroes Sir: I noted with interest the article about ‘lazy firemen’ (‘Britain’s firefighters are underworked and inflexible’, 26 July). I am Lincolnshire’s Chief Fire Officer with more than 35 years’ service, and though there was much truth in what Leo McKinstry said, what he failed to address was the progress made by many fire authorities with part-time staff who are not represented in the unions castigated in your article. More than half of my fire stations employ part-time staff who respond to the most urgent medical emergencies either in a car or in a fire engine and provide immediate life-saving intervention while the professionally qualified paramedics are en route.

The Spectator

China in our hands

From our UK edition

For many people, watching the opening ceremony of the Beijing Olympics will be like trying to enjoy a party above the din of police cars taking away uninvited guests. However much you turn up the music, you can still hear the sirens: the oppressed of Tibet and other rebellious provinces, the silenced dissidents, the Western protesters, like the four ‘Free Tibet’ activists detained this week, the families of those executed under one of the most severe penal codes in the world. And the party will be a little short on celebrity guests too. Steven Spielberg won’t be there: he resigned as artistic adviser for the opening ceremony in February, in protest at China’s support for the murderous regime in Sudan.

Friday

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The week that was | 8 August 2008

From our UK edition

Here are some of the posts made this week on Spectator.co.uk... Eric Pickles wants your questions. Chris Grayling answers your questions. Spectator staff suggest some good summer reads. Kaz Mochlinski previews the Olympic Games. Henrietta Bredin reveals the most ineffectual phrase in current misuse. Matthew D'Ancona claims that al-Qaeda are winning, and says that the Brownites would love David Miliband to team up with Alan Milburn. Peter Hoskin gives his take on the speculation that Milburn would be Chancellor in a Miliband government, and asks whether David Cameron and George Osborne will divorce over marriage. Brian Cullen questions how courageous the British Free Tibet protestors actually are, and suggests that Brown's PR people should rein him in.

The Spectator

Two reminders

From our UK edition

Just to remind you that... We're running a Q&A with Eric Pickles.  Go here to submit your questions. And we'll be posting our first Sunday Essay this weekend.  For more information on how you can submit an essay for consideration, click here.

Thursday

The Spectator

Rod Liddle takes on green taxes

From our UK edition

In this week’s magazine, Rod Liddle provides a brilliantly acerbic take on the Government’s green agenda.  Here’s the bottom line: “The truth is, I suspect, that you can ‘prove’ almost any old rubbish to be environmentally sound or otherwise — the science is so inexact and so open to manipulation. This isn’t an excuse for doing nothing, but it is a good reason for suspecting the motives of any and all politicians when they use the word ‘green’. It is beginning to be seen as a gigantic con perpetrated against the very people who can least afford it.”. You can read, and comment on, the full article here.

Wednesday

Monday

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Spectator.co.uk statistics: July 2008

From our UK edition

Here are the July monthly traffic figures for Spectator.co.uk: Unique Users --- 197,403 Page Views --- 1,886,333 These figures represent an impressive year of growth across the site, and include your favourites: Coffee House, Melanie Phillips' blog, Stephen Pollard’s blog, Clive Davis’s blog and, of course, the weekly magazine content. Thank you to all of our users for making it possible. Keep an eye out for the exciting new features we will be adding to Spectator.co.uk over the coming months.

The Spectator

Just in case you missed them… | 4 August 2008

From our UK edition

…here are some of the posts made over the weekend on Spectator.co.uk:     Daniel Korski says that Britain needs to support a European defence initiative.  Fraser Nelson points out that curbing drinking by taxing alcopops isn’t as straightforward as it looks, and suggests that Blair should have stopped Brown from getting to No10.  Peter Hoskin explores the ramifications of the leaked Blair memo, and wonders what the impact of Polly Toynbee’s praise for David Miliband will be.  And Clive Davis laments the quality of the British Summer.

Saturday

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Letters | 2 August 2008

From our UK edition

On Colombian ‘democracy’ Sir: Tristan Garel-Jones’s article misrepresents Justice for Colombia’s work by implying a common agenda with the Farc (‘The day I was kidnapped’, 12 July). JFC works to defend human rights in Colombia. We were the only British organisation to campaign for the release of Ingrid Betancourt. Last year we brought over Ingrid’s mother and relatives of other hostages, arranging events for them in Parliament, at the Law Society and the Foreign and Commonwealth Office — Lord Garel-Jones was invited but did not attend. He says Colombia is democratic, civilised and friendly, as we are sure it is if you are a visiting British dignitary.

The Spectator

Leader of the lemmings

From our UK edition

So madly introspective and self-obsessed has Labour become that it seems almost impolite to intrude upon its private agonies. Yet since the party is still notionally governing the nation it is our duty to knock on the door, and ask what all the tears and shouting are about. The conduct of the government since the Glasgow East by-election has been a study in the pathology of denial. The Prime Minister and his colleagues insist that they are ‘getting on with the job’ and focusing on the public’s priorities — refusing, so they claim, to be distracted by little local difficulties.

Friday

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The week that was | 1 August 2008

From our UK edition

A selection of posts made this week on Spectator.co.uk: Fraser Nelson wonders whether Alex Salmond is the real threat for Labour, and laments Gordon Brown’s reverse Midas touch. James Forsyth says the numbers don’t add up for David Miliband, and gives his take on the Foreign Secretary’s infamous Guardian op-ed. Peter Hoskin reports on a poll kicking for Brown and his would-be leadership challengers, and observes the parallels between Brown and Nixon. Daniel Korski gives his suggestions for how David Cameron should reshape the machinery of government. Sean Martin assesses the new search engine Cuil. Stephen Pollard claims Cameron’s got it right when it comes to teaching children to drink. Melanie Phillips thinks it’s a really silly season.

Wednesday

The Spectator

Just in case you missed them… | 30 July 2008

From our UK edition

We've had a few technical problems today, so here are some Coffee House posts that you may have missed: Fraser Nelson wonders whether Alex Salmond is Labour's biggest threat, and give his thoughts on the Labour leadership struggle. James Forsyth outlines the the internal turmoil that Labour can expect should Brown be ousted, and analyses David Miliband's op-ed in the Guardian.  And Peter Hoskin asks whether Labour will be annihilated at the next election, and reports on the job losses at Northern Rock.

Monday

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Just in case you missed them… | 28 July 2008

From our UK edition

…here are some of the posts made over the weekend on Spectator.co.uk: Rory Sutherland says it’s out with the flash and in with the smiles to curb speeding on our roads. James Forsyth tips Alan Johnson as the main threat to the Tories, and claims that Cameron wants us to think that the torch has passed to another generation. Fraser Nelson reveals the Shadow Cabinet Rich list, and suggests that Barack Obama needs a history lesson. Clive Davis visits Tintern Abbey. And Americano praises the Obama rethink about Iraq.

Saturday

The Spectator

Letters | 26 July 2008

Sensible scares Sir: To be fair to the scaremongers (Another Voice, 19 July), at least some of the scares mentioned by Matthew Parris (al-Qa’eda, HIV) seem less frightening in retrospect not because they were always insubstantial but because the threats were taken seriously and action was taken to counter them. If the fuss over the threat of Aids in Britain now seems excessive, might that not be because it changed people’s behaviour? In other words, there is some social value to scaremongering from the press and public agencies. Robert Bargery London E1 Saint Pius XII? Sir: Pope Pius XII was described by Golda Meir, the then Israeli foreign minister, as ‘a true friend of the Jewish people’ at the time of the Pontiff’s death in 1958.

The Spectator

Must Try Harder

From our UK edition

The wonder of the National Curriculum Tests marking scandal is that it has taken a decade for the inadequacies of the school exam system to become widely known. As Liz Brocklehurst, a former exam marker, reveals in this issue (see page 21), the exam system has been in crisis since being politicised in David Blunkett’s days as education secretary. For ten years, markers have been put under pressure to interpret answers in a bizarrely over-generous fashion, even to the point of marking obviously wrong answers as correct. Little has been revealed about such practices because the markers have been sworn to secrecy.

Friday

The Spectator

The week that was | 25 July 2008

From our UK edition

Here are some of the posts made this week on Spectator.co.uk: Chris Grayling wants your questions. George Osborne answers your questions. Fraser Nelson reports on the SNP's stunning victory in the Glasgow East by-election, and claims that the West needs to solve the Pakistan problem. James Forsyth says Ed Balls should take responsibility for the Sat fiasco, and spells out how reform-minded Labour MPs can establish a case for toppling Brown. Peter Hoskin analyses James Purnell's strategy for getting to the top, and says that taxpayer subsidy of Commons bars has to stop. Melanie Phillips gives her take on Gordon Brown's speech to the Knesset. Stephen Pollard asks: what's the point of fiction?

Wednesday

Monday

The Spectator

Just in case you missed them… | 21 July 2008

From our UK edition

...here are some posts made over the weekend on Spectator.co.uk: Matthew d'Ancona claims that the latest Batman film is brilliantly dark. Fraser Nelson presents a guide to Glasgow East, and highlights new statistics which show that four out of every five drug addicts are on welfare. James Forsyth suggests that Brown will take a pounding during the summer recess, and identifies Alistair Darling's interview with the Times as "the start of a new chapter in British politics".  Clive Davis celebrates Melody Gardot. And Americano wonders whether Obama can seal the deal this week.