The latest contribution by Britain to the IMF has caused Osborne more trouble, if he did not have enough already, but it does make sense to ensure that the coffers of this fund of last resort are kept topped up, not least because it is not impossible that we may need its help again one […]
Is the criticism of the Budget, the biggest onslaught of its kind in living memory, fair? The answer, like most in politics, is both yes and no. Yes, if you judge the budget as a political instrument; no if you look at the budget as a fiscal tool to manage the economy. In the big […]
There has been a furore concerning the imminent deportation of the radical cleric to Jordan and his last minute appeal. The Home Office and the hapless Mrs. May insist they got the date right. They did not. A time limit expires at the end of the final day, not at the beginning of it. Any fool knows that.
I am sorry to disappoint regular readers with such sporadic new postings, but my book project has reached a very demanding stage!
Nobody saw the Bradford election sensation coming. Things have been going so badly for the government in a mayhem of budget disasters, pasty challenges, funding scandals, jerry cans and petrol queues, that many have been asking whether the Tory party can recover. For it is the Tory party which is in trouble. Suddenly it has […]
At a time of austerity and cuts it is very difficult for people to stomach the idea that companies are willing to pay vast sums in order to meet leading members of the government with a view to influencing policy. Unlike the huge American political fund raising industry, the one in Britain is covert, creepy […]
Simply put the verdict must be fiscally sound but politically inept. Because of the political ineptitude headlines about a mysterious Granny Tax abound. There is no such thing. What has happened is both simple and fair. The very generous £10,500 personal allowance for pensioners will not now rise with inflation until the increasing personal allowance […]
With the finalising of the Greek bailout, the signing of the fiscal pact, the acceptance of massive losses by investors in Greek bonds and the triggering of the credit default swaps, Euroland survives to fight another day. This is, of course, not the end of the story. It is a kind of Dunkirk moment. Catastrophe […]
This blog has in the past found itself in agreement with the views of Cardinal O’Brien, the leader of Catholics in Scotland, especially over the release of the Lockerbie bomber. On the matter of gay marriage, we have profoundly to disagree. Marriage is a human right, custom and tradition pre-dating Christianity. It is not the […]
Sadly, yes it can. The Syrian people are now caught in a nightmare of suffering and violence. The insurrection has taken too deep a hold to be crushed by internal military means. Even if The Assad government razes whole districts and slaughters the residents, protests will erupt elsewhere. Yet the protesters lack the power to challenge the […]