The verdict is in

Howard

Indeed. Very Damning. All we need now is the "smack of firm government" and even Brown will know it is over before it has started.

Richard Jacobs

the man is on a par with Heath and Wilson - we are going backwards

Richard Jacobs

the man is on a par with Heath and Wilson - we are going backwards

James

The problem is Brown has long believed his own propaganda. He really did think that the economic expansion was due to him and in so much as we have just come through a Keynesian boom, it was. But squirting money into the state sector should not be confused with prudent management of the economy. Brown was never going to see the error of his ways and Darlings eyes are firmly fixed on Brown, so he could to be expected to see much of anything. We have now taken on a significant risk in the housing market, just before it heads into what is almost certain to be the worst year for housing in the last decade. So because Brown refuses to admit the economy is in trouble or that he might have made a mistake, we now are saddled with £55 billion in risk. I can not wait until May 2010…

Punishment of Luxury

I Can't believe you didn't post my comment on Richard Branson & the Northern Rock. Every single word was true. Is the Spectator now afraid of the rich & powerful. Shame on you.

Travis Bickle

If you or I, or a Tory chancellor, sold one of our most precious assets at (say) $300 an ounce, then spent a few years largely wasting the proceeds and racking up debt, finally seeing our original asset has trebled in value over intervening period; would either the label "competent" or "economic genius" apply?? Then why do the mainstream media let Brown ride the myth?

Nicholas Millman

"Then why do the mainstream media let Brown ride the myth?" Because with a few honourable exceptions it is riddled with New Labour supporters who cannot see beyond their own dogma and cant. And those honourable exceptions are often attacked on a personal level rather than about what they have to say - being undermined - which has long been a staple in the Left's armoury of tactics. Taking the long view of history it has been almost 40 years of Left Wing politics in motion, culminating not just in the re-invention of Labour by Blair but the re-invention of New Labour by Brown. It is a fascinating story of how a few have managed to pull the wool over the yes of many for a very long time. Blair was significant because in addition to the subversive infiltration tactics long practiced he established a propaganda machine of a sort not seen since Herr Goebbels was around - and many parallels there are too. Blair has gone, for the time being, but unfortunately spin is still an integral part of New Labour. All of this should be starkly obvious to anyone delving into these characters backgrounds. Leopards don't change their spots. Britain is already in the hands of extremists.

Mike H

A wonderful article from Anatole Kaletsky. It was so good that I've bookmarked it. On the many days when I am feeling angry and depressed about this incompetent government, I can flick to that article, re-read it, and console myself with the thought that it won't be much longer.

Max Kaye

Dynamite! The best demolition job in years.
Brown is a dead man walking.

TGF UKIP

Punishment of Luxury - "Is the Spectator now afraid of the rich and powerful" The answer from my experience in having a number of posts deleted, including also on NR and Beardie, is a resounding yes. The Spectator is also, again from my experience, ultra sensitive on the matter of taste where the delicate sensibilities of our leading politicians are concerned.