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Thursday 8 January 2009

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The latest culture as recommended by our staff

Peter Hoskin

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CoffeeHouse

How Cameron should respond to the 'Tory cuts' jibe

The Tories need to protect themselves against the coming Labour charge, however bogus it may be, that Tory plans would require schools and hospitals to be shut. The best way to do this is to pledge not to cut funding for these services in 2010-11. After all, this is only the first year of a Tory government and Tory education reforms will probably require a short-term increase in education spending anyway.

The idiocy of the ECB

So, it has all ended in tears. Kevin Pietersen’s resignation came even sooner than his worst enemies would have predicted...

Ed Balls debuts the apprenticeships Brownie

Ed Balls never gets enough credit for the Brownies that he cooks up. One was served today, when he spent...

Labour, the do nothing until after the holidays party

The vacation habits of the shadow cabinet are under discussion today principally because everyone thinks that one holidaying member will...

Lib Dem MEP: Israeli government fundamentally racist

With neither Labour nor the Tories saying much about Israel, Nick Clegg spotted an opportunity in venting outrage today. His...

Arts

Good intentions

If you don’t mind — yeah, like you’ve any choice in the matter — what I thought I’d do for this New Year column is to do just enough TV for the editor not to want to sack me, then move swiftly on to the stuff my hardcore fans prefer, namely the rambling and shameless solipsism.

Wagner treat

Tristan und Isolde
Royal Festival Hall

Hänsel und Gretel second cast
Royal Opera House

Books

Conflicts of interest?

Land of Marvels, by Barry Unsworth

Slum-dwellers and high-flyers

Heliopolis, by James Scudamore

Style & Travel

Not just for Christmas

Matthew Dennison extols the virtues of a rare but distinguished breed

Latin lover

Colombia has Clemency Burton-Hill weak at the knees

Operation ‘Go Nuts’ is a success so far — but for how long?

Paul Wood says that Israel’s ‘shock and awe’ in Gaza caught Hamas off-guard and was a ferocious demonstration of willpower. But the Islamist organisation is far from finished

Paul Wood

Let India 2.0 rise from the ashes of Bombay

Elliot Wilson says that an energetic form of political activism — principally on the internet — is needed in India and there are encouraging signs on Facebook, MySpace and other sites

Elliot Wilson

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