Spectator Briefings
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British innovation leads the charge against global plastic crisis
The numbers speak volumes: Around 400 million tons of plastic is produced annually, of which roughly a quarter goes into packaging. At the end of its life, 14 per cent of plastic packaging waste is collected for recycling, another 14 per cent gets incinerated and 40 per cent is landfilled. This leaves a stubborn 32
5 of the best wineries on the Gran Canaria Wine Route
Gran Canaria might not be the first place you think of when it comes to wine, but vines have been growing here since the Spanish colonised the island in the 15th century. Due to the island’s distinctive microclimate and volcanic soils, grapes grow incredibly well, and the Canarian archipelago lays claim to 18 unique grape varieties,
The hidden inefficiency of hydraulics: why we need a revolution
Hydraulics is one of the world’s unsung heroes. It’s everywhere, hidden in plain sight. From the brakes in your car to the planes in the sky and the cranes that built your office, hydraulics is the muscle behind modern life. Yet, despite its ubiquity, it has remained technologically stagnant for 70 years, operating at astonishingly
The importance of happiness in academic success
As Year 11 and Year 13 students across the country are readying themselves for this year’s public exams season, it is the ideal time to remind ourselves what education is about. I am very clear that a good education is partly judged around exam results, but is also about developing students’ character and skills, largely
Rooted in tradition, prepared for the future
For over a century, St Anthony’s School has been a cornerstone of Catholic preparatory education. Founded by Richard Patton in Eastbourne in 1892, the school relocated to its current site in Hampstead in the 1950s. Today, it continues to offer an exceptional educational journey, from its co-educational nursery (ages 2.5–4) to its academically rigorous preparatory
The Sherborne Difference
Last year, Sherborne Boys, Sherborne Girls, Sherborne Prep and Hanford Prep came together as the Sherborne Schools Group (SSG). It was a courageous move to secure the financial future of the schools and deliver an even better educational experience. For many years Sherborne Boys and Sherborne Girls have benefitted from a close relationship, underpinned by
Pioneering innovation: launching the world’s first graphene-enriched carbon fibre facility to advance vision 2030 and global innovation
As I reflect on the monumental achievement that we’ve reached with GIM GrapheneFibre, I am both humbled and energised by the possibilities this milestone brings. Together with our partners in Saudi Arabia, Organized Chaos, we have officially launched the world’s first commercial production of graphene-enriched carbon fibre – a groundbreaking leap that firmly places Saudi
How can we unlock longer working lives?
How do we get Britain back to work? Tackling our high rates of economic inactivity has been described by Liz Kendall, the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, as ‘the greatest employment challenge in a generation’. The challenge is indeed a serious one. Since the pandemic, the proportion of workers who are economically inactive
A perfectly modern education
Walking through Sherborne’s streets, it is clear there is something special about this gorgeous Dorset town. Routinely named in lists of the UK’s most beautiful places to live, it has a tangible air of history, with a glorious abbey standing at its heart. But it’s the two full-boarding senior schools and two local prep schools
Securing Britain’s energy on the pathway to net zero
There is no projection of the UK’s journey to net zero that does not include a role for gas for decades to come – and with a focus on clean power by 2030, there is a need to accelerate our transition to low-carbon gases. Today, gas accounts for almost half of the UK’s energy consumption
A manifesto for the financial crime challenges facing the next government
As we approach the final days of the UK general election campaign, it is crucial to consider the robustness of our financial system. This isn’t about tax policies or government spending, but the regulations and safeguards necessary to combat financial crime and protect people’s savings. Our team collaborates with more than 1,000 companies globally to
Urgent action is required to address pensions adequacy
Since its introduction just over a decade ago, automatic enrolment has undoubtedly transformed retirement savings in the UK, allowing millions of workers to effortlessly save for their future. Some 22.6 million people now contribute to a workplace pension, an increase of 47 per cent before auto enrolment’s inception in 2012. That is a significant achievement.
Where next for pensions auto-enrolment?
Since its introduction just over a decade ago, automatic enrolment has undoubtedly transformed retirement savings in the UK, allowing millions of workers to effortlessly save for their future. Some 22.6 million people now contribute to a workplace pension, an increase from 47 per cent prior to auto enrolment’s inception in 2012. That is a significant
Adani Green Energy accelerates decarbonisation of India’s grid by developing world’s largest renewable energy project
With India’s economy due to grow almost 7 per cent this year and an environmental necessity for clean energy, the country urgently needs to decarbonise its energy system at scale. The dual challenge of satisfying the rising demand for energy while ensuring a cleaner and greener future requires extraordinary ambition and scope. Adani Green Energy
Joining forces
It is a cold evening in the picturesque Dorset town of Sherborne. The Sherborne Astroturf pitch twinkles, diamonds of condensed fog glinting on its blue surface. Through the mist drifts the low chatter of girls and boys, smartly attired in military fatigues and readying for the sternest test of their cadet lives. This evening is
Regulating nicotine pouches is an unmissable opportunity for the government to unlock its smoke free 2030 ambition
England has a golden opportunity to be one of the very first countries globally to bring its smoking rate to below 5 per cent, thereby meeting the World Health Organisation’s definition of ‘smoke free’. The government has set itself the ambitious, and laudable, target of reaching this important milestone by 2030. At BAT we have
What could an 80s beer brand teach political leaders about reinventing your brand?
Political parties are faced with the challenge of re-inventing themselves every few years in order to reconnect with both their core voters, whilst appealing to new, and undecided ones, particularly as the clock ticks down to a General Election. It can also be a similar problem for major businesses, and their brands, as they look to
Latest from Coffee House
Why does Trump like Starmer so much?
12 min listen
It can now be revealed that a Ministry of Defence data leak has cost the UK some £7 billion and put thousands of Afghans at risk of death. A dataset containing the details of nearly 19,000 people who applied to move to the UK following the Taliban takeover was released in error by a British
Rachel Reeves’s mortgage reforms reek of desperation
Just how desperate is Rachel Reeves to achieve her elusive economic growth? Desperate enough, it seems, to risk a rush of repossessions in a future housing crisis. One of the big announcements in her Mansion House speech this evening, it has been reported, will be a new, permanent mortgage guarantee scheme, plus changes to mortgage
The MoD Afghan leak is a national embarrassment
Some days the British state really does embarrass itself. It can now be revealed that a Ministry of Defence data leak has cost the UK some £7billion and put thousands of Afghans at risk of death. A dataset containing the details of nearly 19,000 people who applied to move to the UK following the Taliban
Is Texas eating Hollywood?
20 min listen
Freddy Gray is joined by editor-at-large of The Spectator World, Ben Domenech. They discuss why Hollywood productions are being drawn away from California to states like Texas, and what this could mean for the future of filmmaking in America. Ben writes about this in the new edition of Spectator World, and you can subscribe to
James Cleverly’s case against the revolutionary right
There is a revolutionary air on the right at present. Whether it is Kemi Badenoch’s call to ‘rewire the state’ or Nigel Farage’s attacks on ‘broken Britain’, few have much good to say about our current political set-up. Step forward James Cleverly to offer balm to all that inflammation. At a speech this morning at
Coffee House Shots Live: Are the Tories toast?
Watch Spectator editor Michael Gove, political editor Tim Shipman and assistant editor Isabel Hardman as they discuss where the Tories go from here, in a livestream exclusively for Spectator subscribers. The strange death of Tory England has been predicted before. But never has the ‘natural party of government’ faced a greater challenge to its survival. The Conservatives are facing attacks on all fronts from