The hunting ban could be gone soon – but the hypocrisy will linger on, says Melissa Kite in this week’s issue. Cameron knows he has to deliver something to the hunting fraternity now that he leads a majority government, because he promised a vote on repeal in his manifesto. The trouble is that he can’t risk a free vote, which only entrenches the hunting ban if it goes against him. So a solution has been hit upon that involves amending the Hunting Act by statutory instrument. But as David Amess MP, a member of Conservatives Against Fox Hunting, suggests on this week’s podcast, it won’t work – because there is no appetite for another debate about hunting. Camilla Swift, who presents this week’s podcast, suggests that there may be.
George Osborne delivered his summer Budget yesterday. His main decision was a to introduce a new ‘living wage’ of £7.20 an hour, rising to £9 an hour by 2020. This was treated with jubilation on Tory benches, but is not quite as generous as it sounds. Fraser Nelson, James Forsyth and Isabel Hardman discuss the implications of Osborne’s Budget.
And finally, is Harper Lee really the reclusive figure she’s made out to be? Harry Mount has evidence that this might not be the case. He’s joined by Sameer Rahim, Arts and Books editor at Prospect, to discuss her new novel.
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The View from 22 podcast
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