Politics

Read about the latest UK political news, views and analysis.

Monday

Sebastian Payne

Seven times Labour has previously launched a plan for the economy

The Labour vs. Conservative battle of economic plans is heating up. Ed Miliband is launching a 79-page Better Plan for Britain’s Prosperity today, which appears to be his latest alternative on the Conservatives’ robotic chants of a ‘long-term economic plan’ for ‘hardworking families’. But this isn’t the first time they have launched their plan for the economy. Here are seven previous occasions where Labour has made a fuss about some new plans, pledges or promises about the economy: 1. December 2014 – five election pledges. At the end of last year, Miliband announced that Labour would go into the election with five election pledges that constituted ‘a long-term plan to make

Steerpike Steerpike

Kindred spirits? Nigel Farage wants Jean-Claude Juncker as his drinking buddy

Nigel Farage wrote in the Spectator of his struggle to complete Dry January, while Jean-Claude Juncker is reported to be partial to a glass of cognac to kick start the day. So it came as little surprise to Mr Steerpike that the leader of Ukip named the President of the European Commission as his preferred drinking partner. Asked by Jim Mellon of Master Investor who out of David Cameron, Nick Clegg, Ed Miliband, Jean-Claude Juncker, Hilary Clinton and Jeb Bush, he would most like to go for a pint with, Farage opted for Juncker. ‘Oh Juncker every time, top man . I don’t agree with him politically, but I tell you something, he’s got a

Steerpike Steerpike

Tory MP accepts donation from banker who used same tax avoidance scheme as Jimmy Carr

With the Tories currently getting flak for holding a ball for the party’s super rich donors in the same week queries were raised about their tax habits, Ken Clarke appeared on the Sunday Politics to deny any suggestions of wrongdoing. He did, however, say that a ‘more defensible system’ should be put in place with a ‘donation cap’ and state funding so parties do not become overly reliant on rich individuals. Until that happens it’s business as usual for the Conservatives. According to the latest register of interests, Nicola Blackwood, the Conservative MP for Oxford West and Abingdon, accepted a £10,000 donation from George Robinson. In 2012 Robinson, a top hedge fund boss, was ordered

Isabel Hardman Isabel Hardman

Will Labour’s efforts to paint the Conservatives as a party of the rich backfire?

Quite naturally, the latest foray by Labour into pointing fingers at Tory tax avoiders has led to two scraps, firstly about Labour’s own donors and their tax affairs (as James predicted on Thursday) and secondly about whether or not paying your builder in cash is illegal. The last time the second row blew about Westminster, it was after Tory minister and tax personality of the year David Gauke made some rather clumsy comments about paying your cleaner. Chuka Umunna had a rather tough section of his Today programme interview in which he was repeatedly asked whether Labour would hand back money donated to it by someone who turned out to

Sunday

Fraser Nelson Fraser Nelson

The Spectator on Thatcher’s election as party leader, 15 Feb 1975

It seems hard to believe now, but only The Spectator supported Margaret Thatcher in the first leadership ballot.  She had been Keith Joseph’s campaign director, and when he faltered she took his place. The Economist, true to its endearing habit of being wrong in major calls in modern British history, said she was “precisely the sort of candidate who ought to be able to stand, and lose harmlessly” The Spectator has different tradition: of being isolated, but entirely correct. We were for Maggie all the way, and when she triumphed we devoted a front page leading article to her triumph under the cover line “Britain’s Second Lady”. The leader (below) was written by

James Forsyth James Forsyth

The danger for Miliband in his tax triumph

Last week was Labour’s best of the campaign so far and the Tories’ worst. The row over tax avoidance and Lord Fink’s comments reinforced the damaging perception that the Tories are the party of the rich. It also raised Labour morale, frontbenchers who used to be pessimistic about the party’s electoral prospects are now bullish. But there is a danger that this tactical victory could turn into a strategic defeat. For Miliband by denouncing tax avoidance—which is legal—and setting himself up as a moral arbiter on the issue, has made his tax affairs and those of his shadow Cabinet, MPs and donors a legitimate subject of public interest. They no

The Spectator

The Spectator at war: Labour problems

From ‘Labour Problems and the War’, The Spectator, 13 February 1915: The ultimate object of all Trade Union regulations is to improve the pecuniary position of the wage-earner. How far that object is attained by Trade Union methods is a matter of very keen controversy. There are economists, like the late Mr. T. S. Cree, who have brought forward many strong reasons to show that in the long run the position of the wage-earning classes could not be pecuniarily benefited by Trade Union action. There is no space here to follow out Mr. Cree’s arguments, and for the moment there is no necessity to do so. For the purpose of

Saturday

Nick Cohen Nick Cohen

David Cameron’s one law for the rich shows he doesn’t understand the British

The great historian of the Soviet Union Robert Conquest’s Third Law of Politics reads: ‘The simplest way to explain the behaviour of any bureaucratic organization is to assume that it is controlled by a cabal of its enemies.’ I have tested Conquest’s law on every bureaucracy I have covered, and it has always held up: nowhere more so than in the case of the British Conservative Party. The only way to explain it is to assume that agents of the Left, determined to lead it to destruction, have seized its leadership. The Conservatives are entering a tight election with one heavy burden. The public see them as the party of

Isabel Hardman Isabel Hardman

An idiotic guide to politics

What’s wrong with our politics? Now that more and people are turning to ‘anti-politics’ parties, this question is becoming steadily more fashionable and urgent. It’s now even got its own BBC Three documentary (the ultimate sign that an issue is dead serious, natch), called An Idiot’s Guide to Politics, presented by Jolyon Rubinstein from the Revolution Will Be Televised. The idea behind the programme was that Rubinstein would examine why people, particularly young adults, are so disengaged from politics and don’t want to vote, and why politics is in such a mess. The picture Rubinstein presented was rather depressing for two reasons. The first was that politicians do break promises

James Forsyth James Forsyth

Will Labour rule out a deal with the SNP?

Who ends up governing Britain after the election may well be determined by what happens in the Scottish seats. If the SNP take a slew of seats from Labour, it becomes far more likely that the Tories will be the largest party nationally. Add to that the fact that Cameron is the incumbent Prime Minister and he would, in these circumstances, probably be able to put together a deal that sees him carry on as Prime Minister. Labour is acutely aware of this and is busy warning Scots ‘Vote SNP, Get Tory.’ But in this anti-politics era, these squeeze messages don’t work as well as they used to—as the Tories

Steerpike Steerpike

Tory Black & White Ball tempts Nancy Dell’Olio into politics

One of the more glamorous attendees of this week’s Tory Black and White ball was Nancy Dell’Olio. The former girlfriend of Sven Goran Eriksson attended the Conservative fundraiser as the guest of Ivan Massow, the London mayoral hopeful. When Mr S caught up with Dell’Olio after the ball, it seemed the presence of political leaders was starting to rub off on her. ‘It was good to be there, I enjoyed David’s speech,’ the Italian lawyer told Steerpike at the Fernando Botero Private View at the Opera Gallery, before talk turned to her own career. ‘I’ll tell you what, I could apply to change my passport, one of my passions is politics. My friend

Friday

Isabel Hardman Isabel Hardman

Three reasons why Labour probably (just about) ‘won’ this week

Ed Miliband’s party has ended up having a reasonably good week, even though it’s been a pretty tough battle. Today’s front pages have not been good at all, something the party leader’s supporters are obviously disappointed by, but given the story about a comparison between the row about Lord Fink’s tax affairs and the hacking of Milly Dowler’s phone was made by an aide, not Miliband, and then reported in a way that was initially misinterpreted, the focus of the row is not Miliband himself. The line about Miliband’s own tax affairs was inevitable, too. But it depends whether anyone can find anything to continue the story. The Conservatives have

Isabel Hardman Isabel Hardman

Why Boris Johnson doesn’t want a Tory leadership contest this year

Even though Boris is building up support for his leadership campaign, he doesn’t want to have to stand in one this year. He needs David Cameron to remain Prime Minister after the General Election, and, as James reported recently, then take over following an EU referendum. That’s perhaps why the Mayor seemed quite keen on an earlier vote than the 2017 one that Cameron has officially promised. But a 2015 leadership contest, which the Mayor would certainly participate in, would come too early, partly because Boris still needs to shore up his support from MPs, and partly because he would still be Mayor. In an interview with the Evening Standard,

Steerpike Steerpike

Conservatives invite Dubai prisoner David Haigh to attend Tory campaign day

Conservative HQ might want to think a bit more carefully in the future when it comes to the guest list for their events. Mr S only makes the suggestion after they asked a businessman who is currently in jail in Dubai to attend an event happening this Saturday. A tweet from the Conservative’s Team 2015 account saw them reach out to David Haigh asking him to RSVP to the campaign day in Elmet and Rothwell for Alec Shelbrooke MP. It will be hard for Haigh to attend tomorrow. At present he is in a cell in Dubai after he was accused of a £3m fraud. The former managing director of Leeds United was arrested last year when he attended

Martin Vander Weyer Martin Vander Weyer

Maybe HSBC was too big for even Stephen Green to manage

Stephen Green — the former trade minister Lord Green of Hurstpier-point, who became this week’s political punchbag— was always a rather Olympian, out-of-the-ordinary figure at HSBC. This was a bank that traditionally drew its top men from a corps of tough, non-intellectual, front-line overseas bankers typified by the chairmen before Green, Sir John Bond and Sir Willie Purves. As the dominant bank in Hong Kong and a market leader throughout Asia and the Middle East, it was habituated to dealing with customers who took big risks, hoarded cash when they had it, and did not necessarily regard paying tax as a civic duty. But if ethics were rarely discussed in

The Spectator

The Spectator at war: The last full measure of devotion

From ‘Prohibition in Scotland during the war’, The Spectator, 13 February 1915: WE note with great interest the movement which is gathering strength in Scotland in favour of prohibition during the war. Let us say at once that, provided a well-marked majority of the representatives of the Scottish constituencies support the movement, we not only see no reason why their wishes should not be fulfilled, but we see good reason why the Government, at a time when there is plenty of Parliamentary leisure, should take up the matter and let Scotland have what she wishes. If demanded, a Referendum clause could and should be added to the Bill, for clearly

Thursday

The Spectator

What Samsung’s new TVs owe to Jeremy Bentham

Watching brief Samsung warned users of its voice-activated televisions that what they said in front of the TV could be transmitted to other people. The story attracted comparison with the telescreens in George Orwell’s Nineteen Eighty-Four, but the principle of keeping a population under control by surveillance was foreseen a century earlier by Jeremy Bentham. — In 1791 he came up with the idea for a Panopticon, a circular prison with one-way observation holes which would allow a single gaoler to patrol several hundred prisoners, none of whom could tell whether they were being watched at any one moment. — Bentham saw the government’s eventual rejection of the scheme as

Peter Jones

What Cicero knew that David Davis doesn’t

The MP David Davis has lamented that the British seem to prefer laws that protect their security rather than guard their liberty. But the first duty of the state is to protect its citizens. If it could not do that, argued Thomas Hobbes, citizens had the right to disobey. The Latin for state is res publica, ‘the people’s property/business/affairs’, and the Roman statesman Cicero took the view that the res publica was best served by laws whose sole aim was the republic’s ‘security and common interests’ (salus atque utilitas rei publicae). The 17th-century thinkers Hobbes, Locke and Spinoza and 18th-century Americans such as the key republican ‘founding father’ John Adams

Isabel Hardman Isabel Hardman

Exclusive: Tories confront Lynton Crosby over ‘barnacles’ distracting from election message

Last night’s meeting of the 1922 Committee was, I hear, not a particularly well-attended affair. This is odd because the speaker was Lynton Crosby, whose confident briefings tend to cheer Tory MPs up no end. But sources who were there say there no more than about 30 MPs in attendance. Crosby gave a short presentation in which he urged backbenchers to return every discussion they had in broadcasts and on the doorstep to the economy, but was then confronted by John Redwood over what the senior backbencher felt was a failure of message discipline from the government. Redwood complained that ministers were repeatedly distracting from the economy at the same time

Steerpike Steerpike

PinkVanGate: Harriet Harman denies telling Karen Danczuk to join Girls Aloud

Yesterday Harriet Harman claimed that Labour’s pink ‘Woman to Woman’ van is not patronising after a public backlash saw the feminine choice of colour ridiculed online. Now the deputy leader faces further backlash, after Karen Danczuk accused Harman of patronising her when they first met. The Labour councillor and wife of Simon Danczuk claims that Harman told her she was too pretty to be in politics and instead suggested she join the pop band Girls Aloud. When I first met Harriet Harman she said I was far too pretty to be interested in politics & should be in Girls Aloud. KD — Cllr Karen Danczuk (@KarenDanczuk) February 11, 2015 Harman has now come out to