All the latest analysis of the day's news and stories
Of all the reasons to wish this government gone, Chris Grayling is the largest. He is shutting poor and much of the working and lower-middle class out of the justice system. In matters as fundamental to a good life as housing, employment protection and freedom from domestic violence, he has placed them beyond the rule
Ukip are cock-a-hoop this afternoon with news that controversial proprietor Richard Desmond is to donate £300,000 to Farage’s party ahead of the 2015 election. Express sources confirm that Dirty Desmond gave the Ukip leader the full treatment on 2 December, with the Nigel personally given a full tour of his Northern and Shell Thames-side complex.
Mr S strolled to Westminster this lunchtime to see what all the fuss was about some porn protest. He wasn’t alone. Hacks significantly outnumbered the protestors, who were upset about the recent changes to UK pornography regulations. Despite the abundance of dictaphones, notepads and cameras, Mr S strongly suspects that many of the hacks were simply there to ogle – not that
Unfortunately for Labour, it cannot dismiss Nigel Farage as a ‘pound shop Enoch Powell’ quite so easily as Russell Brand did last night. The party knows that Ukip can take the voters that have already deserted it – voters that it thought still belonged to the party – and there have been increasing calls for
In case you hadn’t heard, Russell Brand was on Question Time last night with Nigel Farage. It was explosive to say the least, with Brand and Farage clashing over pretty much everything. The most electrifying moment – see above – came when a member of the audience rightly pulled up Brand over his throwaway remark that Farage didn’t care
From The Crowning Proof, The Spectator, 12 December 1914: THE crowning proof that German intrigue and cynicism caused the war was provided in the remarkable statement which Signor Giolitti, the ex-Prime Minister, made in the Italian Chamber last Saturday. He said:- “On August 9th, 1913, the Marquis Di San Giuliano, then Foreign Minister, sent me
James Runcie Author of The Grantchester Mysteries I met Lucy at a dinner party in the early 1980s. By the main course we were holding hands under the table. She told me she was about to go travelling in China. By the time we reached the pudding I told her that I would wait, and
When Robert Louis Stevenson wrote Treasure Island he declared triumphantly that if it wasn’t a winner with boys, then he didn’t know what boys were like. And it was indeed the perfect boys’ book; pirates, a map, treasure, a boy hero, black-hearted villains and gore. Perfect. It was, therefore, with mixed feelings that I sat
Things seem to be getting tricky for the Russian Embassy in London. A much hyped mini-conference organised with Russia Today and set to be headlined on Friday by former Foreign Minister Igor Ivanov has been canned at the last minute. Mr S understands that the attendee numbers were down in light of recent developments near
There is a great deal of excitement around today about an interview that Channel 4 News did yesterday with some quite smug chaps who have set up something called a ‘Cereal Café’ in Brick Lane and are charging customers £3.20 for a bowl of Lucky Charms. To be honest, if I’d worked out a similar
Ed Miliband’s speech on reducing the deficit has attracted a fair bit of criticism for not telling us very much that’s new. It was supposed to be a Big Speech, and Big Speech normally means Big Announcement, but there wasn’t one. There wasn’t even really any bigger attempt to tell us what Labour would do
In paragraph 135 of his judgment in the Andrew Mitchell ‘Plebgate’ case, Mr Justice Mitting says that P.C. Rowland, the police officer whom Mr Mitchell was suing for libel, is ‘not the sort of man who would have the wit, imagination or inclination to invent on the spur of the moment an account of what
I see that Isis have begun the holiday season by ‘executing’ (or murdering) a man who they say was homosexual in Syria/Iraq. They did this in the traditional manner, by throwing him off a tall building and then stoning him to death. They have helpfully provided photos of the process online. An accompanying statement from Isis reads: ‘Following
Labour has returned to a bit more of an even keel in the past few wintry weeks after a torrid autumn. Plotters are resigned to letting Ed Miliband fight the General Election on his terms, and given the closeness of the two parties in the opinion polls, most are concluding that a disorganised Labour party
From Kate Reardon, Tatler Q. I recently took part (some might say ‘starred’) in a highly acclaimed BBC2 fly-on-the-wall documentary series. I must admit I rather enjoyed being centre of attention, followed at all times by a production crew and constantly being asked my opinion on an exciting array of topics. How can I adjust
From President Wilson’s Message, The Spectator, 12 December 1915: We quite agree that it is the greatness and glory of America to be the true friend of all nations, to “threaten none, covet the possession of none, and desire the overthrow of none.” No ideal could be higher or better worth preserving. We also are
Cameron is away in Ankara. His mission is to annoy the Germans by inviting Turkey to join the EU as soon as possible. It all sounds like fun. Let’s hope the Turks know they’re being used as pawns in a much bigger game. His absence left Deputy Clegg facing Deputy Harman at PMQs. Clegg’s chief
When it comes to rows about the NHS, these days it doesn’t rain, it pours. In fact, fights between the parties about who cares more/privatised the most are turning into a weather bomb, such is their frequency. Today Nick Clegg turned up to Prime Minister’s Questions determined to highlight Labour hypocrisy on the health service,
To Quaglino’s for the GQ Christmas lunch, where editor Dylan Jones was in a revelatory mood. Lifting the lid on his magazine’s controversial decision to award Tony Blair the Philanthropist of the Year gong at their Man of the Year awards this year, Jones recalled being quizzed about it in New York shortly after the
Torture is repulsive. Even on the scaffold or in front of a firing squad, a man can meet death with dignity. The torturer sets out to strip his victim of dignity, to break him, to violate not only his body but also his soul. In England, torture was outlawed in 1660, and for most of
Alan Rusbridger’s announcement that he will stand down in summer 2015 as Guardian editor after 20 years has fired the starting gun on one very long succession battle. Current online boss Janine Gibson is a firm favourite with Kath Viner the struggling US editor not far behind. Other wannabes include Jonathan Freedland – the newly anointed head
British troops have now left Afghanistan, but the debate about the conflict itself and what happens next rumbles on. There have been a number of calls for a review of the conflict so that the government can learn lessons about what did and didn’t work – as well as what might happen next in the
My article about Nicola Sturgeon’s plans for the Crown Estate caused some excitement within her administration. All untrue, they say. They have written a response (below). So what could have happened? It’s worth look at in some detail, as it gives an insight into how government works. The Crown Estate is in the news because
Those who complain about the BBC (myself included) usually only refer to a small part of a massive and divergent operation. Nicky Campbell on Radio 5 is just superb – not a hint of bias in any of his breakfast show. Jeremy Vine, too, is pretty fair and balanced. He has just ran a report on
Nick Clegg’s performance at PMQs reminded me of Field Marshall Bosquet’s verdict on the charge of the Light Brigade, ‘c’est magnifique, mais ce n’est pas la guerre’. After a week in which the Lib Dems have been busy trying to differentiate themselves from the Tories, Clegg turned up at PMQs and delivered an aggressive defence
Toby Young Status anxiety columnist About 15 years ago, when I was single and living in New York, I acquired what I can only describe as a stalker. A woman took exception to a newspaper article I’d written and started bombarding me with emails. For about a year, she sent me three or four emails
It’s a good name, Roger Bird, isn’t it? The story, or non-story, develops apace. Read Steerpike here for the details of the text messages sent by Natasha Bolter to Mr Bird and which suggest to me a degree of, um, complicity, y’know? Newsnight carried it as their second story last night: Yoda was wreathed in
One of the most striking stories in today’s papers – and on the front of one of them – is the claim made by Labour’s Emma Lewell-Buck that people on low-incomes are struggling so much with the cost of funerals that they are having to resort to burying them in their back gardens. Lewell-Buck was
Another preview from the Spectator Christmas special: Dennis Sewell looks at Ofsted and argues that the Chief Inspector of Schools must revamp his power-crazed organisation. Subscribe for just £73 for a whole year — including full print and digital access, as well as a £20 John Lewis voucher. What’s up with Sir Michael Wilshaw? The chief schools inspector was
In The Spectator’s Christmas special, hitting the streets tomorrow, Pippa Middleton writes about truffle hunting, cowboy dancing in Wyoming and — as the Daily Mail has been quick to point out – Kim Kardashian’s bottom. Subscribe for just £73 — including a year’s full print and digital access and a free bottle of champagne. A few days ago I went
We knew and we knew years ago. Anyone who has been paying attention has known for a long time that the CIA committed appalling acts of brutality in the years after 9/11. Anyone who paid attention has also long known that the agency’s torture regime – not too strong a way of putting it –
I tend to avoid Camden these days as it makes me feel even more like Mark Corrigan than usual, so it’s been a few years since I visited the Proud Gallery. I seem to remember it was for some industry event and there was lots of free beer; it was a nice venue with a
Nick Clegg is taking Prime Minister’s Questions today, which will at least force the Lib Dem leader to turn up to a major Commons session, rather than bunking off to Cornwall. It’s not just good timing in terms of sorting out Clegg’s truancy rate, but also because Coalition ministers have been taking public pot shots
From News of the Week, The Spectator, 12 December 1914: An incident connected with the naval action off the Falkland Islands which has touched us deeply, and which we are sure will touch the whole of our countrymen, has been the chorus of delight—no other phrase will do—with which the victory has been received in America.