All the latest analysis of the day's news and stories
No one would begrudge Ed Miliband the plaudits for his fine first performance at PMQs. He has made a good start and seemed to take David Cameron by surprise. The Labour leader has a small, under-resourced team, which has been devoted much of the last week to preparing him for the task of his first
It reaches everywhere. This from a guy just released having serving two years for armed robbery: I joked to my cell mate on the first day that at least the GFC [Global Financial Crisis,] couldn’t fuck us inside. He’d been done for assaulting a cop when his house got taken by the bank. But within
We are entering the end game of the spending review. The Department of Education settled this morning, according to both Tory and Lib Dem sources. Although there is confusion about whether the money for the pupil premium is coming from inside or outside the education budget – Clegg’s speech suggested outside but other Whitehall sources
Fraser Nelson highlights the Tories defying a profligate EU. James Forsyth watches Ed Miliband start with a bang, and sifts through the political consequences of the tuition fees decision. Peter Hoskin says that reforming incapacity benefit is crucial, and reports on Philip Green’s attempt to bring Arcadia to Whitehall. David Blackburn reports on Alan Johnson’s
This latest piece from the Spectator archives isn’t topical in any specific sense, but it does chart a problem which has spread over recent years until it has seeped into everything from government to football: namely, debt. In it, Dominic Lawson visits a Merseyside housing estate towards the end of the 80s, to find a
I thought CoffeeHousers might appreciate a selection of a half a dozen pieces in the new edition of The Spectator. I know it is, in many ways, a tough task persuading online audience to part with cash for a magazine (or our new iPad edition, available for free to subscribers) – but this week’s issue
Today brings another couple of reminders of the coalition’s potential political problem with the middle class. In the Telegraph, Peter Oborne attacks Cameron and Osborne for a “morally disgusting” policy of targeting the middle class for an outsize share of the fiscal pain. While the Mail’s front page screams ‘What does get you locked up?’
George Osborne likes to spend his weekends at Dorneywood, the chancellor’s official residence near Slough, but I doubt this one will be particularly enjoyable. He will be burning the midnight oil as he prepares next Wednesday’s spending review. No doubt he will also be taking calls from ministerial colleagues, muttering dark threats about aircraft carriers,
The similarities between now and the early years of the Thatcher government can easily be overplayed. Yes, there are parallels: a public sector grown fat on government profligacy, unions leaders stirring up resentment, and a government unsure about quite how radical it wants to be. But there are clear differences too: the political dynamics, the
Only five days to go until the spending review – and after weeks of emphasis on the cuts we’re about to see, the government has today unveiled a new spending commitment. It comes courtesy of Nick Clegg: a new “fairness premium” targeted at the least well-off young people. Lib Dem Voice has full details here,
Next week’s spending review will involve hard decisions. Hundreds of thousands of jobs will go. People in work will find employment conditions less generous with, for example, greater contributions required for their pensions. People out of work will find benefits provide less assistance and be under greater pressure to return to work. Goods in shops
The piece in the New York Times magazine this weekend on the Obama presidency illustrates how far he has fallen. A large chunk of it is devoted to whether or not he can win re-election, something that most of his supporters used to take for granted. Significantly, the Obama White House itself is admitting that
Just back from Amsterdam, via the train, or two trains at least. The list of stations speeding by sounded like a drunken Scotsman’s tirade: Sloten, Dordrecht, Mechelen, Duffel, ya Delft bastard. I was there for the magazine, to write a piece about an increase in anti-Semitism in the country and especially in Amsterdam itself. The
Bill Cash’s amendment to the EU budget bill may not have been the victory that the signatories to Douglas Carswell’s more incendiary effort hoped for, but it is significant. It is exactly in line with government policy that seeks to cap the EU budget and search for cuts. As Treasury Minister Justine Greening put it
Denis MacShane, the lachrymose MP for Rotherham, has been suspended following the Privilege and Standards Committee’s decision to report him to the Metropolitan Police. MacShane also got into scalding water recently when he castigated a member of IPSA’s staff with what might be termed ‘most unparliamentary language’. MacShane is one of the old guard who
Policy Exchange has been arguing for some time that the Youth Justice Board should be abolished, with its functions shared between the Ministry of Justice and local councils. It has just been revealed that the body will indeed be scrapped, despite rumours that the Justice Secretary tried to buy more time before making a decision
Has anyone else had enough of John McTernan, appearing on a political discussion programme near you at this very moment? McTernan was Tony Blair’s political organiser, a backroom monkey who, since May this year has decided we should all be able to benefit from his incalculable wisdom. Thin eyed and smug he has been wrong
The coalition is not afraid of the moneyed classes, or Peter Mandelson’s ‘filty rich’. Tax relief on pension contributions is to be dramatically cut. The allowance will be decreased from £250,000 per annum to £50,000 and the pension cap will fall from £1.8m to £1.5m and retiring workers could be taxed at 55 percent on
The spending review’s actors are jostling for position at the final curtain call. Bit-part players are stealing for the prominence of the centre, Whitehall’s bigger beasts fight to preserve their dwindling limelight and the leadership try to direct and subjugate the warring egos. Defence seems more or less settled, with the navy’s grandiose element apparently
Good grief, Sarah Palin is a piece of work: A very happy birthday to Baroness Thatcher! There are so many lessons we can learn from her excellent example. She once said, “If you lead a country like Britain, a strong country, a country which has taken a lead in world affairs in good times and
I don’t much care who wins the Illinois gubernatorial election and agree with Nick Gillespie that we need more ads like this: Politifact scores the ad “half-true” which, actually, means I’d be happy to see Brady lose even though he’s dropped his sponsorship of the bill and the issue is, anyway, “moot”.Relatedly: Mitt Romney’s record
Nick Boles is fast becoming ubiquitous. He wrote an article for this morning’s Guardian, urging Labour’s wounded Blairites to join the coalition, where ‘there is room for everyone inspired by the desire to transform the way that government works and give people more control over their lives.’ He writes: ‘If President Obama can keep Republican
Anyone who thought the new intake of Tory MPs were a bunch of automatons should take a look at the House of Commons order paper today. MPs have been asked to sign away 60 percent more of British taxpayers’ money to Brussels, in defiance of British public opinion. For years, they have done so without
Busy elsewhere this afternoon but since miners are all the rage today, here’s Peter Cook on mining: [Thanks to DAG]
You could write a book about that. The first ever Dave vs Ed Miliband fixture at PMQs was a fascinating joust between two smart, skilful and ruthlessly ambitious public men who have been groomed for power, in their different ways, from the cradle. Four decades of arduous preparation led to this tumultuous match. Ed Miliband
Score the first round to Ed Miliband. In his debut PMQs performance, Miliband comfortably got the better of David Cameron, forcing him onto the defensive for most of the session. Miliband’s first question was a long and worthy one about the death of Linda Norgrove, the UK aid worker, in Afghanistan last week. Then, he
VERDICT: Well, who would have thought it? In his first PMQs performance, Ed Miliband not only put in a solid showing – but he got the better of David Cameron. I certainly don’t agree with the Labour leader’s central argument: that it is unfair to restrict child benefit. But he put his point across in
Only one week to go, folks, until the main event itself: the Comprehensive Spending Review. And judging by this morning’s papers, the Treasury have almost settled on their final acts. Only the welfare, eduction and defence budgets have any significant question marks hanging over them. Those question marks, though, are fading fast. A story in
Well, here it is. Ed Miliband will meet David Cameron for the first time at PMQs today. For all his determination and tactical sense, Miliband has his work cut out. Neither gave vintage speeches at the recent party conferences, but, in terms of presentation, Cameron’s easy wit trumps Miliband’s adenoidal drone. This will be Westminster’s final act
As Alex says, the rescue of the Chilean miners has to be the “feel-good story of the year”. The first, Florencio Avalos, was winched out of his underground cell at 0310 British time, and a further four have been delivered to the surface since. With 28 more miners to come, this is by no means
No doubting the feel-good story of the year: the rescue of the 33 Chilean miners trapped 2000 feet beneath the surface for 69 days. Extraordinary scenes this morning as the first miner, Florencio Avalos, was safely winched to fresh air and his waiting family. It has been an epic of endurance, perseverence, courage, hope
Contra Jill Lepore in the New York Times, you don’t need to watch Glenn Beck to dislike Woodrow Wilson. Nor do you need think there’s any connection between one “professor-President” and the chap currently occupying the Oval Office. Radley Balko lays out the standard libertarian case against Wilson here and, frankly, it makes a pretty
Actually, it seems to be just one family right now. But perhaps others will join? Anyway FAND asks a good question: Servicing the national debt is costing the average worker – not a graduate – £27.69 a week. Under [Lord] Browne’s plan [for reforming university funding], a graduate would have to earn £37k before repaying
As we all know, Dave has had some problems defining his Big Society idea. It’s more conducive to thumb-sucking pieces than snazzy tabloid headlines. Sometimes, however, it might be easier to sell in terms of what it’s not. Consider this story, warning that there might be lots of snow this winter: Council chiefs have sparked