Contrary to what Fraser Nelson argues, Britain is playing a major role in the military campaign against ISIL. Our planes have been flying day and night, conducting 8 per cent of the strikes in Iraq rather than 5 per cent. But this isn’t a numbers game – the UK brings a qualitative edge. The skill
Dull, dull, hopelessly dull. This is a Chancellor who dithered over Northern Rock, dithered over capital gains tax, and now can’t even decide whether the plastic bags levy should be voluntary or compulsory. Drinkers, motorists, small businesses will all pay more tax because Labour has failed to control spending and borrowing in the good years.
Five years ago, Gordon Brown’s 2003 Budget forecast that the current budget would now be in surplus by £9 billion. That might have allowed the new Chancellor to cut taxes for the lowest-paid, or to invest more money in our third world infrastructure. In fact, the budget never got into surplus at all. Brown conceded a