So Brown has said more about the al-Megrahi case, although he hasn’t said anything particularly new. Speaking at an event to mark the government’s new “Backing Young Britain” project, the PM claimed that, “There was no conspiracy, no cover up, no double-dealing, no deal on oil, no attempt to instruct Scottish ministers, no private assurances
If you feel like wearing a political anorak on this sunny bank holiday Monday, then here’s a video history of the Conservative Party which the Tories have updated for the launch of the new ‘History’ section on their website. Alastair Cooke introduces the whole project on the Blue Blog, here. Hat-tip: ConservativeHome
So the Sunday Times has got its hands on letters which suggest the al-Megrahi release was tied up with a BP-Libya oil deal, and overseen by the Government with an eye on “the overwhelming interests for the United Kingdom”. The ST article deserves quoting at some length: “Two letters dated five months apart show that
So should the Tories announce tax rises ahead of the next election? According to Andrew Grice in today’s Independent, they’re certainly thinking about it: “There is a growing recognition among shadow Cabinet ministers that, if they win power, spending cuts could only be half the picture, as they would also need significant tax rises to
So far, Gordon Brown has refused to specifically comment on the Scottish Government’s decision to release Abdelbaset Ali al-Megrahi to Libya. Yes, we’ve heard that he was “angry and repulsed” by al-Megrahi’s reception in Libya, and that our government had “no role” in the decision. But there’s been nothing on whether he actually agrees or
Last week, I urged CoffeeHousers to read Ian Birrell’s heartrending article in the Independent on the struggles he faced getting his disabled daughter treated in the NHS, and on the need for health service reform. Today, Birrell returns to the subject, highlighting some of the many supportive email responses he has received over the past
The Sun comes out heavily against the Government’s handling of the Afghanistan conflict in their leader column today. Do read the whole thing
Whether you agree with Chris Grayling’s comparison between “Broken Britain” and The Wire or not, it’s hard not to smile at Baltimore’s mayor, Sheila Dixon, evoking the UK’s own bloodsoaked Midsomer Murders in response: “To present a television show as the real Baltimore is to perpetuate a fiction that dishonours our city. It is as
Isn’t it funny how things work out? I imagine the government once thought they’d get credit for the ever-improving GCSE and A-level pass rates, but now results day just rekindles the debate about slipping standards – and rightly so. Ed Balls may have tried to divert attention on to the Tories this morning, but he
In some respects, Theresa May has delivered an effective speech on unemployment and the benefits system today. It touches on all the tragic indicators – the 6 million people on out-of-work benefits, the high levels of youth worklessness, the shocking consequences of welfare ghettoes etc. – and re-states, in no uncertain terms, the Tories’ commitment
Here’s footage of Dan Hannan’s month-old US interview in which he cites Enoch Powell as an influence, and which has received quite a bit of news attention today: To my mind, there’s little more to add to this than the points made by Spectator’s very own Alex Massie and those made in two excellent posts
You know how it is. You start reading an article by Ed Balls – in this case, in today’s Guardian – and, before long, you’ve come across so many deceptions, half-truths and tribal slurs that you decide to fisk the whole thing. So here is Balls’s article, with my supplementary comments in bold: The first
A noteworthy point by Danny Finkelstein, over at Comment Central: “One of LBJ’s weapons, of course, was human sympathy. In the days after John Kennedy’s death he sought the support of his colleagues to complete Kennedy’s legacy. Could Obama now do the same after Ted Kennedy’s passing? Health reform was Senator Kennedy’s lifelong cause. Perhaps
Typically great stuff from the Standard’s Paul Waugh, who has delved into how G7 finance ministers – including one Chancellor Brown – were warned about the dangers of US subprime loans back in April 2007. The guys sounding the alarm, in a briefing to Brown et al, were the hedge-funders Jim Chanos and Paul Singer,
Do check out Mike Smithson’s latest post over at Political Betting, in which he relays an email he received from Nick Sparrow of ICM. Sparrow highlights the close fit between August ICM polls in the years before elections and the actual election results themselves: “August 1996 poll suggested that Labour were ahead by 12%. The
A great spot by Tim Montgomerie over at ConservativeHome, who highlights this Wall Street Journal graphic on the words that both sides of the US healthcare debate should be using to score a rhetorical advantage. For instance, it suggests that the pro-Obama team should say “rules” rather than “regulations”, while the President’s opponents should attack
It’s a fairly quiet day in Westminster, so Chris Grayling’s comparison between Britain and the gangland ghettos portrayed in The Wire is probably getting more attention than it would normally – after all, it’s not like the Tories haven’t majored on the “Broken Britain” theme before now. But, even so, I think he may have
Now this is a turn up. According to the Independent, Gordon Brown is going to “issue a list of specific [spending] cuts” as part of his Autumn “fightback”. Here’s how the strategy goes: “Initially, Mr Brown will seek to establish in voters’ minds the key differences between Labour and the Tories – on policy, government
One of the most significant news stories of the day comes courtesy of the Institute of Chartered Accountants: “Confidence among business professionals has surged, suggesting the recession is at an end, a survey has said. The Institute of Chartered Accountants’ index of business confidence rose to 4.8 at the end of June, from -28.2 in
Not the greatest cricketing series ever – but who cares? There have been plenty of wonderful and poignant moments: from Stuart Broad’s emergence as a serious all-rounder, to Andrew Flintoff’s last ever actions in test cricket. And it’s all ended in the best possible way: with England winning back the Ashes in a 197-run victory
