Home Teachers went on strike for a day. The National Association of Head Teachers strongly advised heads not to allow parent volunteers to keep schools open. Public-sector workers chose the same day to strike, also in a dispute over pensions. The UK Border Agency advised against flying that day. Ed Miliband, the leader of the
There was a strange juxtaposition of events on Monday. That was the day Britain launched the fourth wing of its armed services: a ‘cyber-command’ designed to protect our country against online attacks, most of which are carried out by China. It was also the day when David Cameron welcomed Wen Jiabao, the Premier of China,
Here is a selection of posts made at Spectator.co.uk over the last week. Spectator.co.uk introduces its new Business and Investments section. Fraser Nelson recalls when he crossed a picket line. James Forsyth says the government must look beyond Europe, and says that Christine Lagarde’s appointment is a win for Osborne. Peter Hoskin says that this
CoffeeHousers may have noticed a new addition to the Spectator’s navigation bar, above: a Business and Investments section. There, you’ll find all the business content from the magazine as well as a Business and Investments blog. We already have a decent smattering of posts on the blog — on everything from China’s inflationary worries to
Welcome to the latest CoffeeHousers’ Wall. For those who haven’t come across the Wall before, it’s a post we put up each Monday, on which – providing your writing isn’t libellous, crammed with swearing, or offensive to common decency – you’ll be able to say whatever you like in the comments section. There is no
…here are some of the posts made at Spectator.co.uk over the weekend. Fraser Nelson goes to Saltaire, a town built by philanthropy. James Forsyth wonders if there will be a re-shuffle of the whips’ office, and is concerned by Russia’s arrival in Greece. David Blackburn notes that Ken Clarke’s revised bill is still not tough
Gove’s moves Sir: If Michael Gove (‘On the edge of his seat’, 18 June) really wants to do something about exams, then he would bring back O-levels in place of GCSEs. But that would entail denouncing the Prime Minister who made the change, formerly the education secretary who closed more grammar schools than were left
Phreaks and geeks Police arrested a 19-year-old man suspected of hacking into the government computers containing data from the entire 2011 census. — Hacking evolved in the 1960s from phone ‘phreaking’, manipulating telecom systems to gain free calls. In 1972, one John T. Draper succeeded in accessing US telecoms systems by transmitting a 2600 hertz
Home David Cameron, the Prime Minister, reversed the suggestion by Kenneth Clarke, the Justice Secretary, that prisoners who had pleaded guilty at an early stage should have their sentences halved. Earlier he had said that he saw no reason why Britain should be ‘dragged in’ to support a Greek bailout. Boris Johnson, the Mayor of
How we all miss the drachma! If Greece still had a sovereign currency, that currency would probably have halved in value, thereby providing cheap holidays for the rest of us. Greece would then have defaulted on its debt, in a way that would have inflicted minimum financial damage on its neighbours. A few banks would
