Nearly six million people began to receive letters from HM Revenue & Customs telling them they had paid the wrong amount of tax. About £2 billion has been underpaid, at an average of £1,380 per person, and £1.8 billion overpaid, averaging £420 per person. Connaught, the social housing maintenance company, which employs 10,000 people, went
One subject about which we hope pupils will always be taught is the Blitz, which began in London 70 years ago this week. The ‘spirit of the Blitz’ may have been over-romanticised, but it is right that the brave determination with which Britons faced the aerial assault remains a source of national pride. But British
A small revolution was announced by the Education Secretary this week, undramatic in itself but one which promises to end Labour’s practice of eroding academic standards in order to make the statistics look good. A small revolution was announced by the Education Secretary this week, undramatic in itself but one which promises to end Labour’s
Here are some of the posts made at Spectator.co.uk over the past week. James Forsyth charts the coalition’s shifting horizons, and notes the coalition’s vulnerability on crime. Peter Hoskin says that Alan Johnson has been caught in the Coulson crossfire, and recalls Stephen Green’s double-dip warnings. David Blackburn watches the vice chancellors scupper Vince, and
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. James Forsyth welcomes Michael Gove’s introduction of the international baccalaureate, and says that David Miliband is still trying to escape the Blairite box. Peter Hoskin ponders Cameron and Clegg’s response to the AV rebels, and believes Nick Clegg’s problems are surmountable. Reform’s Patrick
U and Pre-U Sir: I am, as a student approaching the A2 year, sick with envy at the small number of my friends lucky enough to be currently taking the Pre-University course. Not only did John Witheridge (‘An answer to the A-level debate — and Gary Lineker’, 28 August) succinctly describe the previous year of
Mr Tony Blair, the former prime minister, published his political memoir, A Journey, in which he said that Mr Gordon Brown drove him to drink, but not an ‘excessively excessive’ amount: ‘The curse of Gordon was to make these people co-conspirators, not free-range thinkers. Mr Tony Blair, the former prime minister, published his political memoir,
Perhaps the most surprising part of Tony Blair’s memoirs is the passage in which he reveals one of his deepest regrets: it’s not Iraq, but the fox-hunting ban. Blair now says that the 2005 reform was ‘a fatal mistake’ and even admits to having been swayed by a metropolitan bias against country dwellers. ‘I started
What is it about international organisations that makes them so impervious to criticism? If the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC) were a British ministry or quango, it is inconceivable that its chairman, Rajendra Pachauri, would still be in his post. The IPCC’s reports, which have been accepted by governments around the world as a
Here are some of the posts made on Spectator.co.uk over the past week: Fraser Nelson says that Tony Blair is aiming to become a freelance statesman. James Forsyth highlights the biggest threat to the coalition, and reports on cricket’s dilemma. Peter Hoskin says that Blair wants Labour to be more like the coalition, and argues
This week, for one week only, we are making this week’s magazine available to non-subscribers online, courtesy of Saab 95 Saloon. Click here to access the best written magazine in the English language, featuring Fraser Nelson’s and Bruce Anderson’s verdicts on the Blair memoirs, Ed Smith and Roger Alton on cricket’s latest betting scandal,
…here are some of the posts made on Spectator.co.uk over the bank holiday weekend: Fraser Nelson wonders who governs Britain, and asks whether Labour will boldly go with ‘Red Ed’. Peter Hoskin says that we’re just seeing Same Labour, and watches Alistair Darling exhume Cameron’s Big Mistake. David Blackburn has some bad news for Ken
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
Use the force Sir: The problem with Alasdair Palmer’s argument against police reform (‘The coalition’s police reforms will fail’, 21 August) is that it merely echoed Gordon Brown’s mantra for the last ten years. According to this view, what matters most is how much money is spent on public services. The more we spend on
Mr Michael O’Higgins, the chairman of the Audit Commission, denied accusations made by Mr Eric Pickles, the Communities Secretary, of organisational extravagance exemplified by spending £5,943 to hire the Reform Club for a 25th anniversary event and £40,000 on pot plants for its offices. Mr Michael O’Higgins, the chairman of the Audit Commission, denied accusations
What could David Cameron wish for his new daughter? All fathers want their children to grow up in a better world. The Prime Minister is in the position to forge one. He has a good chance of his youngest daughter celebrating her next nine birthdays at Chequers, and there is much he can do in
One of the least remarked-upon scandals of recent years is the mis-selling of Higher Education. Pupils are now told, from a very early age, that university should be the great goal in schooling; that there is some kind of binary distinction between those with initials after their name and the also-rans. David Willetts, the Universities
The Spectator apologises to Professor Moore for certain postings by contributors using pseudonyms “CWBPI” and “Michael” under our “Questioning the Aids Consensus” blog in October 2009. The comments were removed following a complaint by Professor Moore. We are happy to accept that these comments were both abusive and untrue. The Spectator has agreed to make
Stephen Pollard and the Spectator apologise for the unintended and false suggestion in a blog published on 15 July 2008 that Islam Expo Limited is a fascist party dedicated to genocide which organised a conference with a racist and genocidal programme. We accept that Islam Expo’s purpose is to provide a neutral and broad-based platform