What happened in the budget? Last week Rachel Reeves delivered the Government’s latest budget. It arrived amid a fog of leaks — some accidental, others clearly not — and a week of breathless speculation about market panic. In reality, there was a modest increase in the interest rate the Government pays on its borrowing. But … Read more
Hysteria about immigration continues to dominate political debate in the UK — in the traditional media and across social platforms. The government is now under intense pressure to introduce tougher asylum rules to “appease public concern”. But that concern isn’t rooted in reality. Since Labour came into power last year, net migration to the UK … Read more
Does immigration increase crime? Every time I log onto Facebook, old school friends share horror stories about crime waves supposedly driven by immigrants. London, apparently, is now a crime-ridden hell hole plagued by gangs of foreign criminals. Other big cities, we’re told, are heading the same way. They’re so convinced this is true that it’s … Read more
One of my old PCT colleagues died a couple of weeks back. A North East GP who was a staunch advocate of clinical leadership. If you have half an eye on the news, you’ll know something big is happening inside the NHS. But the scale of the NHS reforms 2025 is still flying under the … Read more
Reading the press and the usual on-line outrage factories, you’d think Britain is being ruled by an authoritarian regime deterimed to lock people up posting things on the internet. The story goes like this: Labour got into office, a wave of censorious lefties took over, and suddenly the police are marching into bedrooms at midnight … Read more
The Family Feud Inside Your Party There is more trouble in Your Party, the new left-wing movement led by former Labour MPs Jeremy Corbyn and Zarah Sultana. Their first annual conference is due to begin in a few weeks, to decide policy and elect the ruling politburo. The party’s foundational documents sketch out a familiar picture … Read more
A year after Donald Trump clawed his way back into the White House, America looks less like a republic and more like a family business — and not a very well-run one. The wealth and security of the United States no longer matter. What matters is the wealth and power of Donald Trump and the … Read more
At 4pm on the 17th of December 1992, Jonathan Zito was stabbed to death by a stranger at a London Underground station. This wasn’t an isolated tragedy. From the 1980s onwards, Conservative governments emptied Britain’s mental hospitals and moved thousands of patients into “the community” — but without providing the support or services they needed. … Read more
Small boat crossings fell again this month — down almost 65% in October. After a 20% drop in August and a slight bounce in September, the last three months are down 30% on 2023 and 60% on 2022, the peak year for crossings. This is, on the surface, great news. Crossing the Channel in small … Read more
