Farage’s Authoritarian Dream Nigel Farage has unveiled another round of “policy announcements” — less a manifesto, more a vision for a whiter, more conformist Britain. Meanwhile, the Government appears asleep at the wheel, or perhaps snoozing on a deckchair. Angela Rayner provokes tabloid paroxysms by vaping in a dinghy or drinking rosé in a dry … Read more
Why the Hate Towards Labour? Now the dust has settled on the local elections, the results weren’t exactly a shock. The Conservatives took a predictable beating—squeezed by the Liberal Democrats in the South and by Reform UK everywhere else. Reform are now well-positioned to take over the right of British politics. They’re peeling off Tory … Read more
Is This an Austerity Government? No. Rachel Reeves will deliver her Spring Statement today. While not a full budget, this statement will outline the framework for the government’s spending review. Government departments will find out if they have more or less to spend—most will find the answer is less. This follows a Green Paper consultation … Read more
For those who haven’t been paying attention, massive changes are taking place at the top of the NHS. Leadership Shake-up in NHS England Amanda Pritchard, the Chief Executive of NHS England (essentially the CEO of the English NHS), has been forced to resign. She made two unimpressive appearances before the Commons Health Select Committee, prompting … Read more
Viva España: Labour’s Economic Plan, Productivity and Immigration “Productivity isn’t everything, but in the long run, it is almost everything.”Paul Krugman, Nobel Laureate in Economics We’ve now had enough time to assess Labour’s economic strategy. Labour argues that Britain’s economic struggles stem from low growth, driven by low investment, weak productivity, and stagnant wages. Businesses, … Read more
When Is Research Not Really Research? When is a survey not a survey? When it’s designed for PR, not science. This blog isn’t meant to offend—rather, it highlights how journalistic standards have collapsed and how this fuels the spread of disinformation. A Viral Story That Wasn’t True Recently, someone shared a shocking claim with me: … Read more
The Digital Trap: How Misinformation Targets People Like Us Writing this blog, I’m making some assumptions about my readers—primarily graduates, middle class, aged between 45 and 65, and self-identifying as well-educated. I hope what I’m about to say doesn’t upset too many of you. Hate, distrust, and disinformation designed to create political divisions have proliferated … Read more
How easy is it to cut the size of Government? The original strapline for my blog right at the start was “small business is good, big government is bad”. Part of my dislike of big government comes from my own experiences as a Civil Servant. This gave rise to Chadwick’s laws of public finance and … Read more
