I cannot remember a duller Budget. To that, George Osborne would have a curt reply: good. The Captain has set the ship's course. He is convinced that he was right. Although he is now proposing some imperceptible navigational adjustments, the message is still clear. Steady as she goes. Will it work? In purely UK terms, […]
Fings ain't what they used to be. In the old days, there was something called Budget purdah. It came into force around mid-January, and the Treasury went off the air. Anyone who might have known what was in the Budget was supposed to avoid the company of anyone who might be interested in finding out. […]
Who would have thought it? There is nothing in President Obama's background to suggest that he would have bonded so easily with a British Conservative Prime Minister. When Mr Obama was elected, the Europhile bien-pensants who have had such a poisonous influence on British foreign policy in recent decades thought that they saw an opportunity […]
Wherever I find myself, there is a recurrent conversational theme. "You're supposed to know about David Cameron. So tell us; who is he? What, if anything, does he believe in? Is he a proper Tory?". Of late, however, there has been a new preoccupation. I find this useful, because it helps me to answer the […]
Good news is not always as good as it seems. A couple of days ago, there was an opinion poll which I found convincing, because it chimed with my prejudices. According to its findings, David Cameron is much more popular than his party and has achieved an ascendancy over British politics. People respect him and […]
Steve Hilton is a remarkable fellow. I vividly remember our first meeting, in late 1990. I had been told that there was this lad o' pairts in the Conservative Research Department who would be well worth getting to know. So it proved. Over dinner, he talked about education, with force and passion. He had been […]
Constitutions are not to be trifled with. Anyone who wishes to discuss constitutional questions should start with the Latin root. A constitution is something which helps us to stand together. This can take many forms. There is a common misunderstanding that a constitution must be a document, and that because Britain does not have a […]
The last few days have seen very low moments. A man is drowning. Policemen and firemen are watching him. But if they were to wade in to help, the water might reach above their ankles. Health and safety: have two words ever been more grotesquely misused? Why not call it penpush and jobsworth? In recent […]
So what will the Chancellor do next month? What follows is an attempt to draft two alternative texts. It will be amusing to see if either of them bears any resemblance to the eventual outcome. Version 1 " From the outset, it was clear that this Coalition government would be confronted by one of the […]
How can intelligent people behave so stupidly? If the Eurozone was trying to complete the destruction of the Greek economy while cheering on social and political instability, no-one could fault its strategy. On the assumption that those are not the goals, it is hard to find insults severe enough to do justice to the Eurozone's […]
Yesterday, David Cameron gave the best speech that he has yet delivered. It was in Scotland, in defence of the Union. Its quality rested on its strengths: rhetoric as a fusion of emotion and intellect. In proclaiming the transcendent importance of the Union, in committing himself to battle in the fight for the future of […]
Tim Montgomerie has made a powerful case. In Opposition, David Cameron almost succeeded in neutralising the NHS as a political issue, and a chronic negative for the Tories. Even so, a wise Tory government would surely avoid raising the salience of health matters. Despite de-toxification, Tim thinks that this is bound to work to the […]
Two great and related questions have forced themselves onto the political agenda. They will have to be resolved; their importance demands no less. The first question is: "who should govern Britain?" Are we British still fit to rule ourselves; to make our own laws, to protect our own liberties: to live under a legal system […]
David Cameron needs to take note. Henry Angest and Michael Spencer are two of the most admirable men one could meet. Through good times and bad, they have proved themselves in the City. Both of them have demonstrated that they know how to combine stability and innovation. They are staunch Tories, who were happy to […]
Conservatism is in trouble and David Cameron is to blame. We are now confronted by a crisis in cultural Conservatism. David Cameron would be surprised by that assessment, because he takes his own small 'c' Conservatism for granted. One can understand why. He is rooted in England and in the countryside. When he was first […]