We all have an interest in the truth. Knowing how this all started won’t bring anyone back, but it could prove vital to preventing the next pandemic.
Many of Tory MPs will be sick and tired of the self-reverential obsequies attached to the Committee’s deliberation and verdict – and of the hysteria, hate, vitriol and venom directed at a man without whom many would never have had the opportunity to serve in Parliament.
British support for Ukraine has so far been unwavering. But how long would it survive the return of Donald Trump?
The Kremlin is inciting pro-Russian forces to split the Western alliance in defence of Ukraine. It is of major importance to British policy that they don’t succeed.
The UK made a strategic mistake in dismissing the Messina Conference in 1955. This moment is not as seismic – but the UK should not pass up the opportunity to shape the post-Brexit, post-Ukraine, Europe where it can.
Two years ago, the security of Taiwan was a purely Chinese issue. But the invasion by Russia of Ukraine and China’s more aggressive posturing has changed that picture.
Domestically, the opposition wants to change the constitution, and return the country to being a parliamentary republic. Above all, it promises a return to normalcy.
If politicians come to believe that the civil service is preoccupied with speaking truth to power at the expense of doing its job, Francis Maude-type solutions will be imposed, regardless of which party is in power.
Around three quarters of all transatlantic cables in the northern hemisphere pass through or near its waters – yet Dublin spends just 0.2 per cent of GDP on defence.
“More than talk and language, actions are what matter, and we have taken robust action where necessary since I became Prime Minister.”
The visit by Xi Jinping to Moscow last week underscored the threat to democratic nations of expansionist tyrants who believe it their mission, even their right, to overwhelm and overcome their smaller neighbours.
How would we have felt if our benefactors had grown tired of the burden and attempted to force us into a negotiated settlement with Hitler? Thankfully, Britain had the resolve to continue and our allies remained true.
This is a Review that is as interested in not upsetting Washington as it is Beijing. Labelling China a ‘challenge’ rather than a ‘threat’ mirrors the language of the Biden administration.
Not only is the region vital to prosperity and security in its own right, it also has a direct bearing on sanctions, defence industrial capacity, and nuclear deterrence in the Euro-Atlantic.
The Economic Activities of Public Bodies (Overseas Activities) Bill will ensure that foreign affairs remains the business of Parliament, not town halls which ought to be focusing on public services.