Plus: Well done, Chris Philp. An ankle bracelet for Ann Widdecombe? And: Go on, Lord Ashcroft. Publish that Cameron biography before the next election.
Like many higher education establishments, the University of Liberia holds an annual entrance exam. This year the results came as a bit of a shock – the pass rate was precisely zero. Out of 25,000 people who sat the exam not one made the grade. For most media outlets around the world this was a […]
By Paul GoodmanFollow Paul on Twitter. This site is quick to boo David Cameron when it disagrees with him – as earlier today, for example, when considering HS2. By the same token, ConservativeHome should be swift to cheer him when we agree with a decision he's made. I wrote earlier this week that the Government […]
By Mark WallaceFollow Mark on Twitter. As we've already heard throughout our series this week, the debate on increasing or decreasing spending on international aid is a roiling pot, a brew of emotions, morality, hard-nosed economics and human empathy, all at the same time and coming from all sides of the debate. But it is also, inevitably, […]
By Harry PhibbsFollow Harry on Twitter This is the third piece in our series debating the pros and cons of International Aid. Yesterday, Philip Davies MP made the case against, and on Monday Jessica Epsey made the case in support of UK Aid spending. "The truth? You can't handle the truth," said Jack Nicholson in A […]
By Paul GoodmanFollow Paul on Twitter. Supporters and opponents of military intervention in Syria should be able to agree on a twin point. First, that what is happening to Syrians themselves is a humanitarian disaster and, second, that the calamity which they are undergoing threatens to undermine Syria's neighbours – and Britain's interests. The scale […]
By Paul GoodmanFollow Paul on Twitter. Oxfam is undoubtedly right to say that Dame Barbara Stocking, who was paid £119,560 as it Chief Executive, "could expect to earn at least £75,000 more for a comparable job in the private sector". One might question why that that salary increased by 19 per cent in two years […]
Not so long ago, China and India were often mentioned in the same breath – the emerging industrial giants that were set to dominate the 21st century. It’s now clear that the Indian tiger lags the Chinese dragon by some distance. In fact, the notion of anything approaching an equal contest can be seen as […]
By Harry PhibbsFollow Harry on Twitter Paul has already given some of the context of the Environment Secretary Owen Paterson's speech this morning making the case for GM food. Mr Paterson soon made quite clear his own support for GM but added he was "conscious of the views of those who have concerns and who need […]
By Harry PhibbsFollow Harry on Twitter This morning in the Daily Telegraph Charles Moore called for more good news. Later this morning the Prime Minister David Cameron gave a speech including an important piece of good news – it concerned the orange-fleshed sweet potato. Mr Cameron said, of beating hunger: It’s about harnessing the power of […]
By Peter HoskinFollow Peter on Twitter The last Conservative manifesto contained a commitment not just to spend 0.7 per cent of national income on overseas aid, but also to ‘legislate in the first session of a new Parliament to lock in this level of spending for every year from 2013.’ The Coalition Agreement made a similar […]
By Paul GoodmanFollow Paul on Twitter. Until fairly recently, Select Committee enquiries were a courtly and decorous business, and reports were written and presented in a style of headline-defying narcolepsy. Then culture change came, and they started to be – surprisingly often – sexed up. John (now Lord) McFall hauled credit card company bosses before […]
Which nation or territory is the world’s biggest exporter of bananas, would you say? Brazil? Columbia? Malaysia? No, none of those. The answer, believe it or not, is Jersey (according to Paul Collier’s article on tax avoidance for Prospect). To most of us, this Channel Island is better known for its cows and potatoes than […]
By Tim MontgomerieFollow Tim on Twitter David Cameron once downplayed his faith but he used his Christmas message to suggest he took faith very seriously. His Easter message, just released, is also emphatic: “I send my best wishes to all those in the United Kingdom and around the world celebrating Easter this year in what […]
Buenos Aires is crawling back for more money – British representatives must vote No.