Provincial England has taken over Westminster – and it’s put state intervention back in vogue July 21, 2016 The EU referendum paved the way for the industrial strategy now defining Theresa May’s first weeks in office. Why? Because the provincial English working class and lower middle class forced the country out of its status quo and administered a huge shock to the system. Politicians are realising that options they never previously considered are [...]
Trump won the nomination battle – but Ted Cruz’s remarkable speech kicked off the war for the soul of conservatism July 21, 2016 "Vote your conscience”, senator Ted Cruz asked of the crowd at the Republican National Convention in Cleveland, Ohio on Wednesday night. That’s when the boos started rolling in. “Vote for candidates up and down the ticket who you trust to defend our freedom and to be faithful to the Constitution,” the former candidate for the [...]
Leaving the Single Market would blow a £14bn hole in the public finances July 21, 2016 Before the referendum, George Osborne claimed a Brexit vote would require an emergency Budget of tax hikes and big spending cuts. While the new chancellor has said that he will wait until the Autumn Statement before he makes any changes to fiscal policy, it is unclear what he will choose to do. But what is [...]
Melania Trump’s speech was too banal to be plagiarised: Political wives excel at vomit-inducing cliches, but business is worse July 21, 2016 When Melania Trump claimed that she wrote her infamous speech at the Republican National Convention herself, I believed her. So bad was that speech. Apparently, Ms Trump’s mother had taught her to work hard, be true to her word and respect other people. To paraphrase Janan Ganesh’s recent article on Theresa May’s first speech as [...]
In or out of Europe, the UK is an innovation economy – here’s how it can stay that way July 21, 2016 Forget Brexit for one moment and allow yourself time for some good news: Britain is going through a craft-making boom. Far from a hobby industry, it now contributes over £3.4bn to the UK economy annually – helping design and create everything from surgical implants, to drug catheters, to cars. And with targeted support from government [...]
Nobody wins from a house price crash July 21, 2016 The full effects of the referendum on Britain’s economy are still unknown. Stocks are faring relatively well, with the FTSE 100 bursting over 6,700 and the FTSE 250 hitting a post-vote high. The pound remains slumped below $1.32, however, while consumer confidence appears to have taken a tangible knock. Many business leaders are worried, and some [...]
Italy’s banks won’t destroy the Eurozone – in the short term July 20, 2016 The euro crisis appears to have moved on. If the newspapers are to be believed, a crisis once centred on Greece has now crossed the Adriatic to Italy. The Economist recently ran with a leader article entitled The Italian Job, which argued that “at best Italy’s weak banks will throttle the country’s growth; at worst, [...]
It’s time to end the scandal of hidden holiday money charges July 20, 2016 Holidays are expensive. Last year British families spent £26bn on holidays abroad. That’s around £2,000 each trip. Some were all inclusive, but many, perhaps even most journeys will have seen people change money to pay for things overseas. As we all get ready for our week in the sun this year, I decided to look [...]
We need more masculists in the boardroom: Unconscious bias doesn’t just affect women July 20, 2016 These are exciting times for gender equality in the UK. With the success of the 30% Club, the announcement of HM Treasury’s Women in Finance charter, and Theresa May’s recent appointment as Prime Minister, momentum appears to be building. Even the term “feminist” has lost much of its stigma. The view that women are entitled [...]
As a surge of supporters sign up to vote in the leadership contest, can Owen Smith save Labour? July 20, 2016 Atul Hatwal, editor of Labour Uncut, says Yes. Labour is in a very deep hole, and Owen Smith is the man to haul it out. Under Jeremy Corbyn’s leadership, the party has slumped to being over 40 points behind the Tories on the economy and leadership. There has been a total breakdown of its ability to [...]