Donald Trump proved the doubters wrong and got it right on Iran with Qassem Soleimani January 16, 2020 When the Middle East crisis broke at the start of this year, many outcomes were predicted by a panicked commentariat in response to the US drone strike on Iran’s terrorist-in-chief, Qassem Soleimani. The various theories peddled by such observers fell into two broad camps: that war would inevitably result, or that the west would suffer [...]
Labour leadership hopeful Lisa Nandy says party should have been ‘bold’ on free movement January 15, 2020 Labour should have been “bold enough to defend free movement” while the party formulated its Brexit position, leadership hopeful Lisa Nandy has said. The Wigan MP, who has been running an exhaustive series of events as part of her leadership campaign, said Labour had to “connect the local and the global”, acknowlegding that the system [...]
Nigel Farage’s Westminster Brexit bash granted planning approval January 15, 2020 Nigel Farage has been granted permission to throw a Brexit day party at Wesminster’s Parliament Square. The Brexit bash is set for 31 January to coincide with the date Britain leaves the EU, and is expected to cost £100,000 and attract 10,000 people. Read more: Planning uncertainty over Nigel Farage Brexit night party Farage tweeted [...]
Health secretary Hancock suggests A&E waiting targets could be scrapped January 15, 2020 Four-hour waiting targets for A&E could be scrapped in England, on the back of the worst figures on record this winter, Matt Hancock hinted this morning. The health secretary said “clinically appropriate” aims and the “right targets” would be a better approach, as he sought to defend the NHS’s failure to meet existing targets in [...]
A tip for Dominic Cummings: Don’t hire anyone who fails to grasp the power of incentives January 15, 2020 The job advert issued by Dominic Cummings for people to work in government has attracted a wide range of comments. One particular focus has been on the sorts of skills he is looking for. Computer science, forecasting, artificial intelligence, causality theory — all these topics excite his interest. Cummings advocates a small selection of scientific [...]
Time to cull the ministers who sit around the cabinet table January 15, 2020 Walter Bagehot, one of the fathers of our modern constitutional structure, believed that the cabinet was the “efficient secret” of the British state. But what if the institution is now too large to run the country efficiently? I agree with the assessment from chief Number 10 aide Dominic Cummings that the cabinet as it stands [...]
DEBATE: Is a new ‘Trump deal’ the answer to the Iran nuclear problem? January 15, 2020 Is a new “Trump deal” the answer to the Iran nuclear problem? YES, says Ben Kelly, a commentator for Reaction. Does anyone genuinely believe that Donald Trump’s objection to the Iran nuclear deal was based on detailed analysis of its contents? No. Trump rejected it as part of his obsession with dismantling Barack Obama’s legacy. [...]
Nickie Aiken: The country must move forward as one January 14, 2020 At times during last month’s General Election, City A.M. readers could be forgiven for thinking it was taking place in a different country. For much of the campaign the focus was far from London, with frontbenchers and their battle buses taking them through the midlands and the north as Labour and Tories fought it out [...]
RCEP or CPTPP: Will Asia finally agree a trade deal? January 14, 2020 It is occasionally worth revisiting where Asia is with its expansive and highly complex trade negotiations, given that one can often get lost in the acronyms and fanfare of the latest set of talks. The first major attempt, an agreement with 11 signatories called the Comprehensive and Progressive Agreement for Trans-Pacific Partnership (CPTPP) or TPP11 — [...]
Harry Dunn death: Chances of extradition are very low, says PM January 14, 2020 Boris Johnson today said that the chances of extradition for the wife of a US intelligence officer accused of killing teenager Harry Dunn are “very low”. Speaking to BBC, the Prime Minister said: “I think the chances of America actually responding by sending Anne Sacoolas to this country are very low. That’s not what they [...]