DEBATE: Is a virtual office Christmas party a disastrous idea? Is a virtual office Christmas party a disastrous idea? John Oxley, a Conservative commentator, says YES. The only thing worse than enforced fun is enforced virtual fun. Real office parties are barely enjoyable. Spending an evening with colleagues you are largely indifferent to is an obligation you endure, because if you don’t they put “Poor [...]
A.M. Debate: Should drinking alcohol be banned in parliament? A.M. Debate: Should drinking alcohol be banned in parliament? Matthew Jukes, wine taster and founder of Jukes Cordialities, says YES The most notorious bill in the Palace of Westminster is the bar bill. It’s no secret: while parliament’s bars are temporarily closed during lockdown, in normal times our MPs are knocking it back, left, right and centre. Don’t get me wrong, I am as [...]
DEBATE: Is the Eat Out To Help Out scheme the solution our struggling restaurant sector needs? Is the Eat Out To Help Out scheme the solution our struggling restaurant sector needs? Benedict Spence, a freelance writer and avid gourmand, says YES. It seems fitting that a government led by a man so perplexingly successful in the bedroom would launch a national recovery initiative with a name carrying such potential for smut. [...]
DEBATE: With one in three of us wanting to keep working from home, is it too soon to urge Londoners back to the office? July 21, 2020 With one in three of us wanting to keep working from home, is it too soon to urge Londoners back to the office? Ben Kelly, a commentator for Reaction, says YES. For months we were told to stay at home and hide from the deadly virus. Unfortunately — for the government and our economy — [...]
Working from home? You still need to dress to impress March 26, 2020 Chaps, if you’ve very recently begun working from home for some reason, you may be finding it difficult to adjust. The lack of shape to your day, the upsetting of your usual routine, can be disorientating. Sure, your initial idea that you’d be able to lie on the sofa in nothing but your briefs, dipping [...]
DEBATE: Should government pay wages to workers affected by coronavirus? March 23, 2020 Should the government pay wages to workers whose incomes have been affected by the coronavirus crisis? YES – Sam Bowman, director of competition policy at the International Centre for Law & Economics. This is a very unusual recession. It is self-inflicted, and will hit highly productive and less productive businesses alike. To allow them to [...]
DEBATE: Is there any real benefit to food brands jumping on Veganuary? January 13, 2020 From Greggs to Burger King, the ‘Veganuary’ movement is quickly gaining members — but is there any real benefit to food brands that jump on the plant-based bandwagon? YES, says Mike Foster, founder and creative director of Straight Forward Design. Just ask Greggs. Its vegan sausage roll, launched during Veganuary 2019, is the bakery chain’s biggest [...]
DEBATE: Should more businesses consider offering ‘hangover days’? December 13, 2019 Should more businesses consider offering ‘hangover days’? Claire Crompton, director of The Audit Lab, says YES. Hangover days are essentially sexed-up working from home days. We offer them to allow employees the flexibility to be accountable for their own productivity and targets. We are decisively anti-micro management, and trust the people who work for us. [...]
It’s Halloween: Beware the horror of an inescapable Brexit deadline October 31, 2019 By the pricking of my thumbs, something wicked this way comes. And, though it may not be the devilry and delight of a Halloween Brexit, the new horror of an Advent election should fill us all with dread. Of the many spooky things in this world, the deadline is perhaps the most tense, highly-strung genre [...]
DEBATE: Is there any point to LinkedIn? October 28, 2019 Is there any point to LinkedIn? Asad Moghal, digital and content manager at legal PR specialist Byfield Consultancy, says YES. It is probably obvious from my job title why I would say this, but there is a point to LinkedIn. Since Microsoft purchased the platform in 2016, LinkedIn has successfully changed its reputation as the [...]
