The election could redraw the country and reshape the Tories November 29, 2019 Opinion polls don’t just report the state of play, they can help fashion what comes next. The huge YouGov survey of 100,000 voters that translated into a Tory majority of 68 was unusual not just because of its scale but because it analysed every constituency. Most polls take a small national sample and use that [...]
NHS stunt reveals how desperate Labour is November 28, 2019 Labour’s unconventional relationship with the media took another couple of twists yesterday. First up, shadow trade secretary Barry Gardiner failed to conceal his irritation when a reporter from ITV asked a question about Labour’s antisemitism problem. He snapped: “Do you have a question about the issue we’re discussing, or was that just an opportune moment [...]
A second referendum would come at a cost November 27, 2019 Brexit is testing traditional party loyalties almost to destruction. According to pollster Peter Kellner, the Tories could grab more than 50 seats from Labour, largely in areas where it’s been assumed that people simply don’t vote Tory. At the other end of the debate, Brexit is leading people into uncomfortable compromises. People who never thought [...]
Uber keeps giving its critics what they want November 26, 2019 The relationship between Uber and regulator Transport for London (TfL) has always appeared to be one of mutual distrust. From its earliest incarnation the ride-hailing app left plenty of feathers ruffled after breezing into London and disrupting a market that had been the preserve of black cabs and minicabs. Read more: Why did Uber lose [...]
McDonnell wields his corporate cattle prod November 20, 2019 While Jeremy Corbyn and Boris Johnson slogged it out on TV last night, the City was still digesting the latest softly-spoken assault by Labour’s shadow chancellor. John McDonnell doesn’t fly into fits of outrage, not even when attacking the “obscene wealth” of billionaires. He appeared to unveil plans for the biggest revolution in company law [...]
Party leaders bid to charm top bosses at CBI bash November 19, 2019 The election campaign intruded on the CBI’s annual conference yesterday, making the event even more political and even less about business than it otherwise would have been. That said, the topics slotted into the agenda around the political speeches focused mostly on climate change, inequality, profit with purpose (Justin Welby was on stage for that) [...]
The City is wise to wince at McDonnell’s statism November 18, 2019 This newspaper has, in the past, given credit to John McDonnell for his honesty and for his openness with the City. We may not have welcomed his ideas, but we’ve often acknowledged that he has at least been upfront about his plans for government and has ventured into City boardrooms to explain his thinking more [...]
Did the BBC conspire to make Boris look better on TV? No. November 15, 2019 During my Masters degree in journalism I spent some time working for the BBC’s Daily Politics, now known as Politics Live. The show was produced and broadcast from the BBC’s Westminster studios in Millbank, and every day it was all hands on deck as a team of editors, producers, guest-bookers, script writers, presenters and technical [...]
Lagarde’s challenges start close to home November 15, 2019 When things get heated at work it’s only a matter of time before someone proposes an “off site.” Getting away from the office and taking in new surroundings can work wonders for morale and facilitate fresh thinking. It was in this spirit that the new head of the European Central Bank (ECB), Christine Lagarde, whisked [...]
Tories deserve to win the economic battle November 14, 2019 The Conservatives have taken a fair bit of stick for their claim that “the cost of Corbyn” would come in at £1.2 trillion. Independent fact-checkers have dismissed the methodology and pointed out that it’s difficult for the Tories to cost Labour’s manifesto commitments when the manifesto hasn’t been published. Still, the £1.2 trillion figure isn’t [...]
