How do you solve a problem like Gen Z? Opinion Gen Z have wildly different, often contradictory views compared with older cohorts. As they become a more significant cultural and political force, it’s worth trying to figure out what they really want, says John Oxley Unpatriotic yet prudish. Radically liberal yet socially conservative. A new generational survey has shown Gen Z to be a complex [...]
A New Year’s resolution for government: Stop setting targets Opinion From HS2 to Net Zero, governments have a habit of setting ambitious long-term goals and failing to deliver. Instead of targets, we need long-term plans to fix the nation’s problems, says John Oxley The New Year almost always brings with it talk of resolutions, intentions and targets. This is true of governments too . In [...]
Junk food advertising ban defies common sense Opinion The government’s ban on advertising foods deemed unhealthy is a big fat win for the nanny state, but it will end up costing us, says John Oxley Christmas is coming, and that means a deluge of seasonal advertising and, for most of us, overindulgence. This might be the last time we can enjoy those two [...]
Kemi Badenoch’s Tories need a corporate overhaul November 7, 2024 Like the Manchester United owner, Kemi Badenoch must get a tarnished brand back on winning form, says John Oxley The “other” election this week may already feel like a distant memory, but for Kemi Badenoch, the work is just beginning. Winning the contest to be Leader of the Opposition may briefly feel like a triumph. [...]
Maternity pay is an investment, not a cost October 3, 2024 Shortsighted criticism of the cost and admin involved in maternity leave do not take account of the wider benefits to society, says John Oxley There may be some businesses that bristle at the costs and admin of maternity leave. While the state essentially picks up the tab for statutory leave, this doesn’t stretch to the [...]
Pensioners and the politics of perceptions September 12, 2024 The furore over winter fuel payments is driven by the false idea that pensioners are uniformly old, frail and poor. But in politics, feelings often matter as much as facts, says John Oxley This week’s tussle over the winter fuel allowance has highlighted one of the problems of our politics – how much of it [...]
Millennials will be hit hardest by tax rises August 29, 2024 The generation that’s about to reach the most rewarding of years of their careers face spending their entire working lives earning less and paying more for worse public services, says John Oxley Few will have been cheered by Sir Keir Starmer’s speech this week. While Harold Macmillan might have told voters that they’d never had [...]
It’s not just taxes, rent, childcare and a decrepit NHS are driving talent out of the UK August 1, 2024 High taxes are a problem, but the list of factors driving talent away from the UK is far more extensive, writes John Oxley One of the first criticisms levelled at Labour’s intended tax rises is their potential to drive high-productivity workers away from the UK. It is a fair one. In a world where capital [...]
A year on from the election, Boris is ensnared in the classic Conservative leadership trap December 11, 2020 It seemed like all of Boris Johnson’s plans had come together. The Red Wall had tumbled, turning Labour heartlands blue for the first time in history. The Prime Minister would return to the Commons with 364 MPs backing him and his oven-ready Brexit deal. He had vanquished his own party rivals, outplayed a divided Commons, [...]
What next for one-term President Donald Trump? November 11, 2020 There perhaps nothing that will hurt Donald Trump more than being a one-term wonder. Politics is a cruel game, there is no second place, and falling short is both brutal and public. For a man with an ego that the world has come to know, the last six weeks as a caretaker President will rankle. [...]
