Opinion-in-brief: Is Big Jet TV Guy the new Francis Bourgeois? February 21, 2022 When Tim Berners-Lee created the world wide web in 1989, he probably didn’t envisage that on a windy day in the UK, more than 100,000 people would tune in to watch planes land at Heathrow. Part of the fascination with Big Jet TV, the youtube channel dedicated to plan landings, was the host’s excitement. It [...]
Explainer-in-brief: Is there hope on the Ukrainian border? February 16, 2022 Yesterday morning it seemed like a pressure valve had been released, even if just slightly when Russia announced it was “withdrawing” some troops who had been carrying out “drills” on the Ukrainian border. After weeks of escalating tensions and a constant flow of European leaders travelling to Moscow to demand Vladimir Putin back down, it [...]
Explainer-in-brief: Peloton to ride high again February 10, 2022 They were the darling of the pandemic, and then they flopped. The American exercise bike company Peloton was a 15-minute story of fame for the ages. Its fortunes soared as the likes of Rishi Sunak and Miley Cyrus bragged about their secret spinning habit, but after gyms reopened, they floundered. Even more so after they [...]
New Zealand’s exit from isolation is only the first test February 4, 2022 After two years of harsh and emotionally devastating border controls, New Zealand’s Prime Minister Jacinda Ardern has announced the country will finally relax expensive hotel quarantine requirements for returning Kiwis. It will happen in stages, starting with New Zealand citizens coming from Australia; international students will be barred until April. But the test won’t be [...]
As Johnson and Starmer dance to the same tune, politics will look for an outsider February 3, 2022 THIS week, the Labour leader Sir Keir Starmer has invoked Margaret Thatcher in an effort to skewer Boris Johnson for ignoring Covid rules and attacked the Prime Minister for presiding over a policy of “low growth and high taxes”. It’s a strong position for Starmer to be in, as support for Johnson groans under the [...]
Boris Johnson’s survival will be a test of endurance February 1, 2022 Margaret Thatcher is oft quoted on the green benches of the House of Commons. But it is not often that it is a Labour leader taking the words of the architect of many modern ideals of Conservative politics and using them against a Tory prime minister. In the wake of an “update” from Sue Gray’s [...]
Holocaust Memorial Day: in the words of survivors January 27, 2022 Six million Jewish people were murdered by the Nazis in the Holocaust and millions of lives were taken under Nazi persecution of other groups, like Roma and Sinti people, black people, gay people, mentally and physically disabled people. And while we said, “never again”, genocides followed since in Cambodia, Rwanda, Bosnia and Darfur, with millions [...]
Russia cosies up to Italy in the face of EU inertia January 27, 2022 Vladimir Putin met with Italian business executives via video link on Wednesday, as the UK and the US prepared to send in more troops to Eastern Europe yesterday. The Russian autocrat called Italy a “key partner” for Moscow, and vowed to be a reliable energy supplier. While the European Union has struggled to reconcile its [...]
Opinion-in-brief: Netflix says next episode please as shares plummet January 24, 2022 As Boris Johnson lifted Plan B restrictions last week, many rejoiced – but not Netflix. The streaming giant has reaped the rewards of people staying at home. But last week, Netflix’s shares plummeted 20 per cent as new subscriber numbers fell short of expectations. Another 18.2 million people signed up for the platform – roughly [...]
Rishi Sunak’s proximity to Johnson shot him to stardom but it could be his undoing January 20, 2022 Theresa May had a light smile on her lips as she expressed gratitude for the aviation industry and pressed the Prime Minister on his plans to drop testing rules for international travel. The one time Prime Minister was not the only Tory MP grateful for the joy of flight: Liz Truss, the Foreign Secretary, and [...]
