Corporation Tax in Ireland A few days ago Ireland said it did not need money and would not take a loan. Now it is saying it will not give up its very low rate of Corporation Tax. It will be interesting to see how long it can resist the pressure, especially from Germany and France. In […]
General Petraeus and President Karzai The general is annoyed with the president because Karzai has criticised the level of violence, especially at night, mostly of U.S forces, in the drive to crush the Taliban. For once I think President Karzai is right. The Taliban will never be crushed. Even if they are put out of action […]
David Cameron and Foreign Policy In his Mansion House Speech on Monday evening David Cameron, as is the tradition of this annual Prime Ministerial visit to the City of London, set out his, and therefore the government’s, view of the nature of British foreign policy in future. For the first time since the end of […]
A Royal Wedding Most of the world seems to be rejoicing at the happy news. Whatever their attitude to the institution of monarchy, people love a royal wedding, the stuff of fairy tales for generations. In fact a marriage of a direct heir to the throne is in the U.K., nowadays, rare. I have seen three; […]
Paying for Torture Once George W. Bush went public with his concept that water boarding was not torture (in spite of the fact that the U.S prosecuted Japanese after WWII for just such a crime) the moral high ground of the War on Terror, already in contention, was entirely lost. How America ever got itself a government […]
The Euro, Sovereignty and Ireland The Irish government (as well as the Irish people) is anxious not to go cap in hand to Europe for a crisis loan, declaring that at present it has no need of funds. Everybody else worries that when it does need money it will not be able to get it […]
Eurozone The waters are, once again, getting choppy.There is not yet a storm, but some on the Euro ship are beginning to feel a touch queasy. The U.K does not have to worry because it is not in the Euro. Well no, but that is not all the story. To grapple successfully with its own budget deficit […]
Lord Falconer and the Constitution. Lord Falconer is a distinguished legal mind and an authority on the Constitution. He was responsible for enabling the very significant constitutional reform giving the country the Ministry of Justice and the Supreme Court. He now wishes to delay the passage through the Lords, and therefore the implementation, of the Constitutional Reform […]
Aung San Suu Kyi, the Chandlers and Freedom. At a time when news tends to be both disturbing and complicated, the simple and happy release of not one, but three famous captives over the weekend was very heart warming. It was a curious coincidence of timing that both Aung San Suu Kyi and Ron and […]