Lib Dem Difficulties This is bad weekend for Liberal Democrats. There appears to be tension between Clegg and Cable over tuition fees. The latter has been buffeted by seemingly the inexplicable logic of hinting he may vote against his own policy. The voting public, uncluttered by the quite complex psychology of being a Lib Dem in […]
The Shadow of Labour’s Past. This is going to become a mounting difficulty for Labour. I think Ed Milliband knows it. The stack of problems waiting for the bonfire is growing. There are some good bits to keep. Devolution, Northern Ireland, Freedom of Information and Human Rights are the best. Against this we have a disastrous […]
The U.S. and Wikileaks Now that we getting used to our new breakfast diet of the latest Wiki leak, we can get this whole drama in a better perspective. It is not as big as it seemed and, in the view of many including this Blog, America has nothing to be embarrassed about, or ashamed […]
U.S. view of U.K Army. Wikileaks reveal that America thinks what this blog has always suggested; our army is not very good at fighting either in Iraq or in Afghanistan. This is not to question that our troops are of the highest calibre of bravery and dedication. What is at fault is their equipment, their leadership and their […]
Downing Street Humiliation Not only did the blitz of Royal, political and football celebrity have no impact in Zurich, it made the humiliation of the England bid, with only one vote (apart from our own), all the more high profile. It would appear it never stood a chance because FIFA has a policy of giving the […]
World Cup Disappointment for England Oh dear. After all that effort. And with a very slick team at the last push, combining Leadership, Royalty and Celebrity. The trouble is that the deal does not work like that. We may not know how the deal does work exactly, neither may we like what we know. Accusing those […]
Economic Recovery There are now signs that the economy is reshaping itself and recovering at the same time. House prices are continuing to fall. People and businesses are borrowing less. Mortgages are tough. Housing benefit caps will bear down on rents. The state is shrinking. Manufacturing is increasing at the fastest rate for fifteen years […]
Eurozone Trouble Ahead Yesterday Germany failed to sell all its bonds. This is an unwelcome straw in the wind. Markets remain nervous, if a little irrational. Portugal’s bonds were oversubscribed, but at a higher yield than two weeks ago. These bonds are for one year only, then the Portuguese government will have to come back to borrow more. […]
U.S. Deficit Reduction and U.K. Growth. At last the U.S. government has woken up to the need to reduce its out of control budget deficit and the Administration has asked a panel of two experts, one from each Party to come up with a plan. They have done so. It amounts to an eye popping […]
Ed Milliband By common consent Cameron gave Ed a drubbing at PMQ’s today. Since returning from paternity leave Ed’s leadership has lost its shine. Labour is getting worried. All these policy reviews are fine, but they are to take two years. Two years? A week is a long time in politics. Two years is a […]