…a late entry, the irrepressible CNN talk-show host Piers Morgan, for apparently having forgotten most of his life as editor at the Daily Mirror during yesterday’s Leveson inquiry hearings. He beat off stern competition, however, from News International’s Les Hinton (also forgot about phone-hacking during Leveson) and of course the government’s very own Chris Huhne (forgot about any… Continue reading And the winner of the 2011 “Reagan Defence” Award is…
Author: robert.marchant
Two reactions to extremism
Compare and contrast: a. Tory MP, snapped next to man dressed as Nazi, sacked. b. Labour MPs invite real, declared anti-Semite to speak at Westminster: still in post. I am no fan of the Tories, but…something’s not right here.
It’s the financial markets, stupid
‘The real game’s not over here’ – Lou Reed What is the main thing driving the urgency of a solution to the euro crisis? Why, the financial markets, of course. Not because they should be calling the shots, but just the obvious reason, that you need to keep them on board in times of crisis… Continue reading It’s the financial markets, stupid
The coalition is on life-support
“Mummy, what is that man for”? This exquisite, though probably apocryphal, comment from a small child has been variously said to be about many politicians over the years, including Herbert Asquith. But Asquith’s successor a century later, Nick Clegg, may suddenly be finding that a real and painful question, as he reflects on the wreckage… Continue reading The coalition is on life-support
Flynn: tolerating the intolerable
Last week, two things happened which produced condemnation by our politicians. Jeremy Clarkson appeared on national television threatening to shoot strikers in front of their families. And Paul Flynn MP, interviewed by the Jewish Chronicle, spoke against having a Jewish ambassador for Israel, after suggesting in Parliament that he might be working for a foreign… Continue reading Flynn: tolerating the intolerable
Miliband the seer, Miliband the invulnerable
Last Thursday, Ed MIliband was speaking at the IPPR on the economy, doughtily willing that Labour’s alternative can soon be heard again, in light of Britain’s increasingly dreadful prospects. In spite of the response of many commentators, that here was a battle he couldn’t win, his words indicated that, on the contrary, he genuinely believes… Continue reading Miliband the seer, Miliband the invulnerable
Labour’s business: out today
Today, Alex Smith and Luke Bozier launch Labour’s Business, their excellent work on how we need to engage with business (rather than alienate it). I’ve done Chapter 3, Reaching Out: engagingwith business at every level of the party and there are other chapters by Anthony Painter, Hazel Blears and Kitty Usher among others, and Shadow Business Secretary Chuka Umunna has… Continue reading Labour’s business: out today
How we all look from the other side of the world
We are all taught at school about the five, or even the seven, continents. But in business and elsewhere many still think of the world in three groupings, matching the three broad time-zones, or the three big financial centres, of the developed world: Europe, America and Asia. In each there exists an informal hub for… Continue reading How we all look from the other side of the world
The Centre Left goes to…Australia!
The Centre Left is, as they say in all the best rock bands, “on hiatus” (usually, apparently, around the time they start “not feeling it”) for a couple of weeks. On the minus side, the last major left-wing government in Europe, Spain, will probably fall while I’m away (although a last-minute rush for Rubalcaba is… Continue reading The Centre Left goes to…Australia!
The world still doesn’t know about the PSC
Well, from my New Statesman article last Friday about anti-semitism, the Palestine Solidarity Campaign (PSC) and their fellow-travellers, I learned a couple of things: that there are an awful lot of crazy people in the world, most of whom, it seemed, wanted to comment on my piece; and that there are also sensible, decent people on the left… Continue reading The world still doesn’t know about the PSC