It was said of the Thane of Cawdor that “Nothing in his life became him like the leaving it.” Well Britain may not be an ambitious murderer driven to evil deeds by superstitious prophecies (though some on the Remain side or in Continental Europe might well think otherwise). And it has not left anything yet. But two months on from the referendum, the swift defenestration of one ruler, his replacement by the well-shod Rosa Klebb of the Tory party…
Embed from Getty Images I didn’t think this would be a post I’d ever write. Anyone who’s followed my posts over the last three years will know I’m not exactly George Osborne’s biggest fan. I felt he turned from being a huge asset to the Conservatives in the opposition years into a Chancellor who cynically viewed his voters and supporters as mere chesspieces – only worthy of narrow tactical calculations that might advance his career – and his fellow…
This is the minister supposed to be prompting British business around the world https://t.co/vH1iYbLbRm — Jim Pickard ? (@PickardJE) September 10, 2016 Yes, Liam Fox really said UK business is too fat and lazy. Here's our exclusive transcript https://t.co/4DwsX7xrNo pic.twitter.com/vOKb9QFitE — The Times and The Sunday Times (@thetimes) September 10, 2016 The Guardian reports on a Times story Liam Fox, the international trade secretary, has been attacked by businesspeople and politicians for suggesting British executives would rather play golf rather…
The picture above sums up the last few months in British politics, the reaction live on television of Sam Coates, Deputy Political Editor of The Times, to Boris Johnson withdrawing from the Tory leadership race. Theresa May’s lack of a mandate could cause her problems. If events had gone to schedule, the result of the Tory leadership contest would have been announced today, Andrea Leadsom’s disastrous ‘mother superior’ interview helped put the kibosh on those plans. But in hindsight Theresa May…
Keiran Pedley examines recent Lord Ashcroft polling on what Brexit means to voters and explains why polling can only tell us so much about the deal Theresa May should ask for. As Westminster returns from holiday and the Labour leadership contest draws to a close attention is turning to Theresa May’s debut on the world stage and what ‘Brexit means Brexit’ will actually mean in practice. This week, Lord Ashcroft has produced some polling (conducted in August) that attempts…
Embed from Getty Images Many people my age will have been captivated as children by André Maurois’s fable “Fattypuffs And Thinifers”, in which two brothers descend underground to find themselves in a world where the plump and the skinny are divided into separate realms. The two sides eventually go to war before a compromise is eventually reached. In the last few months Britain also has descended underground and the populace divided at the ballot box between Leavers and Remainers. Leave…
Earlier on this week Sir Antony Jay, co-creator and writer of Yes Minister and Yes Prime Minister died. For my mind, both shows remain timeless, there’s the above clip about how leading questions can influence polling results, though the scene above was in the days before the BPC. The scene below is probably even more relevant in these post EU referendum days. But there many other clips I could have used to show the genius of this show. TSE
Prior to June 23rd, there was a strong push from Remain that a Leave victory could lead to a united Ireland, Paddy Power have a market up on whether there will be a referendum on such a matter by the end of 2020. A 2011 poll found ‘more than half of Catholics in Northern Ireland want the long-term future of the North to be as part of the United Kingdom, while only 16 per cent of the overall population favour a united…