Martin Bright 
The Lobby’s existential search for meaning
There was a small but important piece in the Independent this week by my former boss John Kampfner. He’s not my boss any more, so I don’t have to be… Continue reading
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Rochdale is a lesson to all of us
The coverage of the appalling Rochdale grooming case has been, for the most part, well-informed and responsible. In the Times today David Aaronovitch takes on the cultural issue directly (£)… Continue reading
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This omnishambles is no joke
As those of us in London face up to the prospect of the none-of-the-above election, it’s worth thinking ahead to 2015 and asking yourself if any of the major parties… Continue reading
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It’s hard to find a minister who hasn’t messed up
Over the weekend I had some interesting responses to my rather flippant tweet asking if there was a government minister not under pressure at the moment. The consensus seemed to… Continue reading
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Get it right, and the Big Society bank could be massive
Michael Dugher is only half right when he tweets that you know the government is in trouble when it dusts down another Big Society announcement. The idea, in principle, is… Continue reading
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The closer you are, the bluer they get
I have always thought Francis Maude was a rather decent chap on the moderate side of Tory politics. He has worked valiantly to drive the Big Society agenda from the… Continue reading
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15-a-side solidarity
Wales have won the Grand Slam and I have grown to love rugby. Over the past weeks I have been completely captivated by the Six Nations and I don’t quite… Continue reading
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Visionaries, poetry and a game that turned deadly serious
There is a certain poetry to the leaking of Vince Cable’s ‘vision thing’ memo and the departure from Downing Street of Steve Hilton, the very man who is supposed to… Continue reading
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David Cameron, A4e and subcontracted policy
It has taken some time, but the media has now worked out that the government’s back-to-work reforms are a story which just keeps on giving. Under the Work Programme, vast… Continue reading
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The Coalition must not create the modern workhouse
I have warned on this blog before that the reforms of the welfare-to-work system risk embedding unpaid labour into the benefits system. This week’s story about Tesco advertising for night… Continue reading
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Making the Work Programme work
Last week David Milband showed some real class when he presented the recommendations from his Commission on Youth Unemployment. This was a sober and intelligent review of the crisis and… Continue reading
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Opening up Westminster’s closed shop
I was immensely proud to co-host an event at the House of Commons with Robert Halfon, the Conservative MP for Harlow, to promote apprenticeships in parliament. The workaholic Mr Halfon… Continue reading
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The brave men of Camp E715
Last year I travelled with the Holocaust Educational Trust to Auschwitz and the experience had a profound effect. I had been warned it would, but having been a voracious reader… Continue reading
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Matthew Norman, David Brenteron and the end of the compassionate Conservative
Until now I haven’t seen Matthew Norman as a radical figure in British journalism. But his column in the Independent this week was a genuine anti-establishment rant in the best… Continue reading
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Labour is the third party, get used to it
This has been a terrible week for the Labour leader – truly, bone-crunchingly awful. Inevitable comparisons have been made with the IDS era of the Tory wilderness years, but this… Continue reading
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It’s not about you, Ed
One thing you learn in life is that most people have no idea how they are perceived by others. This is particularly true in Britain, where we don’t generally feel… Continue reading
15 CommentsNazis, Aidan Burley and memories of the bad old days
News of the antics of Aiden Burley and his friends at a Nazi-themed stag party in France made me think about the strange ways some Tories like to have fun.… Continue reading
46 CommentsCameron proves he is a politician of the eurosceptic right, but he still seems like a reasonable guy
I have just been at the Conservative Friends of Israel Business Lunch, which can best be described as a triumphalist ‘smugfest’ in the wake of David Cameron’s bulldog moment in… Continue reading
16 CommentsJewish divided loyalty: the old lie
In all the furore over Jeremy Clarkson’s ‘joke’ about shooting strikers, people can be forgiven for missing a second row over outrageous remarks made by a public figure. Paul Flynn… Continue reading
44 CommentsSo this is what the Lib Dems are for…
Nick Clegg should be congratulated for doing the right thing by reviving the Future Jobs Fund and the Young Person’s Guarantee, for that is what the Youth Contract is in… Continue reading
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