Coffee House The Spectator Blog
What values do we share with Saudi Arabia?
First we had the Saudi King declaring that Britain had not done enough to tackle the threat of terrorism which may be true but considering Saudi Arabia’s continuing role in… Continue reading
1 CommentGove skewers Gordon
As I predicted yesterday, Michael Gove’s speech to the Bow Group this morning was a belter: as trenchant and subtle an analysis of Gordon Brown’s politics as any Tory politician… Continue reading
0 CommentsWho is right on immigration?
Steve Richards, one of the unmissable voices of the centre-Left, has an interesting column in today’s Indy in which he takes issue with Fraser over immigration. If those on the… Continue reading
0 CommentsDo the government’s numbers tell the whole story?
Have we had the full story about foreign workers? Peter Hain has admitted the figure of those arriving here since 1997 is 1.1 million, not 800,000, and Caroline Flint said… Continue reading
0 CommentsIt is no surprise that the government’s numbers don’t add up
There is much upset over the news that the government underestimated by 300,000 the number of immigrants working in this country. Yet, this is hardly surprising considering the appalling quality… Continue reading
0 CommentsTalking Turkey
If you want to see how real the danger of the West losing Turkey is, examine these poll numbers. The United States’s favourability rating is down to 9%- from 52%… Continue reading
0 CommentsThe Tory neo-cons
Bruce Anderson rides to David Cameron’s support over foreign policy in today’s Independent. In the piece, he writes that two key members of the shadow cabinet, Liam Fox and Michael… Continue reading
0 CommentsCameron’s take on immigration
A very good speech on demography from Cameron, I thought. Perhaps, the clearest and widest-ranging one delivered by any frontbench politician so far. “Demographic change” is better than the I-word… Continue reading
1 CommentGove to deliver the Tory verdict on Brown
Huge excitement at Tory HQ over a speech which Michael Gove will deliver tomorrow on Gordon Brown’s politics. It is meant, I am told, to be seen both as the… Continue reading
0 CommentsPrivate lives, public figures
Nicolas Sarkozy walking out of his interview with 60 Minutes when asked about relations with his then wife Cécilia is creating waves. It is tempting to see the incident as a… Continue reading
0 CommentsAmerica’s confessional cinema
Two big movies on release at the moment – Michael Moore’s Sicko and the thriller Rendition – have in common a deep strand of American self-loathing. Say what you like… Continue reading
0 CommentsCameron must bring honesty to the immigration debate
I had thought David Cameron would shy away from immigration. That the scars of the 2005 campaign would keep him away from it just as Letwin’s 2001 disaster left him… Continue reading
0 CommentsBlair’s thwarted plans
The latest revelations from the Anthony Seldon book reveal just how much Tony Blair was weakened by his diminished majority following the 2005 election. The Times reports that not only… Continue reading
0 CommentsListen Live: Can capitalism save the planet?
This Tuesday, Spectator.co.uk broadcasts the latest debate in the Spectator / Intelligence Squared series. From 6:45pm, listen to John Redwood, Nigel Lawson, Tim Harford, David Rieff, Eric Bettellheim and Frances… Continue reading
0 CommentsObama steps it up
Barack Obama is finally going to take the gloves off against Hillary Clinton. Under pressure from donors who are disappointed by the fact that Hillary is maintaining her dominant lead… Continue reading
0 CommentsWhitehall put on PMQs alert
If anyone wants to know how rattled Downing Street is by the hammering that Gordon Brown now regularly receives at Prime Ministers Questions they should read this story in The Sunday Times.… Continue reading
0 CommentsWhat’s next after English votes for English laws
Once, Alistair Campbell would have spotted and filled the news vacuum which sucks away at the papers this weekend. Instead it the Tories have scored a spin coup. They have… Continue reading
0 CommentsThe evil that the welfare system encourages
One of the benefits of doing Question Time is being taken to task on the blogosphere for days afterwards, and my comments on welfare and immigration have been reproduced and… Continue reading
3 CommentsRats to product placement
The magic of Pixar films – especially the Toy Story duet and The Incredibles – is that they appeal to adults as well as the children at whom they are… Continue reading
0 CommentsHow far does the Iranian nuclear programme extend?
To follow up on Matt’s post, Caroline Glick has a fascinating piece out today on the latest developments in the Iran nuclear saga. She speculates that the purpose of the… Continue reading
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