More bad poll news for the Lib Dem

The ComRes poll in today’s Independent will not improve the mood of grumpy Lib Dem delegates in Brighton. The poll finds that the party is down at 15 percent, a… Continue reading

Ming on the back foot

The YouGov poll in the Sunday Times has got the Lib Dem conference off on the wrong foot for Ming Campbell. The poll finds that only four percent of voters… Continue reading

Darling stumbles

Darling is losing his grip. He got his figures wrong twice on the World This Weekend and his exasperated stuttering hardly inspired confidence at a time when it is so… Continue reading

How the Tories could get the public to go green

The YouGov poll in Sunday Times which shows that Labour is five points ahead also contains some instructive data on the public’s reactions to the policies suggested by the Tory… Continue reading

Why John Reid is stepping down

Earlier today, like many people around Westminster, I received a text message from John Reid letting me know that he will be standing down as an MP at the next… Continue reading

How government and the Bank of England exacerbated the credit crunch

The credit crunch is global. So why has there only been a run on the banks in Britain? Alistair Darling suggests Northern Rock is a mere domino in a chain… Continue reading

Might Brown’s tea-time stunt backfire?

On Thursday I thought that Gordon Brown had pulled off a masterstroke by inviting Margaret Thatcher to tea at Downing Street, but now I’m not so sure. Marina Hyde’s column… Continue reading

Only a Lib Dem could get it this wrong

Sir Menzies Campbell’s call for a referendum on Britain’s membership of the EU is a desperate bid to preserve party unity on the eve of what may be his last… Continue reading

The pick of the weekend’s films

If you’re planning a visit to the cinema this weekend, I recommend you bypass the  cold, albeit visually impressive, ‘Atonement’, in favour of  Julie Delpy’s first effort as an actor,… Continue reading

Old is the new new

The old Latin rite of Mass is officially reinstated today. It’s not easy to explain the significance of this to non-Catholics (or even to Catholics under the age of 50),… Continue reading

Not Rocking

As a Northern Rock mortgage holder, I naturally went to the bank’s website when I heard the news about the Bank of England’s extraordinary intervention, providing emergency funding for the… Continue reading

Bush on Iraq

President Bush’s speech on Iraq last night showed how reliant he now is on others for credibility on Iraq. Take the two key paragraphs that set out the shift in… Continue reading

Captions Please

Gordon’s new ad message: I’m not Tony

Back in May, the American pollster (and Spectator contributor) Frank Luntz advised Gordon Brown to make a virtue out of his reputation for being boring. The Prime Minister has today… Continue reading

Brown invites Thatcher into his ever expanding tent

Margaret Thatcher is taking tea with Gordon Brown, Ben Brogan has the scoop. This is just about the last thing that David Cameron needs today as he tries to defuse… Continue reading

Policy pollution

The Zac-Gummer boomerang, thrown in December 2005, has hit Cameron in the face today. The Quality of Life group policy report is overflowing with guff. Take their headline plan to… Continue reading

Al Qaeda has not gone away

Take a look at the Guardian’s report this morning on a new study by the International Institute for Strategic Studies on the current strength of al Qaeda. So much energy… Continue reading

Toby Young’s new column starts this week

Do not miss Toby Young’s new weekly column Status Anxiety, starting in tomorrow’s magazine. As any fule kno, Toby is the laureate of metropolitan angst so it seemed only fair… Continue reading

The coming Lib Dem leadership battle

A book has just landed on my desk with Chris Huhne’s beaming, discoloured face on its cover. The LibDem environment spokesman is carrying a placard saying “green taxes now”. So… Continue reading