Tony Blair
Another voice: Why Cameron had no choice but to fight
Fraser performed a valuable service to the MPs currently debating a motion proposing a referendum on membership of the European Union by imagining what he thought David Cameron ought to… Continue reading
19 CommentsYour scorecard for today’s EU referendum vote
I hope you adjusted your calendars accordingly, CoffeeHousers. The parliamentary debate and vote on an EU referendum starts at 1600 today — and what morbid fun it promises to be… Continue reading
49 CommentsThe End of a Delusion
The sight of Colonel Muammar Gaddafi blood-stained and bewildered, pulled around by a crowd in the final moments of his life is not a sight that will cause much pity.… Continue reading
21 CommentsThe centre ground’s there for the taking
YouGov recently repeated its occassional exercise of asking people where they’d place themselves, the parties and the leaders on the left-right spectrum. Anthony Wells reported some of the findings on… Continue reading
30 CommentsIran crosses a line
A flurry of news yesterday evening, among it Slovakia’s rejection of the euro bailout and even more ado about our Defence Secretary. But nothing nearly as striking as the alleged… Continue reading
13 CommentsOsborne’s serenade
As James said, Osborne’s speech was a potent blend of economics and politics. One passage in particular stood out politically: when Osborne referred to those who booed when Ed Miliband… Continue reading
8 CommentsMiliband VS Predator
You can see what Ed Miliband was trying to do. As his party isn’t trusted on the economy (his number one problem) he had to say how much he admires… Continue reading
26 CommentsWhy all the apologies, Ed?
The Labour Conference 2011 has turned into a horrible misery-fest. What a daft idea to make the theme of the conference: “We’re really sorry, we won’t do it again”. At… Continue reading
40 CommentsLabour wants to be the party of law and order
Andy Coulson was right to worry about the coalition’s law and order policies: Labour is trying to outflank the government from the right. Sadiq Khan and Yvette Cooper have cut… Continue reading
17 CommentsLabour won’t look on the bright side
Walking around the Labour conference and its fringes, it sometimes feels like the party suffered not just a defeat but a lobotomy. There are no great arguments about the future… Continue reading
16 CommentsOsborne’s dire warning
This morning’s headlines are apocalyptic: “Global economy on the brink”, “Six weeks to save the Euro”, “Collective action needed now”. The unifying theme is the lack of leadership in the… Continue reading
32 CommentsFrom the archives: On liberal wars
David Cameron’s speech to the United Nations yesterday was, among other things, a defence of liberal intervention. It reminded numerous observers of Tony Blair’s famous speech in Chicago in, the… Continue reading
3 CommentsExorcising the devil…
Ed Miliband is busy trying to shift both his party and the centre ground to the left. To that end, he announced his support for the Palestinian bid for statehood, which,… Continue reading
11 CommentsBlair returns to warn of the dangers of Iran
With the tenth anniversary of 9/11 approaching, Tony Blair has given an interview to The Times. What’s making news is his—to my mind, accurate–warnings about just how dangerous it would… Continue reading
43 CommentsTony Blair revealed to be godfather to one of Rupert Murdoch’s children
It is a sign of just how close the Blairs and the Murdochs were that Tony is godfather to one of Rupert Murdoch’s young daughters. But it is also a… Continue reading
18 CommentsThe quiet man barks
Almost exactly a year ago, Tony Blair’s memoirs wafted into bookshops to cause a stir ahead of conference season. Now it it seems that Alistair Darling’s, due out next Wednesday,… Continue reading
26 CommentsThe schools revolution in action
Harris Academies, one of the best-known new chains of state secondaries, have today posted an extraordinary set of results. It’s worth studying because it shows how a change of management can… Continue reading
34 CommentsBlair on the riots
Tony Blair has dropped in to write an article on the social context to the recent riots. It’s insightful, especially as a testament of his failings in government. At the… Continue reading
36 CommentsIn response to CoffeeHousers
CoffeeHousers have been generous in their response to my post on the need for an inquiry. I thought I’d respond in a post, rather than the comments. 1) Why rush… Continue reading
54 CommentsPhone hacking fag-ends
Yesterday, in his statement to the Commons, David Cameron responded to a question from Labour MP Helen Goodman about Andy Coulson by saying: ‘He was vetted. He had a basic… Continue reading
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