Industry
Is the UK auto industry only struggling because of Brexit?
The popular new narrative for the UK auto industry is that its troubles are only temporarily to do with Brexit…
The Spectator at war: Keeping the nation sweet
From The Spectator, 3 October 1914: ALREADY we are engaged in the exacting task of creating an army during time…
Debate: will a robot steal your job?
Was Karl Marx right all along about capitalism? One of the subjects I like to bore everyone about whenever I…
Women will inherit the earth
Mr S unleashed his inner-feminist at the Veuve Clicquot Business Woman of the Year Awards last night. Veuve Clicquot president…
Hurrah for National Tweed Day!
As I’m sure many of you will be aware, today is a very important day: National Tweed Day. To be…
Grangemouth – six things you need to know
1. Why have I heard of Grangemouth before? Its oil refinery is of huge strategic importance, providing 80pc of Scotland’s…
Vince Cable calls time on ‘laissez-faire’
Vince Cable’s speech on the government’s industrial strategy today is expected to signal the end of a ‘laissez-faire’ approach to…
Vince Cable’s differentiation strategy
While Boris was busy upstaging everybody at the Olympic victory parade, Vince Cable was giving a rather earnest statement on…
The new politics of leaning on business
Ed Miliband the consumer champion, the saviour of the squeezed classes. That, more or less, is how the Labour leader…
The green threat to growth
Luciana Berger is a frequent speaker at this year’s conference and her creed is simple: tax energy use to tackle…
How to regulate the Internet?
This week, the Open Rights Group launched a campaign against the proposed website blocking scheme between copyright holders and Internet…
The battle over the 4th carbon budget
At the weekend, it appeared that Chris Huhne had won his battle with Vince Cable and George Osborne over whether…
Another European squabble looms
There is much excitement in Westminster at the moment about Hugh Fearnley-Whittingstall’s campaign to end ‘discards’ under the Common Fisheries…
The Royal Wedding: across the web
Here is a selection of articles on the Royal Wedding from around the web. For those, like me, who wouldn’t…
A new golden rule
The last few days have given us enough evidence for a new economic rule: the better the news about the…
Deregulation is the path to growth
The government’s decision to increase the period which employees have to serve before they can bring a case of unfair…
China in a bullshop
As if to illustrate Pete’s post about the rise of China and India, Chinese Vice Premier Li Keqiang has just…
David Aaronovitch and the social conservative consensus
David Aaronovitch is one of the preeminent voices of the liberal-left in this country. He is no social conservative and…
Cable shows his true colours
‘[Capitalism] takes no prisoners and it kills competition where it can’. ‘Markets are often irrational or rigged.’ A snob would describe…