04 January 2018 The Great Rail Rip-Off Raising fares in line with RPI makes no sense. By Frank O’Nomics. Raising fares in line with RPI makes no sense. This week saw the largest increase in regulated rail fares since 2013, with price rises on average of 3.4%. For many commuters, who on average have seen… Continue reading Issue 135: 2018 01 04: Great Rail Rip-Off
Article Category: Comment
Issue 135: 2018 01 04: Unrest In Iran
04 January 2018, Unrest in Iran, 1979, 2009… 2018. By Neil Tidmarsh. The news from Iran last Thursday – that women are no longer obliged by law to cover their hair in public – was surprising enough. But what has followed is even more surprising.
Issue 135: 2018 01 04: Will It Fly?
04 January 2018 Will It Fly? Can Tories survive Brexit and leftward swing? By J R Thomas It’s a brave commentator who provides any political predictions for 2018. It was with hindsight foolish indeed to attempt forecasts for what turned into the extraordinary events of 2016; even more so the sudden reversals of 2017. What… Continue reading Issue 135: 2018 01 04: Will It Fly?
Issue 135: 2018 01 04: Arts Council Funding
04 January 2018 Arts Council Funding for ‘Literary’ Fiction A Good or Bad Idea? By Lynda Goetz Shortly before Christmas Arts Council England brought out a report they had commissioned, entitled ‘Literature in the Twenty First Century – Models of Support for Literary Fiction. It is fifty-seven pages long and makes for interesting reading, although… Continue reading Issue 135: 2018 01 04: Arts Council Funding
Issue 134: 2017 12 21: Remaining, Hopefully
21 December 2017 Remaining, Hopefully Expecting the unexpected by J.R. Thomas David Lloyd George had a cruel wit: when Neville Chamberlain followed Stanley Baldwin as Prime Minister in 1937 he undermined Chamberlain’s moment of glory by saying that he had made “not a bad Lord Mayor of Birmingham in a lean year”. Oh, that the… Continue reading Issue 134: 2017 12 21: Remaining, Hopefully
Issue 134: 2017 12 21: Herr Strache’s Party
21 December 2017 Herr Strache and the Freedom Party The far-right in power in Austria. By Neil Tidmarsh I was in Vienna three weeks ago. It was the first time I’d visited the city, and I was delighted to find it as beautiful as I’d hoped. Grand imperial palaces, splendid baroque churches, intimate cobbled streets,… Continue reading Issue 134: 2017 12 21: Herr Strache’s Party
Issue 134: 2017 12 21: CPS On Trial
21 December 2017 Crown Prosecution Service (CPS) on Trial Rape in the spotlight again. By Lynda Goetz Readers who have followed this magazine over the last two years will know, firstly, that I am female, secondly that I am no longer, sadly, a spring chicken, and thirdly, that like Luke Gittos*, accused.me.uk+ and Allison Pearson (the novelist… Continue reading Issue 134: 2017 12 21: CPS On Trial
Issue 134: 2017 12 21: Hitting The Vulnerable
21 December 2017 Hitting The Vulnerable The increase in PCNs. By John Watson It is particularly disappointing, because I am something of a fan of Sadiq Khan. He is the first Labour candidate for whom I have ever voted and I did so because he seemed moderate, sensible, decent forward-thinking and just the sort of… Continue reading Issue 134: 2017 12 21: Hitting The Vulnerable
Issue 134: 2017 12 21: Diary of a Corbynista
21 December 2107 Diary of a Corbynista The PM shows her resilience by Don Urquhart 14 December The Department for Education (DfE) has published Primary School League Tables. Schools Minister Nick Gibb is pleased with the results: “Pupils are now leaving primary school better prepared for the rigours of secondary school and for future success… Continue reading Issue 134: 2017 12 21: Diary of a Corbynista
Issue 134: 2017 12 21: Bull Market Complacency
21 December 2017 2018: A Bull Market – For Complacency. A herd mentality with lazy thinking is a dangerous recipe By Frank O’Nomics It’s that time of the year when economists and analysts come up with their predictions for growth, inflation and the best performing asset classes for next year. The almost universal positive outlook… Continue reading Issue 134: 2017 12 21: Bull Market Complacency
Issue 133: 2017 12 14: One year down..
14 December 2017, One Year Down… …seven to go? By J R Thomas. A revolving door of senior advisers and Secretaries of State keeps on spinning but will it hurt Trump?
Issue 133: 2017 12 14: Keep Calm And Carry On
14 December 2017 Keep Calm And Carry On Davis puts his foot in it. By John Watson Blab, blab, blab, blab. The ink was hardly dry on Mrs May’s agreement with the EU Commission on the three preliminary issues (the Divorce Settlement, the status of EU nationals already resident in the UK, and the Irish… Continue reading Issue 133: 2017 12 14: Keep Calm And Carry On
Issue 133: 14 December 2017: Saakashvili v Poroshenko
14 December 2017 Saakashvili v Poroshenko Confrontation in Kiev. by Neil Tidmarsh They’re armed and masked when they come for him. But he escapes onto the rooftop while they’re smashing the door down. They give chase and finally corner him on the edge of a deep drop to the street below. He threatens to throw… Continue reading Issue 133: 14 December 2017: Saakashvili v Poroshenko
