7 February 2019 Beware: Steamroller Loose Business and Brexit. by J R Thomas If you are one of those readers who look through Lens on the Week before grappling with the heavier stuff lurking further down, you might have noticed an odd passing remark in this week’s Business Section. Diageo, that behemoth of alcohol, still… Continue reading Issue 188: 2019 02 07: Steamroller Loose
Article Category: Comment
Issue 188: 2019 02 07: No Deal
07 February 2019 No Deal The risk to the EU. By John Watson They are difficult times indeed. German growth was down to 1.5% in 2018; Italy is on the edge of recession. And is it all because of the possibility of a no-deal Brexit? Of course not. The weakness of the global economy is… Continue reading Issue 188: 2019 02 07: No Deal
Issue 188: 2019 02 07: Blame it on Brexit
07 February 2019 Blame it on Brexit A universal scapegoat. By Frank O’Nomics Brexit, according to most media reports, is responsible for all of our woes. News that Nissan has reconsidered the production of its new X-Trail car, deciding that making it in Japan makes much more economic sense than Sunderland, is being used as… Continue reading Issue 188: 2019 02 07: Blame it on Brexit
Issue 188: 2019 02 07: Freeing Speech
07 February 2019 Freeing Speech Government acts at last. By Lynda Goetz It has been a long time coming, but finally the Government has published a 53-page document setting out uniform Guidance on the issue of free speech in universities. This, as those who have an interest in such things (and of course those who read… Continue reading Issue 188: 2019 02 07: Freeing Speech
Issue 188: 2019 02 07: Zayed Sports City
07 February 2019 Zayed Sports City Politics, sport, religion. By Neil Tidmarsh It isn’t often that world politics, sport and religion all occupy the same space at more or less the same time, but consider these three very recent events: On January 22, a man was arrested for wearing the wrong shirt, and could now… Continue reading Issue 188: 2019 02 07: Zayed Sports City
Issue 188: 2019 02 07: Diary of a Corbynista
7 February 2019 Diary of a Corbynista Venezuela back in Fashion by Don Urquhart 31 January We got through a whole Question Time without the key issues – Hamas, Hezbollah and the IRA, getting a mention. But Hurrah! There was a question about Venezuela and this allowed Tory MP Helen Whateley to point out that… Continue reading Issue 188: 2019 02 07: Diary of a Corbynista
Issue 188: 2019 02 07: The Scottish National Party
07 February 2019 The Scottish National Party What’s gone wrong for it? By Antoninus It should all have been so easy for the SNP. In the EU referendum, Scotland voted 62% to remain, the highest pro-EU vote of any UK region. As it became clear that both the Conservative government and Labour opposition would honour… Continue reading Issue 188: 2019 02 07: The Scottish National Party
Issue 187: 2019 01 31: Steady On The Gas
31 January 2019 Steady On The Gas Trump at the wheel. By J R Thomas President Trump, not unlike a well-known prince, is starting to find that steering is not so easy if others get in the way. In The Donald’s case, what is newly getting in his way is a House of Representatives controlled… Continue reading Issue 187: 2019 01 31: Steady On The Gas
Issue 187: 2019 01 31: Realpolitik
31 January 2019 Realpolitik Principles and mechanisms. By John Watson Last week politics was a wave motion. My colleague Mr Thomas pointed to the way in which the British left and right successively dominate the political scene until in their turn they fall back exhausted and the other takes over. Now the right has run… Continue reading Issue 187: 2019 01 31: Realpolitik
Issue 187: 2019 01 31: Respect and Traditions
31 January 2019 Respect and Traditions Don’t go there. By Lynda Goetz Universities are places of learning and research. For the professors and academics who make up the body of staff, their roles are both as researchers and teachers. As such, they are in a position to impart information to the students who have gone… Continue reading Issue 187: 2019 01 31: Respect and Traditions
Issue 187: 2019 01 31: “Enjoy Saudi”
31 January 2019 “Enjoy Saudi” The General Entertainment Authority By Neil Tidmarsh Good news for conjurers, wax dummies, fighting bulls, rap artists and pop singers this week; you’re all welcome in Saudi Arabia. Bad news for human rights activists this week, particularly if you’re female; you’re not welcome in Saudi Arabia (well, on reflection, that… Continue reading Issue 187: 2019 01 31: “Enjoy Saudi”
Issue 187: 2019 01 31: Brexit Wine Hedge
31 January 2019 The Brexit Wine Hedge Win-win with Vin By Frank O’Nomics It’s enough to drive anyone to drink. The whole interminable Brexit charade has left us bullied, bothered and bewildered. Not only is the process never-ending, but also, the whole issue of how to prepare for the consequences of every outcome, is fraught… Continue reading Issue 187: 2019 01 31: Brexit Wine Hedge
Issue 187: 2019 01 31: Let’s Leave
01 February 2019 Let’s Leave… And see what we think in twenty years’ time. By Richard Pooley My friend and Shaw Sheet colleague, Lynda Goetz, likes the solution to the Brexit conundrum proposed by Sir Anthony Seldon – leave the EU on March 29th, ideally with a variation of Mrs May’s deal, and have a… Continue reading Issue 187: 2019 01 31: Let’s Leave