The Spectator’s Notes
The real scandal is that government files are 'lost' all the time
Like almost everyone else, I have no idea whether the accusations about paedophilia in Parliament in the 1980s are true.…
The Spectator's Notes: Hunting down dirty old men is not a challenge to the current culture
‘A culture changes by example and a licentious old man being found guilty will help do that,’ says a leader…
Radek Sikorski: a Spectator foreign correspondent made good
Radek Sikorski, the Polish foreign minister, is undoubtedly one of the most dashing figures on the world stage. I first…
The Spectator's notes: Diana's bed, Boris's dirty trick and Prince Philip's mystery tie
On Friday night, I went to Althorp, childhood home of Diana, Princess of Wales, to speak at its literary festival.…
Jean-Claude Juncker is stale, grey and likes his booze. That's why Cameron should back him
David Cameron is surely right to think that Jean-Claude Juncker is not the man to relieve the European Union’s woes,…
David Cameron's plot to keep us in the EU (it's working)
I write this before the results of the European elections, making the not very original guess that Ukip will do…
My tax avoidance tip – win literary prizes!
David Cameron is said to want a woman to be chairman of the BBC Trust, now that Chris Patten has…
It's time for Muslim agitators to stop suing and start debating
Not long after the murder of Drummer Lee Rigby in Woolwich last summer, I wrote a piece in the Daily…
The Spectator's Notes: Max Clifford's conviction vindicates juries. But so did the acquittals
The conviction of Max Clifford for indecent assaults feels like a vindication of the jury system, as did the acquittal…
Was I abused by Jimmy Savile?
‘Twenty-six million people in Europe are looking for work. And whose jobs are they after?’ asks the Ukip poster for…
The Pope's brilliant PR
‘Show, don’t tell’ is the mantra of PR advisers when telling public figures how to communicate. Pope Francis’s technique does…
The Spectator’s Notes: In defence of Maria Miller
Maria Miller’s forced resignation is a disgrace. No iniquity was proved against her. Over her expenses, I suspect her motive…
The Spectator's Notes: Politicians and bankers both treat their most loyal backers like dirt
The Daily Telegraph’s revelation last Friday that the Financial Conduct Authority was going to arraign companies for 30 years of…
The Spectator's Notes: If Putin can have a referendum, so can Boris
Everyone can see that the West has no idea what to do about Russian power in the Ukraine. Britain, in…
How I became editor of The Spectator - aged 27
Thirty years ago this Saturday, I became editor of this magazine. In the same month, the miners’ strike began, Anthony…
The Spectator's Notes: In the radical 1970s, logic was on the side of the Paedophile Information Exchange
People seem bewildered that the National Council for Civil Liberties in the late 1970s gave house-room to the Paedophile Information…
The Spectator's Notes: What's the difference between the Sachs case and sexual harassment?
It is 15 years since the publication of the Macpherson Report into the investigation of the death of Stephen Lawrence.…
The Spectator's Notes: When all three parties agree, something must be wrong
Those of us who want a referendum on the European Union need to be cautious in our approach to the…
The Spectator's notes: What shall we call the Country Formerly Known as Britain?
Last week, David Cameron said that we have ‘seven months to save the most extraordinary country in history’. He meant…
The Spectator's Notes: Quangos - a world of perfect hypocrisy
The accusation that the Tories have been installing their people in public appointments should evoke only a hollow laugh. They…
What medieval farmers knew – and the Environment Agency doesn't
Our neighbour Philip Merricks is a farmer on Romney Marsh, 90 per cent of whose land is below sea level.…
The Spectator's Notes: George Osborne's personal recovery
Now that the economic statistics are looking better, people are beginning to rediscover the once-fashionable thought that George Osborne is…
The Spectator's Notes: French presidents used to have a touch of the monarch. Not any more
When I interviewed Valéry Giscard d’Estaing, the former president of France, for my biography of Margaret Thatcher, I asked him…
Mugabe envy in Scotland
Who owns Scotland? The people who most commonly ask this question believe that the land has been wrested from ordinary…
Charles Moore's notes: Why Ireland fears Scottish independence
In Dublin, where I am writing this column, people are watching the Scottish referendum campaign more closely than in London.…
