Status anxiety
New Zealand’s culture wars backlash
I’m in New Zealand on a speaking tour organised by the Kiwi Free Speech Union, and in some ways it’s…
Why an ex-Spectator editor told me to back Reform
When I told an ex-editor of this magazine that I was planning to write about why I’m voting for Reform…
The Tories have failed us over debanking – again
On Saturday morning, when I was helping Caroline prepare for a lunch party, I got an urgent request for help…
Labour’s plans to rewrite the National Curriculum
Michael Gove’s decision to stand down in this election was a reminder that the one really bright spot in the…
The real reason Ofcom has gone after GB News
I don’t envy the people who run Ofcom. On the one hand, they’re under enormous political pressure to sanction GB…
Confessions of a catnapper
As Christopher Snowdon recently pointed out, the past few governments have had a habit of passing laws that are either…
Do voters really prefer Starmer?
Rishi Sunak has been widely ridiculed for trying to spin the local election results as bad news for Keir Starmer.…
Who decides which politicians are liars?
This week the Welsh parliament has been debating a law that would ban politicians from lying. Assuming it ends up…
Why won’t Chris Packham have a real debate on climate?
On Sunday, the BBC did something unusual. It invited Luke Johnson, a climate contrarian, to join a panel with Laura…
Even Orwell’s Thought Police didn’t go as far as Trudeau
You’d assume the reaction to the SNP’s new hate crime laws would make other authoritarian governments hesitate before introducing similar…
My father’s greatest act of kindness
I’ve been busy planning a trip to New Zealand and Australia. I’ll be gone for about five weeks from mid-June,…
Could J.K. Rowling be Oxford’s next chancellor?
Among my generation of Oxford graduates – late fifties, early sixties – there is currently a great deal of talk…
Joe Biden’s dog is out of control
I was shocked to read about the behaviour of Joe Biden’s dog, Commander. According to a CNN report based on…
