Leading article
Violence, fear, confusion: this is what comes into a leadership vacuum
The old cliché that ‘nothing happens in August’ has again been brutally disproved. From the centenary of the outbreak of…
Sorry, but trains can’t really replace welfare lines
George Osborne proposed an attractive idea this week: that spending on state benefits should be diverted into new infrastructure in…
Stricter benefits limits shouldn't stop with immigrants
With Ukip snapping at the Conservatives’ heels, it is not difficult to see why David Cameron has hit upon the…
The democratic deficit at the heart of the Human Rights Act
Dominic Grieve was a worthy attorney-general whose career was helped by this magazine: nine years ago, he was named Spectator…
Have David Cameron’s Etonians just given up on state school reform?
During his time as Education Secretary, Michael Gove would often have occasion to quote a passage of Machiavelli: ‘There is…
In apologising for having Nigel Lawson on to discuss climate change, the BBC has breached its charter
Listen to ‘Is climate change a factor in the recent extreme weather?’ on Audioboo It is only a matter of…
It's time for Britain to abolish slavery – again
Who would have expected to find slavery on the outskirts of Cardiff? Not the locals, who were shocked when police…
Phone hacking - the silence of the censors
We have not heard much from Hugh Grant this week. Nor from Max Mosley, Steve Coogan or any of the…
We won the Cold War – and then lost our way
It would have been easy enough to imagine the 25th anniversary of the Eastern European revolutions being marked with a…
The new Iraq war
Seven weeks ago, Barack Obama proclaimed that ‘it’s time to turn the page on more than a decade of war’.…
Now it's Gove vs May - will Tory wars ever stop?
Modern Conservatives seem to be allergic to success. Every time things are going right, the party spasms. Sir John Major’s…
Europe's extremists aren't really on the right
This week, the European parliament took a strong lurch to the left. That is not quite the story that you…
The slow death of Nato
The Cold War was won by 26 words contained within article five of the Treaty of Washington, which founded Nato…
Why does Britain's fight for religious freedom stop at Dover?
‘We don’t do God,’ was Alastair Campbell’s put-down when his charge, Tony Blair, was tempted to raise the issue of…
What is David Cameron’s big idea?
In almost a decade as Conservative leader, David Cameron has tended to avoid talking about his political philosophy. He has…
A shameful U-turn at the National Trust
What has happened to Dame Helen Ghosh? Last October the director-general of the National Trust seemed prepared to stand against…
How to lose Scotland
For centuries, the possibility of Scottish independence seemed so remote as to be laughable. Until recently the nationalists seemed quixotic,…
Vladimir Putin knows what he stands for. Do we?
Possibly because his oratory is no match for his much-displayed pectoral muscles, the speeches of Vladimir Putin are seldom reported…
It's time to stop the omnishambles - and send Lynton Crosby to No. 10
Yet again, the Conservative party has reminded us that it is quite capable of losing the next election. The events…
François Hollande's France is a preview of Ed Miliband's Britain. And it's terrifying
François Hollande and Ed Miliband could be political blood brothers. Neither has held down a job outside politics for any…
Putin's aggression is the price of western weakness
One cannot legislate for a quiet world. When a former Princeton University college professor was elected president of the United…
George Osborne's pensions revolution
It is easy to see why George Osborne seemed so confident ahead of the Budget. His radical reform of the…
Why British mothers need a tax break
Next week’s Budget marks George Osborne’s last chance to make a game-changing reform before the next election. The Chancellor will…
Why an EU summit will never solve the Ukraine crisis
For the first time in many years, the eyes of the world are on Crimea. As Russian troops violated Ukrainian…
Stop bribing Ukraine – and start helping
The last time Viktor Yanukovych was removed from power in Ukraine, following a corrupt election nearly a decade ago, it…
