The Week
Indefensible
With the exception of 1983, when Michael Foot promised unilateral nuclear disarmament, defence has played little role in modern election…
Rome’s 99 per cent
In the UK the richest 1 per cent — 300,000 — of the working population control 23 per cent of…
Barometer
Service record The government is to form a design panel to improve motorway services stations. These have not always charmed…
Better off out
From ‘President Wilson’s Mistake’, The Spectator, 27 March 1915: The Americans have a world of their own in which to take…
Portrait of the week
Home David Cameron, who was cutting up lettuce in his kitchen, told James Landale of the BBC that he would not…
The Conservatives should be the party of immigrants — and here’s how they can be
For a long while, the Conservatives have been puzzled about their lack of popularity among immigrants. In theory, the Conservative…
Portrait of the week
Home In a Budget intended to have ‘no gimmicks, no giveaways’, George Osborne, the Chancellor of the Exchequer, offered pensioners…
Danny Alexander’s diary: Trying to put an undercover reporter at ease, and the unicorn poop question
It’s dangerous, in my line of work, to promise you’ll be anywhere by 8 p.m. I made this mistake recently,…
How weird is it to have a second kitchen?
Cooking statistics Ed Miliband was photographed in a miserable kitchen, but it turned out to be only a snack preparation…
Allah, Zeus and the Church of England
A ‘prominent liberal cleric’ in London has held an Islamic prayer service in his church, St John’s Waterloo. ‘We all…
What the censors miss
From ‘Unofficial News’, The Spectator, 13 March 1915: The exclusion of war correspondents from the firing line has greatly reduced the…
Australian letters
White Ribbon Sir: Tanveer Ahmed wrote an article in The Spectator Australia (14 March) about the various ramifications of the…
Migrant muddle
For a long while, the Conservatives have been puzzled about their lack of popularity among immigrants. In theory, the Conservative…
Allah, Zeus and the Church of England
A ‘prominent liberal cleric’ in London has held an Islamic prayer service in his church, St John’s Waterloo. ‘We all…
Barometer
Cooking statistics Ed Miliband was photographed in a miserable kitchen, but it turned out to be only a snack preparation…
What the censors miss
From ‘Unofficial News’, The Spectator, 13 March 1915: The exclusion of war correspondents from the firing line has greatly reduced the…
James McAvoy is wrong – the arts are better off without subsidy
The season of cringe-making acceptance speeches at arts awards ceremonies is nearly over, thank heavens. But it hasn’t passed without…
Portrait of the week
Home Philip Hammond, the Foreign Secretary, said that ‘a huge burden of responsibility’ lay with those who acted as apologists…
Jeffrey Archer’s diary: a pirate at the traffic lights, and other Indian wonders
This last week, in India, I visited six cities in seven days: Mumbai, Pune, Bangalore, Hyderabad, Calcutta and New Delhi.…
How (not) to poison a dog
Deadly to dogs An Irish setter was allegedly poisoned at Crufts, using beef containing slug pellets. Some other substances with which dog-show rivals…
The Green party isn’t nearly tough enough on Ancient Greece
The Green party’s manifesto appears to make saving the planet only a small element in its otherwise painfully unoriginal agenda.…
Officers’ off hours
From ‘News of the Week’, The Spectator, 13 March 1915: We are glad to note that officers in uniform have been…
Australian letters
Praise indeed Sir: Congratulations on the best arguments, articles and editorial I have personally witnessed so far in the history…
Greeks vs Greens
The Green party’s manifesto appears to make saving the planet only a small element in its otherwise painfully unoriginal agenda.…
Barometer
Deadly to dogs An Irish setter was allegedly poisoned at Crufts, using beef containing slug pellets. Some other substances with which dog-show rivals…
