World
Hong Kong and the surprising truth about the British Empire
What would the world be like if the British Empire had never existed? Critics of British colonialism say that the…
Sunak, not Bailey, is to blame for inflation
Inflation has hit a 40-year high. The cost of household utilities rose by an average of £700 last month. We are…
Just how long can Russia sustain the war in Ukraine?
The sheer complexity of the war in Ukraine can mask its most important features. So let’s cut through the complexity…
Unemployment is low – so why aren’t wages improving?
For the first time ever, the number of UK job vacancies – now almost 1.3 million – has overtaken the…
Will France's PM offend Britain like her predecessor?
Élisabeth Borne was unveiled as the new prime minister of France last night and in her acceptance speech she paid…
The EU is hopelessly muddled on Ukraine
A couple of weeks ago Ursula von der Leyen portentously announced a further package of EU sanctions against Russia –…
The rise and fall of the WAG
The Wagatha Christie case is a brief, exhilarating reminder of a bygone culture. But it’s worth casting our minds back…
France's new prime minister will never overshadow Macron
Meet Élisabeth Borne, the new prime minister of France. Borne has hardly worked a day in the private sector. She…
Andrew Bailey's inflation excuses have been exposed
This afternoon the Bank of England’s governor Andrew Bailey appeared, as he has done many times before, in front of…
Should Thatcher fall?
It didn’t take long for the first egg to hit. Just a few hours after Margaret Thatcher’s statue was delicately placed on…
North Korea is in the midst of a Covid catastrophe
As Covid spread throughout the world in 2020, North Korea slammed shut its borders. It was an approach that has…
Russia and the death of the Golden Arches theory
Ah, well, it was a lovely idea, born of the age of liberal-democratic triumphalism that was the 1990s: the ‘Golden…
Olaf Scholz is tanking
North-Rhine Westphalia is Germany’s largest state, almost as large as the Netherlands. It was a traditional SPD fiefdom during the…
In praise of smartphones
The online PE teacher Joe Wicks has announced, in a fit of self-reproach coinciding with the launch of his new…
Here’s to the Christian knuckle-draggers
At the conservative Christian schools I attended from kindergarten through the end of undergrad, I became familiar with two types…
The French right is hopelessly divided
Here we go again. Exhausted by a presidential campaign that ultimately produced the same choice as in 2017 (and the…
Cracking consciousness: how do our minds really work?
With scientists mapping our neurons in ever greater detail, and programmers creating ever more humanlike artificial intelligence, the gap between…
Why Russia needs to be humiliated in Ukraine
As Putin’s war against Ukraine drags on, Russia now faces the very real prospect of defeat. There are still difficult…
Are sanctions on Russia failing?
Sanctions are the West’s key weapon in the fight against Putin, but there are signs that Russia’s economy and financial…
Why Saudi Arabia is trying to take over the world of golf
Golf came to Saudi Arabia in the 1930s. American expats, working in the nascent oil industry, brought their clubs with…
My Sally Rooney conversion
I tried to dislike the writing of Sally Rooney. But I failed. I retain some resistance to Sally Rooney the…
The cruelty really is the point
Earlier this week, Politico ran a piece called “Inflation’s biting. Roe’s fraying. Dems are still trying to connect with voters.”…
How the Channel defined Britain’s destiny
Geography matters. Everyone knows that. It defines Britain’s current relationship with Europe and its battle over the Northern Ireland protocol…
Does Putin have blood cancer?
Suddenly, we are all diagnosticians. Clips of a puffy Putin slurring his words, his hands twitching or clutching a table…
The madness of El Salvador’s Bitcoin city
A golden city on the coast of the tropical Pacific. A metal walkway suspended above a verdant volcano. And a…
