World
Shanshan may be the strongest typhoon in Japanese history
The Japanese are battening down the hatches – again – as typhoon Shanshan wreaks devastation to the south-west of the country, with…
Skiing, sushi and hot springs in the Japanese Alps
Nozawa Onsen and Hakuba, my favorite ski resorts near Tokyo, are booking up fast. A trip to Japan guarantees novelty,…
Olaf Scholz’s immigration quagmire
Shock quickly turned to anger in Germany when a Syrian asylum seeker was arrested for the brutal knife attack in…
The Kamala interview was a missed opportunity
CNN was the lucky winner of the first sit-down media interview with Vice President Kamala Harris since she was pushed…
Starmer may regret an outdoor smoking ban
It’s a curious political world. Few who voted Labour last month actually wanted Labour policies, or for that matter had…
Is it a surprise that Labour want to ban outdoor smoking?
Anyone surprised by leaked documents showing smoking may soon be banned in beer gardens, small parks, outdoor restaurants, open-air spaces…
Scotland has failed Andy Murray
So much for building upon the legacy of the nation’s greatest ever sportsman. There will be no tennis balls hit…
How far will Starmer’s smoking ban go?
When Rishi Sunak announced his plan to create a ‘smoke-free generation’ at conference, some of his own MPs were bemused.…
Starmer’s ratings hit record low as cronyism row continues
To Downing Street, where it appears the new Prime Minister isn’t having the most pleasant of premierships. Sir Keir Starmer…
Is Starmer now a friend of the oil and gas industry?
Keir Starmer’s government appears to have softened its stance on oil and gas. Back in June 2023, the Labour leader…
In defence of airport pints
It is hard to think of anyone in aviation history who has done more to degrade the passenger experience of…
Starmer snubs No. 10 Thatcher painting
Well, well, well. It seems Sir Keir Starmer wasn’t exaggerating about his ‘change’ agenda. It now transpires that the new…
The worrying return of non-crime hate incidents
The longer it continues in office, the more reactionary and beholden to vested interests this government turns out to be.…
Labour mulls outdoor smoking ban
It looks like there could be bad news again for smokers ahead of the return of parliament in September. Already…
Is Lord Mandelson cut out for Washington?
Is Lord Mandelson being ‘lined up’ as the UK’s next ambassador in Washington? The news that the Labour party’s arch-Blairite and one-time…
How Emma Raducanu lost her way
It is back to the drawing board for Emma Raducanu after her embarrassing first-round defeat at the US Open. Raducanu…
Jack Smith’s superseding Trump indictment shows that norms are meant to be broken
With seventy days until the election, Special Counsel Jack Smith filed a superseding indictment against former president Donald Trump on…
Keir Starmer and the evil of banality
First, a little story. About three years ago I was given an eccentric but fun assignment between Covid lockdowns –…
Starmer can’t keep blaming the Tories for the prison crisis
Britain’s prisons are full: over the August Bank Holiday weekend, there were fewer than 100 men’s prison places remaining. The…
Labour is exposing its economic ignorance
It must be the worst kept secret in the country. At almost every opportunity, the Prime Minister Sir Keir Starmer,…
Britain should exploit the mess Macron has made of France
Whether one is a Leaver or a Remainer, for most Britons Brexit has not worked out the way they wanted.…
A trade deal with Germany can only mean one thing
Britain will not be rejoining the EU, the single market nor the customs union – that ship has sailed, and…
Australia’s ‘right to switch off’ will be a disaster
For a great many, their job is their vocation. It’s not just what they do for a living, it’s a…
The SNP can only blame itself for its budget mess
Higher-than-expected public sector pay deals, social security reform and the SNP’s freeze on council tax have all contributed to putting…
Ofcom can’t be trusted to censor social media
It’s boom time at Ofcom. In the past few years, what was until recently the government-backed regulator for broadcasting, telecoms…
