World
No, Putin isn't trying to bring the Soviet Union back
On Christmas Day 1991, in his last act as president, Mikhail Gorbachev signed away the existence of the Union of…
The churches must stay open
Hooray for Cardinal Vincent Nichols, who used the one day of the year when his pronouncements are amplified by the…
What Putin's Russia fears most of all
When Vladimir Putin called the collapse of the Soviet Union ‘a major geopolitical disaster of the century’ he wasn’t channelling…
What’s it like spending Christmas behind bars?
It’s customary these days for people to complain that Covid restrictions mean everyday life ‘is like living in a prison.’…
The Pillar of Shame and the erasure of Hong Kong
In the dead of night one of the most prominent memorials to the Tiananmen Square massacre, the Pillar of Shame,…
Did the White House really save Christmas?
“As the New York Times said today, Christmas gifts are arriving on time this year,” White House press secretary Jen…
The misery of Macron’s Covid clampdown
My daughter’s Christmas won’t quite be the same this year. She and I are in England but her French mother…
Liverpool's painting purge
Merseyside – the home of Roger McGough, Willy Russell and the Beatles. But it seems that despite the area’s reputation as…
The EU is forcing Poland to choose between money or the constitution
You might find it difficult, not to mention dangerous, to get to see a real meeting between an irresistible force…
Cold turkey: is a Christmas tradition coming to an end?
When I recently asked younger work friends about the prospect of turkey for Christmas dinner, it was greeted with grim…
Jacinda Ardern to Alastair Campbell: My 2021 'naughty list'
Merry Christmas – but not for those who have earned a place on my naughty list. From Jacinda Ardern to…
Kamala’s bad press isn’t ‘racist’ or ‘sexist’
Vice President Kamala Harris has been quoted as saying her media coverage would be better if she were a white man.…
Covid fearmongering has consequences too
The scaremongers have overplayed their hand. Omicron could prove disastrous, they warned. They scoffed at the early indicators from South…
Will Omicron overwhelm the NHS? The crucial missing data
If you catch Omicron your risk of ending up in hospital is between 50 to 70 per cent less likely…
Is vaccine refusal a matter for Justin Welby?
It’s not quite ‘the night before Christmas’ but it’s close. The timing could hardly be worse for Justin Welby to…
Labour looks like a proper opposition. That doesn't mean they'll win
There’s no point denying it, Labour is doing a bit better these days. Its poll rating is averaging a 39,…
If you watch one thing this Christmas, make it The Witcher
If you only watch one thing on TV this Christmas, make it The Witcher(Netflix). It’s by turns funny, exciting, scary,…
Europe's emerging energy crisis
After the pandemic, is energy the next European crisis? Gas prices have hit new records, reaching $180 per barrel in…
The BBC's mysterious missing Xinjiang evidence
Parliament has packed up for the holidays, with MPs and peers spending their final days in SW1 desperately dodging the…
Sturgeonomics would have crashed an independent Scotland
The Omicron variant is upon us, which means the return of the Scottish First Minister’s news conferences. These can be…
Sage modellers start to accept that Omicron is milder
Public health officials in Britain and South Africa were on different planets for about a fortnight. While those in South Africa…
Mail exodus to The Times continues
The shenanigans at Northcliffe House have given Mr S much to write about in recent months. Whether it’s Geordie Greig’s…
Why doesn’t Liz Cheney mention January 6 to her voters?
Cockburn is eagerly anticipating a number of clashes in the 2022 midterm elections in under a year’s time. Chief among…
Sage memo makes the case for lockdown
On Monday, Covid restrictions were rejected after the cabinet debated the issue robustly for the first time since the pandemic…
It's too late to save comedy from 'cancel culture'
Will comedy become the latest victim of ‘cancel culture’? Dame Maureen Lipman fears as much. ‘Cancel culture, this cancelling, this…
