BY NIALL McCRAE The founding fathers of the Green revolution are not well-known. Despite their instrumental role in environmental catastrophism and the Net Zero imperative, mention their names on the Clapham Omnibus and you will get a blank look. They have mostly worked off the margins of public attention to instil the structures and systems of a global coup d’état. Their project was never really … Continue reading The Terrible Ten
In Episode 6 of the Sceptic: Lord Frost on the Lessons of the Tory Defeat, Frank Haviland on Labour’s Shallow Victory and Toby Young on his Fight for Free Speech Down Under. This podcast is well worth a watch. Host Laurie Wastell speaks to: Continue reading Lessons of the Tory Defeat
BY DOMINIC WIGHTMAN First-Past-The-Post (FPTP), often a lightning rod for criticism, remains a cornerstone of the British electoral system. Its simplicity and directness stand in stark contrast to the labyrinthine complexity of alternative voting methods. While it is fashionable in some circles to decry FPTP as outdated or unfair, this system offers a multitude of virtues that are easily overlooked in the clamour for reform. … Continue reading First Past the Post Is the British Way
CITY GRUMP Today my Editor has produced for us all, as we would expect, a superbly argued piece for retaining our age-old voting system at Elections, often known as First Past the Post (FPTP). In my last City Grump I argued for the opposite, meaning Proportional Representation (PR). Here is an attempt to put flesh on the bones of the PR case: I admit, … Continue reading The Case for Proportional Representation (PR)
BY STEWART SLATER One of my favourite ideas in philosophy is the Duhem-Quine thesis, one of those concepts “discovered” independently by two different people using two different approaches, which tells us that we can never eliminate all but one explanation for a single event. There will always be other potential reasons for what happened. Consider Emma Raducanu. Until the current Wimbledon, she had exited every … Continue reading Betting the House
CITY GRUMP “We did it !” declares a gleeful Starmer. You did indeed. You helped achieve the second lowest turnout at a General Election since 1885. You and the Conservative Party, at 60% of those who bothered to vote, were the lowest combined percentage vote since 1923. This can only mean one thing. The British have inspected the political physiques of these old Parties and … Continue reading Two Cheeks of a Soggy Bottom
BY NIALL McCRAE The forthcoming general election has had a dire quality of candidates and campaigning – at least from the mainstream parties – but it is also an exciting opportunity to reform British politics. On Wednesday I attended the hustings for the parliamentary seat of Bexhill & Battle, among a group supporting independent candidate Nigel Jacklin. It was both exasperating and enlightening on the … Continue reading The Election of Unelectables
BY GARY MCGHEE With the impending prospect of a Labour Government breathing down our necks, it is high time to unpack the real implications of this and the real cut of their collectivised jib. One of the first myths that needs to be squashed is that there is a difference between being ‘Woke’ and being ‘Left’. I’ll start with how US rightist commentator Curtis Yarvin … Continue reading OK, Commie
BY JOE NUTT Someone who teaches writing to undergraduates recently made this astute observation online: “At university, your main reader is always a peer. That means your readership numbers in the tens, perhaps hundreds, not thousands.” One of the least understood concepts about writing in any context, is this stark reality. Who, really, are you writing this for? Do you even know? This numerical but … Continue reading Can’t Wait for Independence Day
BY STEWART SLATER The lines go up. All of them. The only difference is the slope. For, according to the manifestoes, no matter who wins the election, the tax burden will rise. And it is not starting from a low base. Under Labour’s published plans, it will reach record levels. As it will under the Lib Dems but it’s the Lib Dems so, frankly, who … Continue reading Shuffling the Deckchairs
BY EFFIE DEANS The primary instinct of most voters is moderation. If you have a reasonable job, live somewhere reasonably pleasant and can buy what you need while going on holiday somewhere warm once a year, why risk it? Jeremy Corbyn promised us a socialist paradise. Alex Salmond promised us that everything would be better in an independent Scotland and also that everything would be … Continue reading A Double Edged Farage
BY STEWART SLATER “A person often meets his fate on the road he took to avoid it” Jean de la Fontaine That people might, by trying to avoid something, make it more likely is an idea which has fascinated me since I was a child. Whichever comic (remember them?) I took (Hotspur?) featured a story one week about a footballer who, told by a … Continue reading Don’t Panic
BY JOHN DREWRY I make no apologies for using this somewhat over-egged phrase because, from my perspective, we’ve reached a critical juncture whereby it is no longer sufficient to point, accuse and moan, but to actually suggest action or at least a path towards. Many will already know that the provenance of enemy of the people isn’t Ibsen’s play title but in fact goes back … Continue reading Enemy of the People
BY ALEX STORY Truth is now a crime. Little illustrates this more than a verdict passed in Verden Regional Court, Northern Germany, earlier this week. Marie Therese Kaiser, a budding young politician, was found guilty of using government statistics to point to a problem that officialdom would rather not talk about. As the Taliban took down the Pride flag from Kabul Town Hall in the … Continue reading The Crime of Truth
BY STEWART SLATER Social media is a transport device. Scroll through your feed and you will be whisked away to join your friends on holiday or at dinner (why didn’t they invite me, you may wonder). It might take you to some far-flung land where news is being committed. And, every so often, it takes you back in time. A few days ago, via BBC … Continue reading A Voice from a Better Past
BY JOHN DREWRY Looking back to the cataclysmic events in late 2024/25, it becomes obvious what happened. But then it’s easier to rewrite history than to comprehend it as it unfolds. Yet, ‘the moving pen writes’ and as I write this, I am already rewriting history. I’m inevitably building a picture different to the real one, because I have to start from somewhere, and as … Continue reading The Day the Circus Came to Town (FULL VERSION)
BY STEWART SLATER Every so often the world gives you a sign. A portent that it is all about to go wrong. The ravens leave the Tower. The dead rise from the grave. Nigel Farage pairs trainers with a suit. For, whatever you think of Nige, whether, to you, he is a gammony agitator or a patriotic freedom fighter, you must admit that he is … Continue reading The Trouble with Trainers
BY EFFIE DEANS I had never heard of Wilma Brown the former Labour candidate who was suspended for liking various posts on Twitter/X. I had likewise never heard of the person who had gathered the various posts which can be found here. But it is necessary to point out that in most cases the posts liked by Wilma Brown were innocuous, arguable, or true. The … Continue reading The Labour Party Was Wrong To Suspend Wilma Brown
BY JOHN DREWRY Looking back to the cataclysmic events in late 2024/25, it becomes obvious what happened. But then it’s easier to rewrite history than to comprehend it as it unfolds. Yet, ‘the moving pen writes’ and as I write this, I am already rewriting history. I’m inevitably building a picture different to the real one, because I have to start from somewhere, and as … Continue reading The Day the Circus Came to Town
BY ALEX STORY Religion is the cornerstone on which all civilisations are built. From that foundation spring culture, laws, social habits, and morality. A culture ripped from its religious soil dies. With that in mind and for that reason, Great Britain is perishing before our very eyes. With the ostentatious Ramadan celebrations in London, the call to prayer organised by Humza Yousaf First Minister of … Continue reading The Cornerstone Matters
