Shortly after taking office, David Cameron embarked on a highly publicised “bonfire of public bodies”, with a mission to eliminate more than 100 independent government departments that he deemed unnecessary. Keir Starmer, on the other hand, clearly sees a place for them; Labour has announced plans to set up more than a dozen. The number… Read More »
The government is set to announce a sweeping change to planning rules this week that will spur the building of far more affordable homes as it confronts the economic and social legacy of 14 years of Conservative rule. Deputy Prime Minister Angela Rayner will unveil a new National Planning Policy Framework to MPs on Tuesday… Read More »
The Labour Party called its manifesto “Change”. It campaigned for “Change”. But there was no change of direction in the King’s Speech. Quite the opposite. As long as there was a plan for anything, it was to continue to turn Britain into a big government, low growth, low energy corporatist state. This direction of travel… Read More »
There we have it. The heaviest ever defeat for the Conservative Party and a huge majority for Sir Keir Starmer, who was as personally popular as Ed Miliband in the 2015 election. Middle England should be in a panic. The Institute for Fiscal Studies said last week that whichever party wins, the new administration will… Read More »
The rush to make “change” in the next 100 days will become overwhelming and the need to tear up the Labour manifesto to justify painful taxes on “wealth” held in pensions, savings and assets will emerge. These will be the days of “opening the books” and seeing that there is no money left. But the… Read More »
Labour has promised to “kick-start economic growth” after 14 years of Conservative rule and aims to address the growing problem of economic inactivity. So how will this affect the benefits system? The party’s manifesto sets out broad strategies to boost employment rates, without going into any detail. There is no clarity on intended changes to… Read More »
Women’s rights have featured much more prominently in this election campaign than Labour would have liked. Now, in a way that should cause significant concern, the issue appears to be gaining momentum, with rumours circulating that Harriet Harman, who is retiring from parliament, will be appointed as the new chair of the Equality and Human… Read More »
Labour is considering a raid on inheritance tax to “redistribute” wealth if it comes to power, a shadow MP has claimed in an audio recording. Darren Jones, shadow chief secretary at the Exchequer, told a public meeting that he expected there would be a “political consensus” that inheritance tax should be used to tackle “generational… Read More »
Almost a decade ago, the mayor of Tower Hamlets was sensationally sacked after an electoral tribunal found him guilty of a series of “corrupt and illegal practices” including ballot rigging, bribery and vote buying. But perhaps the most concerning aspect of the ruling was that Lutfur Rahman was found to have exercised “undue moral influence”… Read More »
Sir Keir Starmer and his Labor Party team are reveling in warm, cuddly sentiments about the European Union. While Starmer has ruled out returning to the customs union or EU single market, Labor says it will improve the UK’s relations with the EU by negotiating a veterinary agreement that would reduce border controls and seek… Read More »