By Peter HoskinFollow Peter on Twitter Yep, Boris’s blond shock of hair is still sprouting out of the newspapers today. The Sunday Telegraph carries an interview with the Mayor of London in which he goes even further than usual in telling the government what they should do (more supply-side reform, another airport, more houses, etc. […]
By Peter HoskinFollow Peter on Twitter One of the most curious aspects of this latest intra-Coalition spat is David Cameron’s decision to take the boundary changes to a vote. On the surface, this could cause all sorts of agony for him. With the Lib Dems opposing the changes, and the minor parties unlikely to be […]
By Peter HoskinFollow Peter on Twitter You may have noticed, things aren’t exactly peachy between the two partners in the Coalition. One idea for bringing them together again — recommended in Janan Ganesh’s wonderfully readable column for the Financial Times (£) today — is the writing of another, updated, Coalition Agreement. Here are my five […]
By Peter HoskinFollow Peter on Twitter David Cameron and Nick Clegg attended an event this evening to remember the 11 Israeli athletes killed in a terror attack during the Munich Olympics, 40 years ago. Downing Street has released extracts from the Prime Minister's remarks, as follows: "This evening we mark the 40th anniversary of one […]
By Peter HoskinFollow Peter on Twitter Just another quiet Monday afternoon in August? Not at all. Nick Clegg has just given a statement confirming something that is equal parts unsurprising and politically significant: Lords reform is dead for this Parliament. He says that David Cameron has been unable to persuade enough Conservative MPs to back […]
By Peter HoskinFollow Peter on Twitter ConservativeHome understands that, despite earlier reports, the date for the Corby by-election is still not set in stone. At the moment, there are two options. Here they are, with some of the considerations that will factor in the choice: 15 November This is the date that has been mentioned […]
Let’s put Louise Mensch, Boris and Nigel Farage aside for a moment — the most significant political news of the day may have come from the mouth of a Lib Dem. Discussing the prospect of the UK losing its AAA rating on the Today Programme earlier, Danny Alexander said that “the credit rating is not […]
By Peter HoskinFollow Peter on Twitter Since being elected as MP for Corby two years ago, Louise Mensch has been one of the busiest, most engaging and vibrant voices on the backbenches — and now, sadly, she has resigned. I’ve pasted her correspondence with the Prime Minister below, but the basic point is that she […]
By Peter HoskinFollow Peter on Twitter There’s much heat and fury about gambling at the moment, in the wake of a recent Commons report on the subject and today’s news that Brits are losing over £1 billion a year to slot machines. In response, Harriet Harman has said that New Labour erred by having a […]
By Peter HoskinFollow Peter on Twitter What a happy coincidence that on the day the Prime Minister delivers a speech about innovation in the health service, there’s a stunning example of just what that innovation can achieve. And that example is Hinchingbrooke Hospital in Cambridgeshire, the first NHS hospital to be run by a private […]
By Peter HoskinFollow Peter on Twitter The wires are all aflutter with the news that Boris Johnson — ConservativeHome readers' choice to be the next Tory leader — got stuck on a zip line while descending into an event at Victoria Park. The photo to the right, courtesy of BT London Live, seems to be […]
By Peter HoskinFollow Peter on Twitter Yesterday, Louise Mensch took to Twitter to highlight how, disgustingly, a Facebook user had invited her to a party for the occasion of Lady Thatcher’s death. As this person had themselves down as a Labour supporter, she encouraged Ed Miliband’s party to say or do something in reproach: What […]
By Peter HoskinFollow Peter on Twitter There’s one finding that really stands out from this ComRes poll today, which is probably why the Independent has focused on it in their report. Apparently, 22 per cent of those Conservative supporters who expressed a preference would like David Cameron to sack George Osborne and replace him with […]
By Peter HoskinFollow Peter on Twitter Civil service reform has always met with a similar problem to one that afflicts Lords reform: how do you substantially change an organisation that has a heavy say in the matter? Given how closely interwoven government and Whitehall are, a proper answer to that question may never be found […]
By Peter HoskinFollow Peter on Twitter He’s astonishing, really, Boris. After having the Olympic crowds chanting his name, it seems he’s now going to pull off another remarkable feat: court Rupert Murdoch, in full view of the public, at the Olympics. It’s being reported that the Australian tycoon and his wife are guests of the […]