Monthly Archives: August 2011

According to recent news reports, the Lib-Dems are proposing a new “per-drink surcharge” in pubs, to provide additional revenue to help local councils deal with “the extra costs of binge drinking” — street cleaning, policing and so on.  I recently … Continue reading →

A new YouGov poll shows a clear majority of voters in favour of leaving the EU: 52% want to leave, against only 30% who want to stay in.  Amongst Conservative voters, that ratio rises to 66 against 22 — a … Continue reading →

The government’s stand-off with the National Trust (of which I am a life member) and the Campaign for the Protection of Rural England (CPRE) over changes to planning rules threatens to embroil the Coalition in a protracted fight with two of the most respected charitable … Continue reading →

It’s worth reading Garrison Keillor’s hilarious book “Lake Wobegone Days”, if only for the very perceptive chapter on the small protestant denomination in which he was raised.  I recognise the scenario, as I was raised in a rather similar one.  … Continue reading →

In a recent New York Times article (well it wouldn’t have been the Wall Street Journal, would it?), legendary US investor and financial guru Warren Buffett declared that the rich — like him — should be paying more tax, and … Continue reading →

Matthew d’Ancona is that splendid chap who writes for the Sunday Telegraph, and whose weekly column is compulsory reading.  I (almost) always agree with him.  But I was struck by a recent Tweet from him (thoughtfully re-Tweeted by Tim Montgomerie, … Continue reading →

Everyone agrees that the recovery of the UK economy requires two elements: first, spending restraint.  Second, economic growth. George Osborne has won plaudits for his robust approach to spending restraint (even if we may quibble over the details).  But on … Continue reading →

I have great respect for Ed Conway, until recently Economics Editor of the Telegraph, who certainly knows a great deal more about economics than I do.  Nonetheless, I believe I may have spotted a rare solecism in his piece for … Continue reading →

Nine reasons why Conservatives should oppose a wealth tax I was encouraged to see Eric Pickles’ robust rejection of the Lib-Dems’ Mansion Tax in Saturday’s Telegraph, but rather surprised to see Tim Montgomerie of ConHome, usually the soundest Conservative around, … Continue reading →

There are many threats to freedom and democracy in our over-governed and over-regulated society, and the iconic phrase that Thomas Jefferson almost coined “The price of liberty is eternal vigilance” has become almost a cliché.  President Eisenhower famously warned of … Continue reading →

Let me start with a disclaimer: I knew Nick Clegg reasonably well in my first parliamentary term (1999/2004), when he was the sole elected Lib-Dem MEP for the East Midlands.  I debated against him once or twice (with some success).  … Continue reading →

I first became aware of the recent riots courtesy of Fox News, while I was in New Orleans.  They spoke of cars and buses burning in “Tott-ing-ham, London”.  Back home yesterday morning, having seen TV coverage of the previous night’s … Continue reading →

Tony Blair, they say, hated the English working class, so he decided to import a new one.  Whether that’s true or not, the fact is that Labour under Blair oversaw immigration on a scale never witnessed before. John Prescott is … Continue reading →

I’ve just attended the American Legislative Exchange Council (ALEC)’s “Solutions for the States” Annual Conference in New Orleans, following my book signing at the Heritage Foundation in Washington.  This was my first visit to the legendary “Big Easy”, and an … Continue reading →

My former staffer Sally McNamara, now Senior Policy Analyst at the Heritage Foundation in Washington, has researched a particular aspect of EU propaganda which I found shocking.  It will horrify EU tax-payers, and it has certainly affronted the Americans. We are … Continue reading →