From taxes to cats, Theresa May’s government has been an affront to Conservative ideology May 29, 2019 Theresa May has finally announced her resignation. How can we capture the flavour of her tenure in office? This can be found in the dry and measured content of the Economic and Fiscal Outlook from the Office for Budget Responsibility (OBR). The OBR stated in its latest publication in March 2019 that: “the tax receipts-to-GDP [...]
Liz Truss promises focus on ‘less sexy’ transport projects in spending review March 19, 2019 Treasury minister Liz Truss has taken a thinly-veiled swipe at her cabinet colleagues as she hit out at politicians telling people what to eat and how much to exercise. In a speech setting out her priorities for a review of spending in Whitehall, Truss said the government should not be telling “capable citizens” what to [...]
Boris Johnson promises tax cut for 3m if he wins PM race June 10, 2019 Boris Johnson has promised to cut income tax for those earning more than £50,000 if he wins the Tory leadership race. Johnson said he would cut taxes for around 3m people by raising the 40p threshold from £50,000 to £80,000 if he becomes prime minister. “We should be raising thresholds of income tax – so [...]
Follow the money: Brexiter Tories stuff their war chests ahead of leadership election May 10, 2019 The one thing that is always guaranteed to raise eyebrows in British politics – not least since the scandal that rocked this country exactly ten years ago – is MPs’ finances. Amid a greater focus on transparency, Commons members must declare money they earn outside of their salary as an elected representative. For some, this could be [...]
Tory leadership race: Boris Johnson takes on Jeremy Hunt June 21, 2019 Jeremy Hunt and Boris Johnson are poised to battle for the right to become the next Prime Minister in the final stage of the Tory leadership race. Read more: Jeremy Hunt says he would delay Brexit past October Hunt beat fellow cabinet member and rival Michael Gove to win the right to challenge Johnson in [...]
Keep your wits about you, it’s not easy to navigate this tyrannical political jungle May 30, 2019 Any country that forced its citizens to spend over 40 per cent of their time working for those in power would be roundly condemned as a slave state and the most appalling tyranny. Yet this is the effective reality in Britain. Just over two fifths – 40.94 per cent – of everything the nation earns is [...]
Climate catastrophising risks shutting down vital debate July 9, 2019 In April, the cry of climate catastrophe seized the political agenda. A trinity of David Attenborough documentaries, Greta Thunberg-inspired school strikes, and Extinction Rebellion protests took over both traditional and social media. It was the only subject driving the zombie government’s agenda forward when, Trump-like, environment secretary Michael Gove watched Blue Planet 2 and tweeted [...]
Michael Gove: Voters could change Brexit deal at 2022 general election December 9, 2017 The electorate will get the final say on the Brexit deal, according to environment minister and prominent Brexiteer Michael Gove. Gove wrote in the Daily Telegraph that the British people will have a chance to reject the final deal during the next general election. The next election is currently expected in 2022, three years after [...]
Deal or no deal: Where every Tory leadership candidate stands on no-deal Brexit May 30, 2019 Read more: Tory leadership race: Who are the leading candidates? With only one week left until Theresa May steps down as Conservative party leader, the race to become the new Tory bigwig currently has 11 candidates competing against each other. Now, almost three years after David Cameron resigned following the EU referendum, history repeats itself as [...]
US lays out demands for free trade deal with UK, raising concerns over food regulations March 1, 2019 The United States has taken a hard line on post-Brexit trade talks with the UK, demanding greater access to British markets where products such as chlorinated chicken are currently banned by the EU. In its negotiating objectives for a future free trade deal, the US Trade Representative’s office (USTR) said it would try to reduce [...]