George Osborne’s successor Philip Hammond will have a say in whether he can take his new job as Evening Standard editor March 17, 2017 Chancellor Philip Hammond will play a direct part in the decision made by the government’s Advisory Committee on Business Appointments (Acoba) on his predecessor George Osborne’s new role as editor of the Evening Standard. Acoba, the body tasked with scrutinising appointments, will ask relevant government departments for their opinions on whether the new job will [...]
Experts are vital, but so is scepticism and debate – take it from the Bank of England’s Minouche Shafik February 23, 2017 Experts have come in for plenty of stick over the past 12 months. Michael Gove’s infamous assertion during the referendum campaign that “people have had enough” of them has entered political legend. His actual quote is overlooked: he was specifically criticising experts who worked at “organisations with acronyms” and who were “consistently getting it wrong”. So, [...]
Theresa May is right to back academic selection in schools – as long as we don’t return to the rigid grammar system of the 1950s September 9, 2016 The chattering classes often complain that debates about schools are dominated by anecdote, as if ordinary people’s experience of education is totally irrelevant. So what if parents feel their local school is sub-standard? Who cares if most unskilled workers believe permitting more academic selection would give their children a better chance in life? Grammar schools are [...]
Conservative leadership race must speak to the City July 1, 2016 As Michael Gove’s former head of communications, James Frayne, argued in City A.M. on Tuesday, nobody should be surprised that politicians lacked a ready-made vision of what Brexit will look like immediately after last week’s shock vote. UK politicians have abdicated responsibility over issues like trade policy to EU fonctionnaires for over 40 years, so [...]
Editor’s Notes: It’s hard to see how Corbyn’s Labour party could sink any lower, Brexiteers attempt some cheer and Michael Gove takes to Twitter like a duck to water March 3, 2017 An American has taken out an advert in the Times to lay claim to the British throne. Allan Evans, of Colorado, says he is a descendant of a royal Welsh line dating back to the third century, and that “in 30 days’ time” he “shall claim his royal estate”. I was reading about Evans’ dubious [...]
Ignore Remain’s Brexit deceptions: EU backers are the real protectionists June 7, 2016 Following Michael Gove’s impressive performance in the Sky “debate” last week, the Stronger In campaign was always going to clutch at straws to find some supposed slip-up to exploit. This time it was Gove’s admission that “I cannot say that everybody in their current job will keep their job” following a Brexit. This, the Remain [...]
EU referendum: Tim Montgomerie, co-founder of ConservativeHome, quits Conservative party over Prime Minister’s stance on the European Union February 18, 2016 Tim Montgomerie, co-founder of grassroots ConservativeHome website, has announced he is quitting the Conservative party over Prime Minister David Cameron's position on the European Union. The influential Tory wrote in the Times that he would not be joining another party, but wouldn't be giving any more time, money or love to the "Cameron project". He wrote [...]
Editor’s notes: The great Civil Service myth, and why it’s time to shake things up… January 6, 2017 Though probably not on your daily reading list, Dominic Cummings (former adviser to Michael Gove and a top dog in the official Leave campaign) writes a fascinating blog. In between posts on artificial intelligence, super-computing and advanced physics, you’ll find reflections on his time working at the Department for Education as Gove’s senior adviser. If you [...]
Game of unknowns: why Gove’s attacks on corporatism are the last thing the economy needs July 5, 2016 An establishment outcast with a skill for political maneuver – there is an unnerving parallel between Michael Gove and Tyrion Lannister from Game of Thrones. And with the blood barely dry from his bludgeoning of Boris, the wannabe PM has wasted little time pin pointing his next line of attack, none other than the world of [...]
The City is mobilising itself for Brexit talks to safeguard the future of the capital September 22, 2016 One of the more memorable lines from the referendum campaign came courtesy of Leave campaigner Michael Gove. In front of a live audience, Faisal Islam of Sky News reeled off a list of experts who had made dire economic predictions regarding the implications of a vote to Leave. “The IMF, the IFS, the CBI… why [...]