The former Chief Secretary to the Treasury, David Laws MP, has resigned his position, on the basis that he has broken the rules on MPs expenses. Mr Laws, a Liberal Democrat, claimed Parliamentary allowances for accommodation, which he paid to a person with whom he was having a relationship.  Prior to the relationship having been [...]

Next week begins European Week Against Racism, a week when organisations opposed to racism host events to highlight racial prejudice and discrimination, and to celebrate the existence of societies where discrimination on the colour of a person’s skin or their ethnicity is considered unacceptable. Normally, I mark the week by working much harder on promoting [...]

The announcement of proposed cuts to BBC services has been overwhelmingly welcomed by commercial broadcasters and judged as too timid by many conservatives. Yet the proposed changes and the timing represent serious challenges for the Conservatives as a party, and we should be immensely wary of too wholehearted an appetite for the cuts.  Unless we [...]

The execution today  by the People’s Republic of China of a man with apparently obvious mental illness for drug trafficking should be met by the UK with a diplomatic response.  Summoning the Chinese ambassador  to the Foreign and Commonwealth office is not enough, and in my view we should mark this human-rights outrage with the [...]

I’m coming back to the ongoing discussion with Thomas Byrne on the rationale for public funding for education.  He has been responding int he comments to the blog, but I think the points he raises are interesting and level headed, so they deserved a good airing.  He’s in white, I’m in blue (as usual) Who [...]

Libertarian Tory blogger Thomas Byrne makes some arguments recently on his blog, then debated on Twitter, about the desirability or not of state funding of University. I don’t ever do this, but as a fellow Conservative, I am sure he won’t have a problem with a spot of forensic work on his blog post.  I’m in [...]

Little to say about this wonderful new take on the inflight safety video, except the obvious comment that, if it makes people look at the video and stop irritatingly talking through the safety announcements, flights will be more beautiful things.  Pity one can’t see anything though!  Air New Zealand for the win!

We are pissed with our MPs and want them to go straight; this does and should not mean we kick the hell out of them until nobody with any sense or real world earning potential would ever consider a job in politics.

Is Apple about to launch a new, sexy, desirable update to the tired Orange Order format? Will reformed Christians be crowding around the block all over the world to own their very own iProd?

Michelle Mone, lingerie tycoon and noted supporter of New Labour, has turned her back on the party as a result of the disastrous budget. Ms Mone, from Glasgow, told the Scottish Sunday Express: “I certainly don’t mind paying more tax if the real benefits are being felt by schools, the health service, the elderly and [...]