The attacks on both sides have ceased in Gaza and southern Israel and the death tolls have ceased to mount – a sure-fire way to get the issue off the news bulletins again – and an uneasy ceasefire holds. For now. But, during those eight days, the focus of popular attention briefly fell on what… Continue reading This short conflict has shone a light in Labour’s dark corners
Month: November 2012
Labour and Gaza: Hamas is not Palestine
In recent days, bombs have been dropping on Gaza while rockets have continued to rain on southern Israel, as they have been for months. As usual, there is a premium on accurate information and a discount on propaganda. As usual, people stick to instinctive positions. So, instead of trying to argue the rights and wrongs of… Continue reading Labour and Gaza: Hamas is not Palestine
Rotherham is the most important election of all
It seems that, over the next two weeks, we are now suffering a plague of elections: six by-elections, plus the rather-important PCC elections. But the one which has the most compressed timescales of all – where candidate Sarah Champion was selected yesterday, with a mere two weeks until polling day and after a walkout at the… Continue reading Rotherham is the most important election of all
Me, Galloway and the appreciation of irony
Imagine my surprise when, after my debut piece at the Independent on Thursday, a critique of the Respect Party, yesterday appeared a rebuttal-cum-personal-attack on me from none other than the Honourable (that’s his official title) George Galloway MP. I suppose I should find it flattering, that a British Member of Parliament should take time out… Continue reading Me, Galloway and the appreciation of irony
Respect: is anyone still listening?
Delighted to announce the publication of my first-ever piece for the Independent’s online comment section, Independent Voices, here. It’s about the lovely George Galloway and the Respect Party, a misnomer if ever there was one.
News International – the gift to Labour that just keeps on giving
As David Cameron ponders the deeper strategic meaning of Romney’s defeat for his fractious party, in the back of his mind I suspect there is something a little more prosaic distracting him disproportionately from this and the everyday great affairs of state. So, this weekend has revealed a few silly texts between the Prime Minister… Continue reading News International – the gift to Labour that just keeps on giving
Labour: juggling with Occam’s razor
As any economist will tell you, we live in a world of incomplete information. A change in information can serve as a shock, and change the economic landscape all by itself. But this is also true of politics. Changes in information can also change the political landscape, and Labour has just experienced one of what… Continue reading Labour: juggling with Occam’s razor