Tomorrow, Lord Browne will deliver his review into university funding, writes Stephen Clarke, and there has been a great deal of debate about what the review will specifically propose. For example, leaks have suggested the fees that universities are allowed to charge will rise, and that there will be moves to differentiate interest rates on… [Read More]
What makes history? Is it war, necessity of change or great individuals? According to the Conservatives, it is the latter and one particular individual will ‘make’ history for the nation’s schoolchildren: Simon Schama. The Education Secretary, Michael Gove, has announced that he wants Schama to rewrite the history syllabus to teach more British history. Gove’s… [Read More]
The UK is being taken to court by the EU Commission for failing to comply with EU laws governing internet privacy and advertising, writes Natalie Hamill. The Commission is concerned that the UK’s legislation contravenes EU law and does not sufficiently protect the privacy of internet users.
Ken Clarke today announced his intention to get prisoners working 40-hour weeks in preparation for a life of employment. This is a broadly sensible idea. Most importantly, it rejects the supposed dichotomy between rehabilitation and incarceration. It illustrates that it is possible to have a robust criminal justice system that protects the public but also… [Read More]
Last week Ireland’s financial woes were well reported, writes Stephen Clarke. It became clear that the cost of Ireland’s bank bailout was a lot higher than previously forecast. The country is burdened with a €45 billion bill for bailing out all its embattled banks, this will see the annual budget deficit rise to 32% of… [Read More]
Today, Civitas publishes the findings of a year-long study into the effectiveness of the market in the NHS: whether and why it has driven the performance of providers as was intended. Based on in-depth interviews with executives at NHS (foundation) trusts, PCTs, practice-based commissioners and private sector providers across three health economies in England, the… [Read More]
‘It was the fate of this patient little girl to see much more than she at first understood, but also even at first to understand much more than any little girl, however patient, had perhaps understood before,’ writes Henry James of his young, responsive subject in a polemic contribution to a fin de siècle canon… [Read More]
As abstract concepts go, ‘coolness’ has to be one of the hardest to define. The uncool Oxford English Dictionary has had a go, suggesting: ‘informal, fashionably attractive or impressive’. While this is rather ambiguous, suffice it to say that the idea that being cool is a state of mind, a quality based on a person… [Read More]
Ex-EU Commissioners are still claiming substantial amounts of money from the EU, despite having left their jobs over a year ago, writes Natalie Hamill. ‘Transitional funds’ of at least €96,000 per year are still being claimed by 17 former Commissioners, most of whom have secured lucrative employment since leaving office in the EU.
Yesterday, Jack Straw defended his record on prisons at a Fabian event at the Labour Party conference (via Next Left). Juliet Lyons of the Prison Reform Trust felt let down that New Labour had not put a stop to rising prison numbers when they were in office. The problem with her complaint is the lack… [Read More]