The former French president Francois Mitterrand, in a phrase annexed from the novelist Francois Mauriac, was effusive in stating his distrust of German reunification: “I love Germany so much that I am glad there are two of them”. But now that Germany has been (re-)unified*, it has gained an ascendancy in the EU that must, whatever German intentions,… [Read More]
The UK government has decided to pass emergency laws on surveillance in response to an ECJ court ruling that has invalidated the 2006 Data Retention Directive. The 2006 Data Retention Directive was introduced in the wake of terrorist attacks on London, Madrid and the US – and allowed communications firms to keep data for between… [Read More]
Despite misreading some of the evidence, the Migration Advisory Committee has made some sensible suggestions regarding the low-skilled labour market.
The Conservatives are discussing a new model for Europe, demanding a ‘wealth test’ on EU migration.The cap would apply to current and future EU members (i.e. Portugal, Ireland, Romania plus Albania/Kosovo) and would be a pillar of Britain’s renegotiated EU. It could apply to individuals, or to a state’s mean wage compared to Britain’s. It’s… [Read More]
The Times today (£) carries a letter from a group of very senior figures within the health sector arguing that unless taxes are increased – or very substantial cuts are made – the NHS will have to start charging patients at the point of use. The signatories include: Sir Richard Thompson, president of the Royal… [Read More]
There has been outrage this week after reports that the controversial EU ‘right to be forgotten’ ruling has made Google remove links to public interest sites such as BBC economics editor Robert Peston’s blog. The post was on former Merrill Lynch CEO Stanley O’Neal, who played a crucial part in the 2007 financial crisis, presiding… [Read More]
Proposals to combine Income Tax and National Insurance can be judged against the Mirrlees review.
A glance at the economic state of Britain does not look good for Labour: GDP is up by 0.8 per cent in the first quarter, marking the beginning of what looks like a year of good economic news – perhaps even trumping last year’s rise 3 per cent growth to be the highest rate since… [Read More]
Lord Ashcroft’s latest poll shows the Tories have a 5% boost (to 33%, Lab 31%), which pundits are calling the ‘Juncker Jump’, a response to David Cameron’s brave but doomed last stand against the Commission Presidential candidate. In reality, it is more likely to be an anomaly – last Sunday’s Survation poll (Conservatives 27%, Labour… [Read More]
The apposition of the words ‘crisis’ and ‘NHS’ is now so frequent that it is apt to become a cliché. Indeed, in the word-processing software of many subeditors, the phrase “NHS in Crisis as…” is automatically inserted into every headline. And yet, there is good news! A recent Commonwealth Fund study has ranked the UK… [Read More]