06.03.2026 15:27
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Outrageous to suggest that the Greens benefit from Farage's salience, or that they have a shared strategic interest in carving up the centre
I'm not outraged though
The argument against that is that in a democracy it seems right that electors decide what a valuable use of an MPs' time is, not some code. The idea they should spend their time campaigning about potholes and pavements in their constituencies vs practicing constitutional law is a new one
For decades it was seen as perfectly normal for MPs to combine parliament with legal practice, and there's absolutely no rule against it now. People might think it a misallocation of time but that's not a scandal.
Oh ok then
A category error. An MP is an office, not a "job", and there was no "scandal" about Geoffrey Cox
Shame not to see Singapore in there, given the endless anecdote about Lee Kuan Yew buying a newspaper in London
Quite a few emigres seem to cite Dubai’s clean pavements and playgrounds as a reason to move to the desert; if so, it tells us a lot about the success of post-2010 local government policy
It’s possible there may be more to emigration to Dubai than tax alone
Hadn't clocked quite how Dubai-coded Reform was before this piece www.economist.com/britain/2026...
Polling from More in Common shows that Greens and Reform win a higher share of voters who struggle to make ends meet, while Labour and the Conservatives win those who are most financially comfortable
Reform UK and the Greens are hoovering up financially insecure voters. My piece this week looks at the return of Britain's class politics (with a twist) www.economist.com/britain/2026...
Donald Trump must find a way to cut short his ill-considered conflict with Iran. His rash approach is sowing chaos econ.st/3OYibZ1
“We control their fate... The terms of this war will be set by us at every step.” Shades of Mission Accomplished.
I wrote on whether Gulf states are running out of interceptors, which they deny. Their day 1/2 consumption was v high relative to estimated pre-war stocks & annual production, but Iranian launches seem to be slowing. AD integration also proving an issue. www.economist.com/middle-east-...
We're delighted to be joined by @matthewholehouse.bsky.social (Policy Editor, @economist.com), @emilyrobinson.bsky.social (co-author of The Politics of Feeling in Brexit Britain) and @michaelchessum.bsky.social (activist and author of This Is Only the Beginning)
www.eventbrite.co.uk/e/no-second-...
Why did the People's Vote campaign fail? Could Brexit have been stopped? What lessons can be learned?
Join us on 19 March to launch @morganj0nes.bsky.social's new book: "No Second Chances: The Inside Story of the Campaign for a Second Referendum".
All welcome!
www.eventbrite.co.uk/e/no-second-...
Think he might have a personal interest in the Dubai property market not imploding
Might surprise people to know that in the latest British Election Study, Muslims are more politically fragmented than CofE Christians (measured by effective number of parties)
Think I've been to awards ceremony speeches like that
Cameron, the last successful Tory LOTO, would probably have torn up whatever he had planned and given an Iran speech. You can literally see the seam where a topical preamble has been tacked on to the speech Badenoch actually wants to give:
Tho more seriously, the last two LOTOs to take their parties to government knew the job of a speech like this was to audition on foreign policy credentials and fitness for office
History remembers the assassination of Franz Ferdinand mostly as a blow to Andrew Bonar Law's local government elections launch
See also: What does Iran mean for Zack Polanski's prospects in London council elections in May? Answer: Doesn't really matter.
really noticeable tendency of MPs struggling to think about foreign policy other than as mise-en-scene for their own domestic/partisan beef. Over in the Kemiverse, a US war on Iran is best understood through the internal dynamics of Labour's electoral coalition?
US can use UK bases to target Iranian missile depots and launchers, says Starmer
Heathrow is the new HS2, says Tom Carter
www.economist.com/britain/2026...
“Fruitcakes and loonies”
"Our candidate was the best candidate by far, but the electorate *clearly* weren't interested in that."