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Tag Archives: Politics
Sweden, a land where consumer has never been king
In the second part of a three-part series of posts about modern Sweden (the first part can be read here), I look at Sweden’s weather, its inhabitants’ supposed shyness, and how Swedish consumers fare when it comes to buying alcohol … Continue reading
Sweden: how a ‘dull country’ is still worth living in
In the first of a three-part series about modern Sweden, I look at what twentieth and twenty-first century writers have to say, and how the reality of life in Sweden compares to the euphoria or opprobrium that it often provokes. “I … Continue reading
Posted in Uncategorized
Tagged Civil Liberties, Europe, History, LIterature, Media, Politics, Sweden
2 Comments
To win next time, Labour must overcome its Midland problem
Theresa May is utterly humiliated, forced to rely on the Democratic Unionists for a majority. Jeremy Corbyn has exceeded all expectations. Far from losing ground, Labour made a net gain of 30 seats – not just in the north and … Continue reading
Posted in Uncategorized
Tagged Conservatives, Elections, Jeremy Corbyn, Labour, Midlands, Northamptonshire, Politics, Theresa May
3 Comments
The big surprise of this election campaign? Not how badly Theresa May has fared, but how well
A screeching U-turn on long-term care bills. Uninspiring, robotic TV appearances – and several non-appearances at leadership debates and Today programme interviews. An inability to think on her feet, answer unscripted questions from the public, show herself as a team … Continue reading
Posted in Uncategorized
Tagged Conservatives, Elections, Jeremy Corbyn, Labour, Politics, Theresa May
1 Comment
If Macron wins it proves that despite five years of terror, France can resist the siren calls of fascism. I’m not sure Britain could
Imagine that a terrorist had shot dead four police officers, in two daylight attacks on the streets of Winchester and Southampton, a few months before the 2012 Olympics. After a few days at large he attacks the playground of a … Continue reading
Posted in Uncategorized
Tagged Brexit, Europe, France, History, Islam, Politics, Terrorism
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One place where the Trump presidency may do no harm? Cuba
I’ll leave aside – for now – his misogyny, racial prejudice, egotism, and contempt for democracy and the rule of law. I will even cast my eye away from Michael Gove’s fawning interview in the Times at the beginning of … Continue reading
Posted in Uncategorized
Tagged Architecture, Civil Liberties, Cuba, Donald Trump, Economy, History, Politics, US
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Think out-of-town shopping centres are a thing of the past? Take a look at Rushden Lakes and despair
The river Nene – the slowest-flowing river in England, and its tenth-longest – meanders through Northamptonshire past water meadows and dozens of former gravel pits, long ago flooded and now a nationally important habitat for wetland birds. Northamptonshire’s an underrated … Continue reading
Posted in Uncategorized
Tagged Architecture, Environment, Northamptonshire, Planning, Politics, Retail, Transport
3 Comments
Five reasons why cutting the number of MPs from 650 to 600 is a bad idea – and one silver lining
Constituency boundary changes don’t just matter to map anoraks or political obsessives (I’m a bit of both). And the proposals won’t just mean a cull of MPs: they will reshape our politics by disenfranchising millions of voters. With no suggestion … Continue reading
Posted in Uncategorized
Tagged Conservatives, Elections, Greenwich, Labour, Lib Dems, London, Northamptonshire, Parliament, Politics
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Politicians should get out of Westminster for its restoration – and stay out
News that the Palace of Westminster will be out of bounds for six years for the £4bn mother of all restorations has provoked a stream of predictable responses. A strange coalition of metropolitan Guardianistas like John Harris, nationalists and devolutionists … Continue reading
Posted in Uncategorized
Tagged Architecture, History, Parliament, Politics, Westminster
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Brexit is not a working class revolt, or a resurgence of racists. It was an Oldie rebellion, pure and simple
One Saturday morning a few weeks before the referendum there were two Vote Leave stalls on the streets of Thrapston, the Northamptonshire market town a few miles from my home. I was in a hurry, buying eggs and vegetables at … Continue reading
Posted in Uncategorized
Tagged Brexit, Conservatives, Elections, EU referendum, Europe, Jeremy Corbyn, Labour, Politics, Referendum
8 Comments