Archive for the ‘British current affairs’ Category
Some odd choices in Theresa May’s new Cabinet
July 15th, 2016 by Roger Darlington
In the last three weeks, British politics has been a whirlwind of surprises. The latest shocks come with the appointment of a new Cabinet by the new Prime Minister Theresa May. Most shocking of all is Boris Johnson as Foreign Secretary. He is infamous for his many gaffes and insults denigrating various foreign figures and […]
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The curse of Brexit
July 12th, 2016 by Roger Darlington
As soon as we knew the result of the referendum on British membership of the European Union, I did a posting arguing that it changed EVERYTHING. It will take months, years, decades before we understand all the implications and consequences but, in the intervening three weeks, the impact on our political leaders has been huge. Let’s […]
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Has anyone actually read the Chilcot Report?
July 8th, 2016 by Roger Darlington
The Chilcot Report on the invasion of Iraq consists of 12 volumes adding up to some 2.6 million words. Even the Executive Summary runs to 145 pages. According to an item in the “Guardian” newspaper, on average people read about 250 words a minute so, on that estimate, it would take 10,400 minutes or about […]
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What Alastair Campbell has to say about the Chilcot Inquiry on the Iraq War
July 7th, 2016 by Roger Darlington
If ever the word tragedy was appropriate, it applies in spades to the whole experience of the Iraq War. It is too simple to view the actions of British politicians and officials – especially Tony Blair – as the acts of evil men. Enormous mistakes were made but essentially they were made by people who […]
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Jeremy Corbyn will soon be gone – and then …
June 30th, 2016 by Roger Darlington
This has been the most tumultuous week in British politics in my lifetime. On a large turnout but by a small margin, the electorate voted for Britain to leave the European Union. I still can’t quite believe that this will happen but I have no idea how it will not. Meanwhile political careers are falling […]
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What exactly is Article 50 and how is it activated?
June 27th, 2016 by Roger Darlington
On 23 June, there was a referendum on the issue of UK membership of the European Union and the shock waves are rippling through every corner of British politics and the British economy. On a turnout of 71.8% (the highest turnout in a UK-wide vote since the 1992 general election), 51.9% voted for the UK […]
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Trying to makes sense of the vote for Brexit
June 25th, 2016 by Roger Darlington
“A quick note on the first three tragedies. Firstly, it was the working classes who voted for us to leave because they were economically disregarded, and it is they who will suffer the most in the short term. They have merely swapped one distant and unreachable elite for another. Secondly, the younger generation has lost […]
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The result of Britain’s EU referendum debate changes EVERYTHING
June 24th, 2016 by Roger Darlington
Yesterday, I voted in a referendum on the UK’s membership of the European Union. I voted to remain in the EU – as I did in the referendum of 1975. We now know the result. On a turnout of 71.8% (the highest turnout in a UK-wide vote since the 1992 general election), 51.9% voted for […]
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The weather – like our politics – has gone mad
June 20th, 2016 by Roger Darlington
Technically, today is the start of summer in the Northern Hemisphere as explained in this short note. But it seems that nobody told the weather. Here in London, we have grey skies and heavy rain and a temperature of 15C. On Thursday, the UK holds a referendum to decide whether the country will remain a […]
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Celebrating the life of Jo Cox
June 17th, 2016 by Roger Darlington
Today the one subject on the mind of everyone in Britain is the appalling murder of Labour Member of Parliament Jo Cox. As we mourn her death, we should celebrate her life and it was a life dedicated with passion to the cause of social justice, as is explained in this profile.
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