Politics

Today MPs hold a short Commons debate on the proposed transatlantic trade and investment partnership – TTIP. As a pan-EU trade deal with the US it is being negotiated by the European Commission, with a mandate and direction from member state governments including our own. Despite the fierce extra-parliamentary debate the planned deal has provoked, this will be only the third time in the 18 months since negotiations started when there will be any debate at all in the House of Commons chamber. In total, the three debates will amount to less than one day’s full business on a binding treaty that could have wide-ranging effects on our national economy from

Is it time for Islam to confront Islamists? On this week’s Spectator podcast, Qanta Ahmed discusses in the wake of the attack of Charlie Hebdo why this might happen — as well as how Egypt is leading the way on reforming the religion. Douglas Murray also looks explains why Islam needs to confront the facts of its own history if the terror threat is to be tackled. Vincenzo Scarpetta and James Forsyth also look at the Greek elections on 25 January and the impact they could have on British politics. If the radical left party Syriza triumphs, could the general election in May take place against the backdrop of another a Eurozone crisis? Plus, Isabel Hardman discusses her interview with John Sentamu, the

Before the eurozone crisis, Greek elections didn’t receive much attention in Westminster. At the moment, however, the polls from Athens are being studied by every politico from the Prime Minister down. How Greece votes on the 25 January could determine the result of our election. If anti-austerity Syriza triumphs, the eurozone crisis will move from a chronic phase into another acute one. For the second election in a row, the backdrop to a British poll and possible coalition negotiation would be talk of debt defaults and bank runs, as Athens struggles with the eurozone straitjacket. Syriza does not want Greece to leave the euro. But it does want the ‘fiscal