All the latest analysis of the day's news and stories
You might argue that the self-employed enjoy less security than the employed, so it’s fair they contribute less; you might argue that the ‘sharing economy’ is a nifty pocket-money source for hard-pressed families, and that tax grabs will swiftly kill it. But revenue-starved Chancellor Hammond will retort that all income and commerce, however novel in
The invitation for poems making the case for a national commemoration day for a person or thing of your choice brought in a varied and entertaining entry. While Alanna Blake championed the dandelion, there were also impassioned calls for days that high-five Thomas Crapper, Doris Day and the tent. I, for one, would happily celebrate
On the first Saturday in February, the people of Rome awoke to find the city covered in peculiar posters depicting a scowling Pope Francis. Underneath were written the words: Ah, Francis, you have intervened in Congregations, removed priests, decapitated the Order of Malta and the Franciscans of the Immaculate, ignored Cardinals… but where is your
The Tory rebellion over the tax hike on the self-employed isn’t abating, it is intensifying as I say in The Sun this morning. As one Cabinet Minister tells me, Tory MPs ‘left the Budget feeling a little bit concerned. They’ve seen the papers, and thought this isn’t good. After the emails and constituency stuff, there’ll
Last Wednesday, Philip Hammond made a joke at Norman Lamont’s expense by reminding the world of how John Major’s first chancellor was sacked after a negative public reaction to his budget in 1993. Hammond, one suspects, is already beginning to regret his gag as Lamont today became the latest Conservative to damn his plans to
After he left the Blues and Royals in 1981, the young Tristan Voorspuy drove a motorbike from London to Cape Town. Thus began his love of Africa. He also learnt to fly, and arranged to travel alone to Kenya from England in a single-engine aeroplane, using only a schoolboy atlas. Luckily, his brother Morvern, a
Osterley Park on the western fringes of London is a rare survival. A Robert Adam house, with splendid Adam interiors, it’s still surrounded by its Elizabethan stables, an 18th-century landscape and classical follies — in the middle of urban Hounslow. Over the past decade, this Georgian gem has been increasingly despoiled and dumbed down by
Some Budgets are historic, most are boring and a small number can be remembered as a disaster. After just a few months, Philip Hammond has managed a budget – his first – that can be placed in this last category. Economically, it made very little difference. Politically, it is shaping up to be a disaster. His Budget was supposed to have been
In an interview with the BBC last night, Nicola Sturgeon suggested that the autumn of next year would be a ‘common sense’ time to hold another referendum on Scottish independence. Which would, of course, mean voting without knowing what the terms of the Brexit would be. (Or, perhaps, whether it will really happen.) Why the haste?
On Thurday’s Question Time, there was one politician notably absent from the panel. For a second time, John McDonnell, the shadow chancellor, had to cancel his appearance — this time putting it down to train delays. And whose fault is this? Well, the Conservatives obviously — as if Labour were in power the trains would
The BBC and the secular establishment don’t make life easy for Christian MPs. When Carol Monaghan, a Catholic Scottish Nationalist MP, turned up to a Parliamentary committee last week with an Ash Wednesday cross on her forehead, both her colleagues and the Beeb treated her as if she was wearing a Halloween costume. My colleague
Theresa May’s announcement that the vote on raising National Insurance contributions for the self-employed will be delayed until after the publication of the Taylor Report in Modern Employment Practises in the autumn is presumably meant to reassure us that the government is taking seriously the many objections which have been levied against the policy in
Guy Verhofstadt thinks Brexit is a ‘disaster’, a ‘tragedy’ and a ‘catastrophe’. That verdict, from the European Parliament’s chief Brexit negotiator, won’t surprise many. But Verhofstadt has a solution to what he sees as a looming crisis for despairing Remain voters. During his interview on the Today programme this morning, he brought up the prospect of British
I was on the Question Time panel last night, and suspected that the issue of National Insurance might crop up – and that Karen Bradley, the Culture Secretary, would be sent out to defend the indefensible. Like all ministers, she has to repeat Philip Hammond’s bizarre claim that the Tories had not broken a manifesto
As Philip Hammond faces a second day of negative headlines over his decision to break a 2015 Tory manifesto pledge and raise National Insurance for the self-employed, he can take heart that the latest YouGov poll gives the Conservatives a 19-point-lead. Still, not everyone in his party is pleased. On top of the growing number of
Theresa May and Philip Hammond were in a laughing mood in the Commons on Wednesday. After a second day of dreadful headlines in the newspapers, they certainly won’t be now. The Government’s honeymoon period in the media is over – and the Chancellor’s National Insurance hike for the self-employed is entirely to blame. So far,
Liam Fox has (for a change) unfairly become the subject of much mockery this week, over his department’s plans for ‘Empire 2.0’. The name relates to the International Trade Secretary’s plot to boost trade links with African Commonwealth nations by promising developing nations that their trading relationships with the UK will not get worse after Brexit. Contrary
Perhaps the most interesting thing about the debate on the increase in National Insurance Contributions for the self-employed is that it lays bare the lie that people are happier to pay more tax to fund the NHS. In December, the Guardian reported a study that suggested that 70 per cent of people would ‘happily pay an extra
On this week’s episode, we take the Pope to task over his leadership of the Roman Catholic Church, ask whether Canada has got the right answers on drugs policy, and lament the death of spontaneity. First, Pope Francis has come under increased scrutiny in recent weeks after a controversial intervention with the ancient Order of Malta and a
This week’s Best Buys, provided by Moneyfacts, are Unsecured Personal Loans.
Think positive. Listen to your inner voice. Strive to become the best version of yourself. The only way out is through. Don’t look back. That sort of go-getting mantra underpins a multi-million-pound industry in life-coaching and self-help. And it’s all horse-manure, says the Danish psychologist Svend Brinkmann. His bracing new book Stand Firm: Resisting The Self-Improvement Craze asks
It brings a whole new meaning to ‘working from home’. New research has revealed that homeowners in one in three UK local authorities ‘earn’ more from their properties than going to work. I don’t know whether to be thrilled or depressed by this news. Although given I live north of Manchester and (not surprisingly) more
I’m very sceptical of the idea that the younger generation are more conservative than their elders, and that this makes conservatism somehow cool, which it isn’t. There have been times where the kids are more reactionary than their parents but generally only as a result of religious movements – and Britain is as atheistic as can
Philip Hammond is under pressure over his National Insurance contributions hike. More than a dozen Tory MPs have so far criticised the plans and Downing Street has refused to rule out a rethink. But the Chancellor does still have some allies; the IFS has just thrown its weight behind the plans. Here’s what its director, Paul Johnson,
As Philip Hammond faces a slew of negative headlines and fields accusations that he is a liar over his decision to backtrack on a 2015 Tory manifesto pledge and raise National Insurance for the self-employed, the Chancellor has been thrown a lifeline by the Institute of Fiscal Studies. At today’s IFS Budget briefing, Paul Johnson offered
The Chancellor has awoken to a slew of bad headlines today following his decision to row back on a 2015 Tory manifesto pledge and raise National Insurance for the self-employed. In an attempt at some damage limitation, Philip Hammond has been doing the usual post-Budget media rounds this morning. Alas his interview with Sky News didn’t
Given that Jeremy Corbyn barely seemed to notice Philip Hammond’s Budget blunder, it’s unlikely the Chancellor will be too worried about Labour’s response to the National Insurance rates row. He will be troubled, though, by the rumblings on the backbenches behind him. The prospect of a Tory revolt is now very much on the cards; 18
George Osborne was famous in Westminster when Chancellor for laying large ‘elephant traps’ for Labour using Treasury policy. He was also famous for telling everyone all about how the trap worked and where it was, before falling into it himself. When Philip Hammond came into the Treasury, it was largely accepted that the days of
If you’re a Manchester resident, you’ll be familiar with the all-singing, all-dancing, brand-spanking-new Co-op headquarters. In much the same way that London’s City Hall squats on the banks of the Thames, One Angel Square looms over Victoria Station, its solid glass bulk in stark contrast to the company’s iconic 1960s CIS Tower just over the
With the Chancellor’s Budget moving to a single event from later this year, yesterday’s final Spring Budget went out with a muffled pop rather than a bang. After announcing an improved forecast for economic growth throughout the rest of year and revealing that employment has reached a record high, the biggest personal finance changes set out will
Philip Hammond is feeling the heat this morning. This was supposed to be the ‘boring’ budget, with no headline-grabbing announcements or spending splurges. Instead, the Chancellor’s face is splashed across the front pages this morning for all the wrong reasons. And the reception for Hammond doesn’t get any warmer inside the newspapers. The Daily Mail starts
The Chancellor has chosen to invest £500m in technical education, but we shouldn’t kid ourselves that the new ‘T-levels’ will help get the UK match fit for Brexit, or prepare the UK for the 4th industrial revolution. For a start, the funding may only kick in after we have left the EU, as it starts
The beginning of March marks the start of car buying season with drivers keen to snap up a motor with the new registration plates. Some dealerships reckon interest jumps by as much as 25 per cent in new registration months. If you’re thinking about spending your cash on a new runaround, there’s a good reason
It’s fair to say that Philip Hammond hasn’t charmed Fleet Street with his Spring Budget. There is little sympathy even from newspapers inclined to agree with a Conservative assessment of how to run the economy. Broken promises are potent in politics – just ask the Liberal Democrats. The Tories made their tax lock pledge in