The Spectator

Thursday

The Spectator

Barometer | 18 July 2019

From our UK edition

Mars missions When will there be a manned Mars mission? — As early as 1962, Nasa studied the practicalities of a mission to Mars, as part of its Project EMPIRE (Early Manned Planetary-Interplanetary Roundtrip Expeditions). The initial plan was to put a man on Mars by the early 1970s. However, budgetary restraints meant that the programme was limited to a flyby of Venus before being axed. — The prospect of a manned mission to Mars has been revived several times since. However, two years ago Nasa announced that it is unlikely to happen before the 2030s. Counting cups England won the cricket world cup. Which country holds the greatest number of world cups? (‘Championships’ not included.

The Spectator

Wasted lives

From our UK edition

Twenty years ago, the Scottish parliament was reconvened after a lapse of almost three centuries. The logic for devolution was clear enough: that Scotland has discrete issues, and ones that were not always solved by London government. Devolution would allow ‘Scottish solutions for Scottish problems’. There was, in Westminster, a feeling that MPs could worry less about these problems. Public health in Glasgow, previously one of the biggest problems in the UK, would be someone else’s problem. Let the MSPs see if they could do any better. The news this week should shock people on both sides of the border. Scotland has the worst rate of deaths from drugs in Europe, with numbers up by a shocking 27 per cent since 2017.

The Spectator

Portrait of the Week – 18 July 2019

From our UK edition

Home In a televised debate between the rivals for election by members of the Conservative party as their new leader (and hence prime minister), Boris Johnson said of the Irish backstop, ‘It needs to come out,’ and Jeremy Hunt said that it was ‘dead’. This was described as ‘significant’ by Dominic Grieve, who said he was ready to bring the government down rather than see a Brexit without any agreement. Theresa May, the Prime Minister, said that she would continue to sit as an MP after her resignation on 24 July. Ffordd Pen Llech in Harlech was recognised as the steepest street in the world, at 37.45 per cent beating Baldwin Street in Dunedin, New Zealand, at only 35 per cent.

The Spectator

to 2414: Matchplay

From our UK edition

Conrad HILTON (2), Michael WILDING (37), Mike TODD (24), Eddie FISHER (3), Richard BURTON (30), John WARNER (31) and Larry FORTENSKY (40) were all married to ELIZABETH TAYLOR (4A/17).   First prize Frank Whiteman, Eastbourne, East Sussex Runners-up Isaac Thompson, Urmston, Manchester; Mrs E.

Friday

The Spectator

2019 finalists – The North East

From our UK edition

  Conductive Transfers has created a new way for printing stretchable electronics on to textiles, making wearable technology cheaper and more efficient. Its uses are everything from saving lives through ECG-monitored garments, to cutting emissions through Elastatherm heater technology.   Ilke Homes is a modular housing manufacturer using precision-engineering in the same way that cars or aerospace parts are made. Each module is assembled on-site to create high-quality, modern and beautiful homes that are fully guaranteed by mortgage lenders.   Kinrise, which translates as community rising, is focused on creating spaces that inspire and enable.

The Spectator

2019 finalists – The Midlands

From our UK edition

  School Space is an 'Airbnb for schools', with the mission of solving the education funding crisis. It works with schools to rent out their facilities in the evenings, weekends and school holidays, generating them revenue and transforming the school into a community hub.    Igloo Vision is a shared virtual reality company, taking 360° content and putting it in a shared space that whole teams can use. Its virtual spaces are perfect for events and experiences, as well as collaborative teamwork, immersive training and data visualisation.   ReBOUND is on a mission to change the way retailers process returns. It’s called reverse logistics: an integrated user platform which manages the entire return process.

The Spectator

2019 finalists – The North West and Wales

From our UK edition

  Howz is a smart home system designed to help older people stay independent for longer. Howz charts a person’s routine by machine learning and uses this to detect short-term anomalies and long-term changes, letting them and their family know via mobile and voice apps.   Sky Medical Technology is a medical devices company looking to help clinicians solve some of healthcare’s most pressing challenges. It has developed geko: a device that uses innovative platform technology to help prevent and treat a range of acute medical conditions.   tickr was born out of the urge to help solve the world’s biggest problems while helping millennial and first-time investors plan for their future.

The Spectator

2019 finalists – Scotland and Northern Ireland

From our UK edition

  Delta DNA is a data platform for video-game makers, allowing them to utilise user experience. It provides the tools needed to manage the game economy effectively, in one place, with vast industry experience embedded directly in its tech.    TVSquared gives advertisers proof of performance across linear, OTT and VOD channels. Whether campaigns are local, national or global, it provides business-ready insights for advertisers and marketers to shape their work to best effect.   WFS Technologies uses wireless automation, Internet of Things and cloud computing networks to improve subsea operations. Its technology improves management of offshore energy assets, increase production, reduce cost and reduce risk.

The Spectator

2019 finalists – London and The South

From our UK edition

  AdviseInc provides data analytics and insight to healthcare markets to help NHS Trusts deliver the best value for money for patients.    Beyond Life wants to digitise and democratise the business of bereavement. By launching innovative products, such as online wills and memorials, and bringing thousands of funeral directors online, Beyond Life is facilitating a fairer last journey for families across the UK.    Boxpark creates pop-up malls with an emphasis on sustainability and making the best use of space. In Shoreditch, Wembley and Croydon it has created immersive food, drink and leisure experiences which embody the company’s ‘eat, drink and play’ philosophy.

The Spectator

Full transcript: Jeremy Hunt’s Andrew Neil interview

From our UK edition

AN: Jeremy Hunt - like Theresa May you voted to Remain. Like Theresa May you’re a Tory technocrat. Like Theresa May you voted for her Brexit deal, three times. Why would the Tories want more of the same when it’s hardly been a golden age for them? JH: Because, Andrew, I am a totally different person and I have a totally different plan. And I did vote three times for Theresa May’s deal and I’ll tell you exactly why: because I wanted to leave the European Union as quickly as possible. And had we voted to do that, as indeed did Boris Johnson and Jacob Rees-Mogg and many other people, we would have left the EU by now and I think we would have been in a better position as a country. AN: But a lot of Tories look at you and they say, “We tried you.

The Spectator

Full transcript: Boris Johnson grilled by Andrew Neil

From our UK edition

AN: Boris Johnson, we’re going to talk a lot about policy, but I first want to talk about you, because for many people – including many Tories – your character, your reputation, trust in you is as big an issue as the policies you stand for. Do you accept that that’s a problem for you? BJ: No, I don’t at all. I think what people want to see is what my plans are to come out of the EU on October 31st, to get that deal done, take us beyond Brexit and unite the country. And I’ve got a lot of things that I think will be fantastic Conservative policies.

Thursday

The Spectator

Letters | 11 July 2019

From our UK edition

Crisis in Hong Kong Sir: It was inspiring to see Hong Kong protesters raising the British flag as a symbol of freedom and liberation — a vivid image of the fondness in which it is held, even more than two decades after our surrender of the territory (‘A question of liberty’, 6 July). However, raising the colonial flag in the legislative chamber was no mere nostalgia but also a challenge to our government. Are we going to stand by today and betray that trust? The British government might be wary of criticising Beijing’s overreach in Hong Kong in case China tightens the screws further against ‘foreign interference in internal affairs’. But that horse has long since bolted.

The Spectator

Barometer | 11 July 2019

From our UK edition

Ode to all sorts Brexit party MPs were likened to Nazis for turning their backs on a recital of ‘Ode to Joy’, the EU’s anthem. Yet Beethoven’s melody itself has one association which liberal-minded folk might find unsavoury — between 1965 and 1979 it served as the national anthem of Ian Smith’s Rhodesia, using the words: ‘Rise, oh voices of Rhodesia,/ God may we Thy bounty share./ Give us strength to face all danger,/ And where challenge is, to dare.’ It was during this period, in 1972, that the Council of Europe adopted the tune as its own anthem. It then became the European Community’s anthem in 1985. Police numbers Boris Johnson promised to spend £1 billion on an extra 20,000 police officers.

The Spectator

For the few

From our UK edition

In some alternative universe the Labour party, as under Tony Blair in the mid 1990s, is busily preparing for government, its confidence boosted by a massive lead in the polls over a shambolic Tory administration. Back in this one, however, Labour is crumbling even faster than the divided and unpopular Conservatives. Remarkably, while the Tories have seen a collapse in their share of the vote to just 22 per cent, according to one poll this week, Labour has sunk to just 20 per cent. Just how it succeeded in throwing away such a remarkable opportunity to seize power is going to trouble its remaining members for decades to come.

The Spectator

Portrait of the week | 11 July 2019

From our UK edition

Home Sir Kim Darroch resigned as British ambassador to Washington after the Mail on Sunday published disobliging emails he had sent between 2017 and now, which said things like: ‘We don’t really believe this administration is going to become substantially more normal; less dysfunctional; less unpredictable; less faction-riven; less diplomatically clumsy and inept.’ In response President Donald Trump said: ‘We’re not big fans of that man.’ Next day, Trump added that he had told Theresa May, the Prime Minister, how to manage Brexit, ‘but she went her own foolish way — was unable to get it done. A disaster!’.

The Spectator

An absurd craze

From our UK edition

From ‘Keeping fat’ by Geoffrey Wheatcroft, 7 October 1978: The running craze is a symptom of our deplorable age, in particular of our obsession with health, slimness, fitness and, above all, longevity. Jogging is not only undignified but absurd. It is a confession that people feel that they lead displeasingly unhealthy lives, but are not prepared to do anything preventative, rather than remedial, about it. The answer for someone who thinks that he is overweight is to eat less for a while, not to leap around at unseemly exercises. And the way to eat less is, simply, to eat less.

Thursday

The Spectator

Letters | 4 July 2019

From our UK edition

Support for stop and search Sir: Mary Wakefield is rightly exasperated by fatuous comments over police use of stop and search (‘Stop posturing over stop and search’, 29 June). Perhaps this year there will be 200 murders of children by other children. Swamping areas with police is obviously a visible response to the problem, but gangs know there is a reluctance to stop and search and this is part of the reason for their arrogant attitude. Stop and search is street policing in the raw. It often leads to arrest, and it can be a messy, frustrating, confrontational business, even when done with tact and patience. As a Met PC for 31 years — Lewisham, then Islington — I went through hundreds of pockets. Nearly all the searches were resented: who wants to be frisked?