Ben Ansell dissects the nonsense that is the supposed new elite: "Absolutely core to the intellectual and political manifestations of 'populism' is the idea that the 'people' are not being listened to. That someone else is calling the shots. An unrepresentative elite. Whether that elite is in the political system itself, or as with the 'new woke elite', largely outside of the political system but somehow responsible for policies and politics, varies across populist arguments. But in common there is an elision of differences among the people and an exaggeration of differences between the people and whichever precise elite is ...
In February, the Women and Equalities Minister Kemi Badenoch wrote to the Equalities and Human Rights Commission to ask them to consider the current definition of "sex" in the Equality Act. It should not be a surprise that the EHRC replied this week identifying eight areas, ranging from book clubs to sport to access to single sex spaces in which amending the Equality Act so that sex means what they call "biological sex" would bring "greater legal clarity." It is not an exaggeration to say that this, if implemented, would have a massive impact on trans people's ability to live ...
The latest edition of my weekly political polling round-up, The Week in Polls, is out. As it says: Welcome to this week's edition, taking a look at perhaps the most over-looked finding in opinion polling, even though it's about a topic that generates an awful lot of commentary. Find out more by reading this edition of The Week in Polls here, and you can sign up below to receive future editions direct to your email inbox:
This tune is a medieval French carol, Noël Nouvelet, which is a staple of the King's College Festival of Nine Lessons and Carols. It's also known in English, and somehow less impressive, as Sing We Now of Christmas. But the words here, with their echoes of John Barleycorn, come from the 20th century hymn book. They were written by John Macleod Campbell Crum and published in 1928. As it's a hymn, the parallels between the coming of spring and the Resurrection are made explicit. Others in this period found consolation in a wider sense that the lost of the Western ...
Sat, 13:24: RT @BSFA: 🚀 guest of honour interview: Kari Sperring interviewed by Juliet McKenna. https://t.co/ak8Cfelg29 Sat, 18:28: The Best of Ian�McDonald https://t.co/iCfsjFQUMz Sat, 19:18: Won by Unraveller, by @FrancesHardinge. https://t.co/Pnm99H8GAo Sat, 19:22: Hooray! Got my vote. https://t.co/8EAUgvB3wO https://t.co/e75PFqBxHn Sat, 19:25: Hooray! Another one I voted for. https://t.co/fs7h8RMhvS https://t.co/FxxHq9KSS1 Sat, 19:28: RT @BSFA: And the award for Best Artist goes to: Alyssa Williams - a wonderful remote acceptance speech! https://t.co/OiGEDHRZ3F Sat, 19:32: RT @BSFA: And the award for best novel goes to... ... ... ... Adrian Tchaikovsky https://t.co/gWHGbyBebE Sat, 20:51: Aliette de Bodard and Rob Wilkins after winning their BSFA ...
USA America's looking glass politics dominated the news agenda again this week. Donald Trump is not a perp. He is a victim. And he is exploiting his victimhood to the maximum political advantage. The ex-president has re-galvanised his base with classic hyperbolic claims about Democratic witch hunts. The sad thing is that in the case of this week's indictment – the first of a past or present American president – he may actually be right. The office of District Attorney for South Manhattan is an elected one, and Alvin Bragg won the vote on the back of a promise to ...
We all suspected it, but now it has been confirmed, the Guardian reports that the Home Office has admitted it has no evidence to back one of the key justifications for its crackdown on small boat crossings. The paper says that as home secretary in 2021, Priti Patel told parliament that "70% of individuals on small boats are single men who are effectively economic migrants". In December last year, with the number of boat arrivals continuing to increase, her successor, Suella Braverman, backed the assertion, saying to MPs: "There is considerable evidence that people are coming here as economic migrants, ...
We have recently received concerns from residents about a number of defects in the road surface of Bellefield Avenue. We have reported this to the City Council's Roads Maintenance Partnership requesting repairs.
