Cameron finally has a coherent Europe policy - but does his party want to...
The PM is inching towards a sceptical but engaged role in Europe. But his MPs won't be bought off. After the umpteen crisis summits that have dominated Brussels-night life, last week's meeting of EU...
View ArticleUBS slashes 10,000 jobs at it streamlines its ailing investment arm
Swiss bank seeks a new trajectory. Swiss banking titan UBS has announced plans to cut 16 per cent of its 64,000 workforce to slim down its investment banking arm. The restructuring is expected to...
View ArticleBridget Riley wins the Sikkens Prize for her work in colour
Dutch prize recognizes the monochrome painter’s more colourful achievements.Bridget Riley, one of Britain’s most acclaimed modern painters, was this week awarded the 2012 Sikkens Prize, an award...
View ArticleFrance: A licence to rape?
A lenient gang-rape verdict has prompted outcry and a debate on France's inadequate response to rape. The French media's ambivalence towards rape victims also needs to be examined.There seems to be a...
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First vertical farm opens in Singapore
Nine stories of greens.Channel News Asia's Olivia Siong writes about the opening of what appears to be the world's first commercial vertical farm: The technique uses aluminium towers that are as tall...
View ArticleWhy the Tories are wrong to hope for a Thatcher-style poll recovery
Unlike Thatcher in the 1980s, the current Conservative Party does not enjoy the advantage of a divided left. Having trailed Labour in every poll since 18 March (three days before George Osborne's...
View ArticlePast and future
The civil war in Syria war threatens to do irreparable damage to the country's archaeological treasures.When Unesco described the Great Mosque of Aleppo as "one of the most beautiful mosques in the...
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BuzzFeed doxxes the Hurricane Sandy twitter troll
This time, the critics are silent.Yesterday, one twitterer with a relatively sizeable following was single-handedly responsible for a number of false – and some might say dangerous – rumours about...
View ArticleMorning Call: pick of the papers
The ten must-read comment pieces from this morning's papers. 1. The market can’t deliver growth without government help (Daily Telegraph) Wealth doesn’t create itself – the government must champion...
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Heseltine's wisdom exposes Osborne's limits
The former Conservative deputy prime minister condemns the government's lack of a growth strategy.When George Osborne commissioned Michael Heseltine to produce a review of economic policy, he must have...
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The Commission on Living Standards report in 9 graphs
Visual aids. Wages have stagnated Even as productivity grew Inflation also eats away far more at the incomes of those who struggle to buy essentials Non-wage sources of household income have failed to...
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In the Frame: And finally...
Tom Humberstone's new observational comic strip for the New Statesman. Click to zoom into a larger image.
View ArticleDisney buys Lucasfilm: Five questions answered
Lucas passes the baton.Director George Lucas has sold his Lucasfilms production company, responsible for the Star Wars franchise, to The Walt Disney company . We answer five questions on the deal. What...
View ArticleThe piano competition of the future?
Honens International Piano Competition 2012 announces its search for not just a pianist, but a "complete artist".“It should be a requirement for entry to the Honens Piano Competition that you’ve had at...
View Article“He will have his work cut out in convincing ministers of this new approach”
TUC secretary on Heseltine.“He will have his work cut out in convincing ministers of this new approach” Brendan Barber, general secretary of the TUC, gives his support to a new report from Lord...
View ArticleAnother energy shambles from the coalition
Lib Dem energy secretary Ed Davey and Tory energy minister John Hayes go to war over wind farms. On the day that Michael Heseltine's growth report called for the government to adopt a "definitive and...
View ArticleAnti-wind-farm candidate James Delingpole pulls out of Corby by-election, as...
Delingpole cites "stunningly successful campaign"; others cite desire to avoid losing £500 deposit.Harry Cole of Guy Fawkes' blog has a quote from anti-green journalist James Delingpole, announcing his...
View ArticleQ&A with Jon Gibbins
According to the International Energy Agency, the world may have 250 years of gas at current levels. What lies behind this increased estimate? Principally, unconventional gas such as shale gas and...
View ArticleGP: "It is too difficult for ill people to claim benefits"
"The government withholding funds from sick and needy people through a bureaucratic claim system."The British Medical Journal has a piece from a GP, Dr Anne Dyson, who writes that it is too difficult...
View ArticlePMQs review: Miliband struggles to convince
The Labour leader failed to get the better of Cameron over the EU budget.With Lib Dem and Tory ministers at war over wind farms, Michael Heseltine attacking the government for its lack of a growth...
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