It is unlikely that we will see a by-election of such wider (potential) consequence again for a very long time. And the people of Makerfield will probably tell you that’s a big relief.
The entire system has become swollen, costly and damaging to growth and contains a fundamental mismatch of incentives. Indeed, even the judges themselves haven’t held back from expressing their frustration with the system.
If 16 and 17-year-olds are deserving of the franchise and capable of choosing, the state should start from that assumption. In that world, internet curfews for almost adults make little sense. But if being online in the evening imperils them, then keep harmonising things around age 18.
Conservatives have no wish to return Britain to some imaginary era of unchecked prejudice. Rather, the aim is to restore the soundest parts of our liberal tradition: liberty for the individual, equality before the law, equality of opportunity, not outcomes, and the right to hold unfashionable opinions
There are so many opportunities to Brexit if only we would cut tax rates and remove damaging regulations. Going back in would be ruinously expensive and would lower our growth rate with all the extra regulatory and tax burdens it would impose.
By reforming the guidance that currently paralyses our frontline, we can restore the confidence of our police officers. True anti-racism in policing should not be hesitation, but confidence that when the police act, they do so with the full, unbiased weight of the law behind them.
Some people think that his party is a personality cult. But that gets it backwards. The real problem with Big Nige is that if he didn’t have such a firm grip on Reform, it would fall apart.
As patient and committed nationalists, the pursuit of independence will infect the decision-making of ministers for the foreseeable, but the general perception in Welsh political circles is the lack of ambition Plaid seem to have in sharp contrast to their campaign rhetoric.
The next right-wing government needs to end the presumption that officials’ every need must be accommodated, forcing departments to record who is working when, and making clear that the most senior civil servants are paid to be available when government needs them.
Today’s powder-keg Britain demands focus on resolving today’s problems. Social conditions in 1948 are irrelevant. The public wants to be on the side of Police officers. For the country’s sake, the Police need to stay present.
Conservatives have been eager to champion startups, small businesses, AI firms and tech entrepreneurs, but philanthropists who want to give back to their local communities are often welcome behind closed doors yet rarely backed at the national level.
The Russian state is – probably – heading towards a reckoning. But it is a fool’s errant to predict when and where that might be, or what it may look like.
Most bizarrely, Brits believe the NHS generates a 34 per cent profit but It is, of course, not profitable in any way. And its sacred nature generates a consensus that anything else would be a moral transgression. That attitude pervades throughout public services.
The Public Sector Equality Duty has been a complete disaster. It’s long past time that we restore equality before the law in its place.