The row over his sacking is a sign of a Party pulled in different directions by the way politics works – and by culture wars. Now a new competitor is knocking at the door.
Yes, some rises are inevitable. But they must be balanced by spending reductions elsewhere if economic policy is to be practicable and coherent.
Plus: Willetts loses at least one of his brains. Labour frets about losing Lewisham East (which it shouldn’t do). And: Morgan and Clarke, not the Brexiteers, are the real obsessives.
Wanted: a grand bargain with voters, whereby some rises at the top end are traded off for others nearer the bottom.
He stands out as a co-operative presence amidst the uncertainties of court cases, elections on the continent, and whatever negotiations may bring.
Unlike America’s, our institutions are too timid, too diffuse in their aims, and too low-risk – and are consequently staffed by the wrong people.
He makes the case for the Government’s extension, and Chris Cook of Newsnight (formerly a Willetts adviser) the case against it.
We need to be better at giving Conservative voters who work in the public sector the support they deserve.
The Chancellor’s instincts on pensions are right. He favours more freedom and responsibility, and has acted accordingly.
They have been handed a raw deal during the course of the pandemic. Investing in them is an investment in our future.