Opinion

This Christmas a collective truce seems to have been put in place by friends and family across the country. Like the troops around the Western Front of World War I it was agreed that for one day only we would put our weapons down and not mention the B word. After years of conflict there is clearly an appetite to indulge in the things that connect us rather than those which divide. And so true to my word I feel...

Sajid Javid can lay claim to the biggest Brexit faux pas of the year this week after he unveiled his post-Brexit immigration policy. In a year when the government has been found to be in contempt of parliament and the country is taking a course ruled by all experts as being the most torturous it was the Home Secretary that takes the spoils for delivering the most absurd clanger yet. Citing his parents as an example of immigration’s positives he introduced a...

A few weeks ago we all witnessed Donald Trump using the US army as part of a shameless political stunt as the mid-term elections loomed. He sent thousands of troops to border areas claiming they were there to prevent a marauding ‘caravan’ of migrants breaching the US border. Most people with more than the half dozen brain cells bouncing around under Trump’s orchestrated coiffeur knew what the game was. There was no imminent danger to the US, but flashing around...

Coming at the end of a dire year for UK retailers, the severe profit warning issued by ASOS a week before Christmas, on downgrading its sales growth target from 25 to 15%, has shocked the market. Could this be the end of consumerism? Despite the cash-flow troubles experienced by many high-street retailers, including big players such as House of Fraser and Debenhams, many market analysts thought that online-only retailers would fare better. Avoiding the costs associated with owning and managing...

The Tories have laid siege on British democracy this month as they prepare to bulldozer through a divorce at all costs. With less than 100 days to go until the UK leaves the European Union the systems and processes that have governed a supposedly free country have been disregarded as the principles of autocracy and dictatorship take hold. Enemies of the people have been denounced. Democratic processes have been circumvented. Extreme executive secrecy is in place and to top it off, the...

A Twitter thread detailing how the "Tinkerbell Theory of History" is carrying us down the road to ruin is going viral after it exposed the make-believe fantasies of Brexiteer politicians. Author Robert Saunders noted that of all the many delusions that have gripped British politics, the myth that UK prosperity depends namely on its character is perhaps the most destructive. Referring to Dominic Raab and Boris Johnson, among others, he noted how "pluck and determination" and the "story of the underdog" has...

The great survivor has done it again. Theresa May is still prime minister and she’s still leading her troops on the long march towards Brexit. But there are no spoils of victory for May to enjoy. Her deal still won’t pass the House of Commons and the EU has categorically refused to renegotiate. There are still mutineers in the Tory ranks, ready with a blindfold and a cigarette when the inevitable happens. Dominic Raab, who was Brexit secretary for all...

Theresa May has been accused of trying to "steamroller" her Brexit deal through parliament this weekend amid calls to give people the power to instruct parliament how to proceed. It's a familiar tale this time of year. With traffic jams abound the PM is facing the usual festive gridlock as she tries to drive her deal home.  But rather than take a reasonable route she has decided to take the country off-roading in spite of the numerous hazards that lie...

The largest ad agency group in the world, WPP, has announced plans to simplify its business model by closing or merging offices and cutting 3,500 jobs worldwide. The move has led to a sharp rise in the company’s share price (currently872.0), giving it a market value of around £11 billion. Should other agencies follow its lead? The announcement comes at the end of a tumultuous year for WPP, with a change of CEO and some disappointing third-quarter figures, which led...