How many gaffes on foreign policy can Cameron credibly make?
David Cameron has been accused of making a wide number of foreign policy gaffes, though these fall into different categories.
I think there is often a plausible defence of (somewhat inconvenient) truth-telling, even if Cameron’s recent comments about Pakistan appeared off-the-cuff rather than a deliberate strategy of increased public pressure.
Beyond that, Cameron seems (laudably) interested in talking about foreign policy in a demotic and accessible way – yet seems to risk losing his grip on the details when he is shooting the breeze in this way.
China was not pleased to be cited as a reason for the Trident nuclear deterrent during the leader’s debate.
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The coalition’s cuts: three different cases
In a letter today to the Daily Telegraph, 55 established and up and coming actors protest at the closure of the UK Film Council.
The actors – including Bill Nighy, Pete Postlethwaite, Timothy Spall, Sir Ian Holm and Sophie Okonedo – say they “owe any success we have had in our acting careers, to varying degrees, to films supported by the UK Film Council.”
Yesterday, we at Touchstone blog reported on the growing campaign against the arts cuts, with artists such as Anish Kapoor and Antony Gormley protesting at the likely impact.
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How voluntary groups are being slashed
The NCVO has been encouraging voluntary sector groups to share information about the effects that they expect public spending cuts to have on their organisations:
“All of these [public spending] cuts are sure to include some significant reductions across the voluntary sector – at least one third of the sector’s income is exposed to risk. More than 700 of you have already shared information about how these cuts will affect you – if you’ve not already done so, please do spare a moment to take our quick survey or email almanac@ncvo-vol.org.uk with your stories.”
You’ll find a spreadsheet with detailed responses from the 700 groups here. Voluntary sector groups are invited to continue to contribute to the list. I spoke to the NCVO – this work is ongoing, so the list will grow. And grow.
Twitter: @NCVO
Why social housing should matter, even to Tories
There are plenty of reasons why people who could afford to leave social housing opt not to do so.
The most obvious, of course, is cost; even if you did have the resources to find yourself private accommodation, you might prefer living in social housing if it leaves you with a little extra money for food, clothes, transport, a night out and the odd holiday.
The second is the security that social housing can offer. Not every private landlord is as scrupulous as a local housing association, and the further down the price scale you go, the less security you’re likely to have. Social housing can offer considerably more peace of mind for tenants.
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Warning of double-dip recession
The threat of a double-dip recession intensified today after it emerged that Britain’s powerhouse services sector saw its growth stall last month, jeopardising hopes of a sustained recovery.
As the Bank of England prepared to announce its latest decision on interest rates tomorrow, a survey of the sector that makes up the bulk of Britain’s economic output showed that its growth slipped to its slowest since it emerged from recession a year ago.
…
“This has hugely increased the risks of a double-dip recession, perhaps even by the end of the year,” said Chris Williamson, chief economist at survey compiler Markit.
The companies surveyed – which account for about 40% of the economy – were only slightly more optimistic than in June, when Osborne’s austerity budget hammered their hopes of a swift recovery. Reflecting dwindling confidence and a slowdown in order book growth, they cut staff, casting further doubt over the private sector’s ability to provide jobs as government departments are shrunk.
Let’s build a coalition against cuts. But let’s do it properly
Tony Benn has published a letter at the Guardian, co-signed by 73 other people, saying The time to organise resistance is now.
Given the continuing Tory assaults on our society, today on people who live in social housing and women trying to escape from domestic abuse, under the guise of trying to save the economy, this is welcome but unsurprising. I’d be more worried if Tony Benn wasn’t trying to organise a resistance.
But other than signing letters what does this actually mean? And let’s avoid the pitfalls shall we?
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Phillipa Stroud has left the building. I repeat…
Remember Phillipa Stroud?
The ‘rising Tory star’, who the Observer alleged as having ran prayer sessions to ‘cure’ gay people, is head of the Centre for Social Justice think-tank.
She was also the party’s candidate for the Sutton and Cheam.
No longer.
Only two months after the election Ms Stroud has put her £650,000 five-bedroom house up for sale.
The Sutton Guardian says her career ‘is really going places’ and adds:
Four months before the 2010 election – which she lost to Liberal Democrat MP Paul Burstow – she bought a stylish property on Mulgrave Road and moved in with her husband and three children.
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During the election Mrs Stroud vehemently hit out at those who suggested she did not live in the constituency.
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A neighbour, who did not want to be named, said: “It does make you cynical. When I first met her she said she ‘loved the house’.”
Oh dear. Well, at least she has the money to move around all the time.
Phillipa Stroud previously stood for election in 2005 at Birmingham Ladywood. Then she came third with 10.6% of the votes.
Look out people, Phillipa Stroud might be moving somewhere near you.
Does China threaten the environment?
If China did not exist as an excuse to avoid tackling Climate Change it would have to be invented. In fact it has been invented, in a way.
I cannot deny that China belches out a colossal volume of pollutants, but it is currently lifting people out of poverty in the most environmentally friendly way possible.
If the Copenhagen talks of last year overtly confirmed the West’s impotence in the face of rising emissions, the evidence of China’s efforts are a little more subtle.
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Govt cuts scheme to help women from abuse
“A scheme to protect women from domestic abuse by removing violent partners from the family home is being scrapped by the Government as part of its drive to cut public spending.
Under the so-called “go orders” planned for England and Wales, senior police would have been given the power to act instantly to safeguard families they considered at threat.
Violent men would have been banned from their homes for up two weeks, giving their victims the chance to seek help to escape abuse. But Theresa May, the Home Secretary, has decided to halt the scheme, which was due to be piloted this autumn and be rolled out nationwide next year.
Plans for Domestic Violence Protection Orders – modelled on similar schemes in Switzerland and Austria. – passed into law in April. Although they were championed by the former home secretary Alan Johnson, they received the support of all main political parties.
They were aimed at intervening in cases where police were worried about violent behaviour within a household, but did not have enough evidence to bring a criminal charge.
An officer of inspector rank or above would have the power to order a perpetrator from a property and the immediate area for up to 14 days. They were to be piloted in the West Midlands and Wiltshire from October and introduced nationally next year.
Breach of the orders could have led to criminal prosecution for contempt, potentially leading to a jail sentence.
Supporters argued that that allowed women to stay in their homes rather than flee to a friend’s home, or a refuge, to escape their abuser. Although 750,000 incidents are reported to the police each year, fewer than one-third of them result in criminal charges.”
It still doesn’t make any sense
So, Wikileaks dumps a load of documents revealing what we all knew – that we’re losing an unwinnable war, using extremely unsavoury and hyperviolent methods in the process. We learn that we little understand the enemy and can, without too much effort, surmise that we have no clear plan for victory.
Further, we get final confirmation that we’re rubbing out hundreds of civilians per year, possibly thousands – our governments can’t guess how many men, women and children our armed forces are killing and frankly, they show little sign of caring.
When questioned, their stock response is that our deranged enemies kill far more than we do. This none-too-sly evasion is generally received as if it were a fair point, rather than a travesty.
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» Revealed: govt to restrict abortion counselling despite Nadine Dorries vote
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» To win London, Ken Livingstone has to step outside his comfort zone
» This trade agreement with India will destroy thousands of lives
» UK debt hasn’t hit £1 trillion – mostly because of QE
» The benefits of being a “burden” on society
» Today’s economic figures will simply confirm UK’s “lost decade”
» Have Labour realised the election is more than three years away?
» Violence in the office
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» The world is entering the third phase of the crisis, warns ILO
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