And the winner is: Mr Credible
29 Mar 2010
We probably did not need a survey to tell us this, but the issues that most concern voters now are very different from those that were at the … » more
Mar 2010: The Osborne Enigma
Business and finance
Budget 2010: fiddling at the edges
29 Mar 2010
Expectations going into this budget were that policy changes of macroeconomic significance were unlikely. Relative to those already limited expectations, this budget under-delivered. The sum total of 45 specific new … » more
The reality and rhetoric of deficit reduction
29 Mar 2010
At the heart of the coming election is a paradox. The main political parties spar endlessly about how, and when, to correct the UK government’s financial deficit. Yet, despite all … » more
Budget 2010: Ducking the fiscal challenge
28 Mar 2010
The Budget is roughly neutral. The overall effect is a marginal net fiscal loosening for 10/11 (£1.4bn, 0.1 per cent of GDP), with a marginal net tightening (less than £1bn, … » more
Building banks that don't go bust
28 Mar 2010
A financial crisis is marked by no one willing to swap real things for paper today because they aren’t sure the paper will swap for real things tomorrow. The paper … » more
Simpler tax? Let the Lords in on the Act
28 Mar 2010
It is fundamental to the effectiveness of tax law that the policy underlying tax legislation is accurately and transparently translated into statute in a clear and unambiguous way. However, successive … » more
The human legacy of the debt-fuelled boom
28 Mar 2010
As we approach another general election, a ‘Clintonism’ still holds true; the number one priority in politics at the moment is ‘the economy, stupid’. The Bank of England’s debt statistics … » more
Conservatives
A shadow economy
29 Mar 2010
Economic policy is often an important determinant of general election outcomes, not least when they are held against the backdrop of faltering economic performance. In May 1979, following the ‘Winter … » more
Dyson’s clean-up leaves the Tories with a bit of a vacuum
29 Mar 2010
In spelling out his ‘new economic model’ in recent months, the Shadow Chancellor George Osborne has gone as far to say that he has changed his view on the role … » more
The Osborne Enigma
29 Mar 2010
David Cameron and his right-hand man and election supremo George Osborne are about to lead their troops into battle in what is expected to be one of the most closely … » more
The New Tories may be a puzzle but the pieces do make up a new kind of Britain
29 Mar 2010
Contemporary Conservatism is a puzzle for scholars of political ideology. It lacks the ideological certainties of Thatcherism but at the same time does not mark a clear, decisive victory for … » more
The new model Britain with more questions than answers
29 Mar 2010
The Conservatives’ New Economic Model: Eight Benchmarks for Britain subtitled ‘Year for Change’ with a foreword by George Osborne the Shadow Chancellor aims to provide an alternative to the current … » more
Defence
The generals who took the white out of New Labour's wash
29 Mar 2010
The Chilcot Inquiry seems to be a very expensive luxury. There have already been two inquiries into the Iraq War. In August 2003, the Hutton Inquiry’s investigations of the death … » more
Operation Moshtarak: has the light finally dawned?
29 Mar 2010
How goes Operation Moshtarak — the British and US-led campaign in Helmand? It seems to have gone (relatively) quiet in Nad-Ali and Marje; ISAF commanders in Afghanistan are ‘cautiously optimistic’ … » more
Rank nonsense
29 Mar 2010
With a fleet of admirals, more generals than we have battalions, more air chief marshals than we have fighter squadrons, Britain has relatively more top brass than the US...
The reality and future of cyberwar
29 Mar 2010
Conflicts in cyberspace are a reality: elements of any political, economic and military conflict now take place in and around the internet. Not surprisingly cyberwar has become a buzzword in … » more
Defence cannot afford to score these own goals
29 Mar 2010
The publication of the Government’s Defence Strategy for Acquisition Reform in February 2010 could be viewed with some justification as just one more episode in a long-running soap opera marked … » more
Energy and climate
Ofgem ‘discovers’ how not to meet EU carbon targets
29 Mar 2010
We follow up January 2010’s special theme on energy policy with a discussion of the findings of Ofgem’s final report from ‘Project Discovery’ (03/02/10). Discovery was aimed at examining the … » more
Tory energy policy: going red while going green
28 Mar 2010
Last time there was a Conservative government the energy policy agenda was all about privatising and liberalising — the state was to withdraw, and private business was alone fit to … » more
Business and finance
The black mark on the electoral register
28 Mar 2010
Antonia Tildesley reports on a Parliamentary Brief enquiry into the organisation which represents the guardians of our voting system
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March 2010 edition
Peter Snowdon examines George Osborne's role in the ups and downs of the modern Conservatives; plus features on Tory economic policy and defence, and online only material on the the first budget of 2010