Today’s Edition – 5th October 2023

Cameron derails Sunak on HS2
The PM’s big day was spoiled by a predecessor who will have known exactly what he was doing.

Cameron derails Sunak on HS2
The PM’s big day was spoiled by a predecessor who will have known exactly what he was doing.

Looming hung parliament will be death knell for the Tories

In every respect, the shabby Manchester assembly proclaimed the imminent demise of the Tories as a political force.

Conservative women are the ones with all the ideas – and the balls – to take on Labour

Where have all the Tory men gone? Either exhausted or hunting for new jobs for when they lose the election.

US Congress in chaos following McCarthy’s ousting
There is no obvious successor to oversee the House Republican majority. And the future of funding for Ukraine is equally uncertain.

The Reaction Podcast: Mick Ryan on the future of war
This week on the Reaction Podcast, Iain Martin is joined by Mick Ryan, leading strategist and retired major general from the Australian Army.

Macron’s rivals are taking stock

A rare calm between storms in French politics is allowing Macron’s competition to plot their next move.

Labour’s biggest test yet is looming

In just two days time, Scottish voters in the Rutherglen and Hamilton West Constituency will cast their vote in a crunch by-election.

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Columnists

Sunak’s first party conference speech as PM and Tory leader looks set to be his last
Expectations of the Conservatives are low, almost despairing – hence the flat atmosphere in Manchester.

Ryder Cup reveals the odd relationship between crowds and sport
The tiffy interactions between the players and the crowd at the Ryder Cup provided much unintentional comedy.

The decline of the family has exacerbated every social ill
To fight crime, we need to give youngsters a proper route to socialisation. And the family is the most powerful social antibiotic.

Fox is finished but GB News has a future if it grows up
The channel’s managers need to find a better balance between respectable recruits and the lunatic wing it courts.

A teenage crime wave is sounding alarm bells across England
The West Yorkshire market town of Ossett is not alone in facing a crime wave in which a majority of the culprits are of school age.

Not so electrifying: private sales of electric cars are falling
Those buying electric as their main car with their own money are a very small minority.

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World

Conservatives need a conservative foreign policy
Many small-c conservatives are still running with an approach to global affairs defined by their opponents.

Rutherglen is a must win by-election for Labour

A defeat for the SNP on Thursday would constitute a humiliating confirmation of its slide.

Ferry fiasco update: only seven years late
Yet more delays prove that Clyde shipbuilding is well and truly dead.

Be honest with the public: mass migration is going to continue and grow

Rapid and rising migration is driven by climate change, poverty, and conflict. A sharp reduction in these three push factors is not on the horizon.

More problems mount for SNP ahead of crunch by-election
A heady cocktail of internal disagreements and dud figures is the last thing Humza Yousaf needs leading up to next week.
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US Congress in chaos following McCarthy’s ousting
There is no obvious successor to oversee the House Republican majority. And the future of funding for Ukraine is equally uncertain.
Weekend

No punches pulled in Dead Man Walking at the Met
American composer Jake Heggie’s masterpiece raises monumental issues – but will it rise to the challenge of the Lincoln Center?

Word Watch: Concerns
Since the turn of the century, it’s been fascinating to observe how common singular nouns have – for no apparent reason – become plural.

The last untold story of the Falklands War
Giga Watt turns his eye from energy to military history.

Renters are at the mercy of a Wild West housing market

Negotiating with London landlords has long been fraught but in the past year, the market has become unmanageable – and not just in the capital.

Medea in Madrid misses the mark
This performance reminded one of a phrase from the ruthless Glasgow Alhambra: “Couldn’t act for toffee.”
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