What is the point of a Labour government? This is a question traditionally asked after Labour governments lose office. But it’s also a question asked while Labour governments are in office. And, sometimes, even when they still only recently arrived in office. For a Labour prime minister to announce cuts in aid and development spending to increase spending on the military is one … [Read more...] about What are Labour governments for? The aid issue
UK
Irish neutrality comes under question
It is gob smacking that the Dáil has yet to appoint any committees to scrutinise government in the sort of detail that is particularly necessary at a time in European history when the tectonic plates of international relations are shifting so radically. I cannot think of any time after civil war when the opposition in the south effectively went on strike and refused to do their … [Read more...] about Irish neutrality comes under question
The UK needs a reformed second chamber
Nicola Sturgeon has announced that she won’t be standing in next year’s Holyrood election. Most of the other remaining ‘class of ‘99’ MSPs, who have sat in Holyrood since it reopened, have said the same. Whatever Sturgeon does next with her wealth of experience and knowledge of Scottish affairs, she won’t be going to the Other Place as the House of Lords is sometimes … [Read more...] about The UK needs a reformed second chamber
Trump’s negotiation tactics: a business mindset in a diplomatic world
The recent public confrontation between US President Donald Trump and Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy in the Oval Office has highlighted the complex interplay between national interests and foundational principles in international negotiations. This incident underscores the challenges that arise when immediate strategic interests overshadow enduring commitments to … [Read more...] about Trump’s negotiation tactics: a business mindset in a diplomatic world
Insurgent, disruptive or flailing Labour?
When key Labour advisers, and the prime minister himself, are throwing around consultancy-speak words like disruption and insurgency then it’s clear the government has a deep problem. It doesn’t actually know what it's there for, let alone how to be popular – and the feeble, ever narrower repetition of the word ‘growth’, as growth stalls, is not helping. Keir Starmer told his … [Read more...] about Insurgent, disruptive or flailing Labour?