Category Archives: Politics
-
Mark Simmonds’s resignation highlights the unrealistic expectations we have of our MPs
Leave a commentAugust 14, 2014 by Paul Goldsmith
Mark Simmonds, the MP for Boston and Skegness in Lincolnshire and the Foreign Office Minister for Africa, announced this week …
Continue reading -
Universities UK tuition fee impact figures should lead to a discussion about what a university education is for
Leave a commentAugust 12, 2014 by Paul Goldsmith
So Universities UK published a report recently that is the first proper attempt to analyse the effect of raising university …
Continue reading -
Victim impact statements – no place in a democracy except for rehabilitation
Leave a commentAugust 11, 2014 by Paul Goldsmith
There is a reason that victims are not allowed to be the judge or the jury. Take me for instance, …
Continue reading -
Nick Clegg and the politics of border controls.
Leave a commentAugust 10, 2014 by Paul Goldsmith
How can a proper immigration control system exist in his country that counts and checks the people coming in but …
Continue reading -
Dear George Galloway – what would happen if I go to ‘Israel-free’ Bradford?
4August 9, 2014 by Paul Goldsmith
Dear George I was wondering if you could help me with a problem that I have with the practicalities of …
Continue reading -
Amos Oz and the leap of faith that may be required to secure Israel’s future
Leave a commentAugust 8, 2014 by Paul Goldsmith
Over the past few days four people whom I respect for their intellect, genuine interest in current affairs and lack …
Continue reading -
5 thoughts on tonight’s Scottish Independence debate
Leave a commentAugust 5, 2014 by Paul Goldsmith
1 The general view was that this was an excellent debate, particularly in the first hour when the candidates were …
Continue reading -
GDP being back where it was is not a ‘recovery’. Investment needs to recover too.
Leave a commentAugust 5, 2014 by Paul Goldsmith
About a fortnight ago the government announced triumphantly that the economy had fully recovered from the recession. To illustrate this …
Continue reading -
Balls says most of us are worse off than in 2010, the Tories’ response is simple yet probably effective
Leave a commentAugust 4, 2014 by Paul Goldsmith
In a speech the other day Ed Balls decided to channel that famous leftie Ronald Reagan when he asked the …
Continue reading -
Whole of life health and social care insurance or “Death tax”? Worth a debate
Leave a commentAugust 3, 2014 by Paul Goldsmith
Two years’ ago, having supported Andrew Lansley’s reforms, David Cameron lost his bottle in the face of opposition from health …
Continue reading -
Flat tax flattened
Leave a commentAugust 2, 2014 by Paul Goldsmith
Amusingly, Oliver Letwin, one of David Cameron’s closest advisors, has been reported by the Daily Mirror as having suggested that …
Continue reading -
To ‘win’ from here, Israel needs to play a different game
2August 1, 2014 by Paul Goldsmith
As a Liberal Zionist (if you want to know what that is, read here and then for a post-Gaza liberal …
Continue reading -
Why tax the poor to make our high streets nicer?
Leave a commentJuly 28, 2014 by Paul Goldsmith
I grew up in a small town north west of London called Northwood. The high street used to be a …
Continue reading -
I hope David Ward genuinely believes what he is saying and isn’t just doing it for votes
Leave a commentJuly 27, 2014 by Paul Goldsmith
This is going to sound strange, but if someone is going to be anti-Israeli, or even anti-Semitic, I would prefer …
Continue reading -
Ed Miliband’s greatest achievement – we still have one Labour Party
Leave a commentJuly 26, 2014 by Paul Goldsmith
Ed Miliband’s greatest achievement as the leader of an opposition party that was just battered at a General Election has …
Continue reading -
Election watch – Chris Philp vs Emily Benn in Croydon South
Leave a commentJuly 25, 2014 by Paul Goldsmith
I wonder what Conservative Parliamentary candidate Chris Philp was thinking when he first heard that he would be standing against …
Continue reading -
Haringey Council should invoice Ed Balls for some of the £600,000 they have had to pay Sharon Shoesmith
Leave a commentJuly 24, 2014 by Paul Goldsmith
There is a good case for Labour Shadow chancellor Ed Balls contributing out of his own pocket to Sharon Shoesmith’s …
Continue reading -
Why I read whatever Owen Jones writes (and you should too)
Leave a commentJuly 23, 2014 by Paul Goldsmith
I met one of my heroes last night He’s about 30 years old, looks a lot younger, and I disagree …
Continue reading -
There is no solution to the Arab-Israeli conflict if we don’t negotiate with Hamas
1July 22, 2014 by Paul Goldsmith
I feel that whenever I write about Israel I need to declare an interest. I am Jewish, I am the …
Continue reading -
MH17 – will Putin blink?
Leave a commentJuly 21, 2014 by Paul Goldsmith
There are two explanations for the missile being fired that shot down Malaysian Airlines flight MH17 on Thursday. One is …
Continue reading -
Gove’s removal means the election was put above education
5July 18, 2014 by Paul Goldsmith
During his time as Education Secretary, Michael Gove would often quote a passage of Machiavelli: ‘There is nothing more difficult, …
Continue reading -
A “No” vote will leave the West Lothian question unanswered
Leave a commentJuly 17, 2014 by Paul Goldsmith
When the “No” campaign aren’t spending their time pointing out the actual consequences of the Scots voting for independence (called …
Continue reading -
Gove’s removal was correct cowardice
Leave a commentJuly 16, 2014 by Paul Goldsmith
The big news in the education sphere in the Cabinet reshuffle yesterday was the moving of Michael Gove from Education …
Continue reading -
The ‘hidden voters’ could make a mockery of the opinion polls in the Scottish referendum
Leave a commentJuly 15, 2014 by Paul Goldsmith
Two months before the 2011 Scottish Assembly election, opinion polls put the Labour Party 15% ahead of Alex Salmond’s SNP. …
Continue reading -
Data Retention and Investigation Powers Bill – ‘Then they came for me…..’
Leave a commentJuly 13, 2014 by Paul Goldsmith
Not being a fan of censorship of any form, my thoughts when I heard about the fast-tracking of the Data …
Continue reading -
Uxbridge would be a perfect constituency for a Boris, but he shouldn’t run
Leave a commentJuly 11, 2014 by Paul Goldsmith
If ever there were an example of someone that David Cameron would prefer to be ‘standing inside the tent pissing …
Continue reading -
Cybernats should understand that going for the person not the argument weakens their case
1July 9, 2014 by Paul Goldsmith
I have a rule I follow when it comes to debate. If someone has resorted to personal attacks it’s because …
Continue reading -
What does it mean when the Labour Party is uninterested in preparing for government?
Leave a commentJuly 7, 2014 by Paul Goldsmith
There was an interesting clue the other day as to how seriously Ed Miliband and his advisers are taking their …
Continue reading -
Austerity 2 – you ain’t seen nothing yet
Leave a commentJuly 6, 2014 by Paul Goldsmith
The UK has one of the largest budget deficits in the world. The amount that our government spending exceeds our …
Continue reading -
George Osborne – the UK’s next Foreign Secretary
Leave a commentJuly 5, 2014 by Paul Goldsmith
Should the Conservatives win the next election, you should expect to see George Osborne become Foreign Secretary. It is believed …
Continue reading -
The “Right to be Forgotten” – the implementation devil rears its head
Leave a commentJuly 4, 2014 by Paul Goldsmith
When the European Court of Justice (ECJ) made its “Right to be Forgotten judgement” back in May I warned …
Continue reading -
Do we want state funding for 50p per voter, or do we want to complain about bankers and unions buying influence?
Leave a commentJuly 3, 2014 by Paul Goldsmith
Last night at the Hurlingham Club in Fulham and next week at the Roundhouse in Camden the Conservative and Labour Party …
Continue reading -
Now the hackers are facing the full might of the law – we must be wary of further attempts to muzzle press freedom
Leave a commentJuly 2, 2014 by Paul Goldsmith
A £100m phone hacking trial has just finished. There are more to come as the law works its way through …
Continue reading -
Why Rebekah Brooks floated back to the surface at last week’s Salem hacking trial
2July 1, 2014 by Paul Goldsmith
At the Salem witch trials near the end of the 17th century, if the accused sank and drowned, they …
Continue reading -
Without Andy Coulson we would probably be in our 17th year of Labour government
Leave a commentJune 30, 2014 by Paul Goldsmith
It was back in 2007 when David Cameron decided to hire as his Director of Communications a man who had …
Continue reading -
The N-H-S – Cameron’s 2010 priority should become Labour’s 2015 focus
Leave a commentJune 29, 2014 by Paul Goldsmith
David Cameron, in the run-up to the 2010 General Election, said that his priorities could be summed up in three …
Continue reading -
EU must be joking?
Leave a commentJune 28, 2014 by Paul Goldsmith
I enjoyed this video – it tries to explain how the EU works for anyone who doesn’t understand the difference …
Continue reading -
GM food – how long will we ignore science and let people starve?
Leave a commentJune 27, 2014 by Paul Goldsmith
Despite my wish to provide a balanced view on economic or political issues, I have to admit to finding it …
Continue reading -
Universal Credit and Iain Duncan-Smith, doomed to failure?
Leave a commentJune 26, 2014 by Paul Goldsmith
There are numerous books and articles written about the concept of “government failure”. Governments intervene – mostly with the best …
Continue reading -
If you think nothing was gained from invading Iraq, remember the purple finger
Leave a commentJune 25, 2014 by Paul Goldsmith
I’ll never forget the minute Moussa (not his real name) walked into my classroom with a smile on his face …
Continue reading -
‘HS3’ – Osborne sells the benefits of a global northern powerhouse
2June 24, 2014 by Paul Goldsmith
One of the problems of being, you know, a properly functioning democracy is that governments need to try and …
Continue reading -
Iraq shows what happens when democracy is overrun by the Tyranny of the majority
Leave a commentJune 23, 2014 by Paul Goldsmith
As the situation in Iraq escalates, it is useful to see what we can learn about how it has come …
Continue reading -
50,000 people assembled in Parliament Square to protest against austerity: why wasn’t the BBC interested?
2June 22, 2014 by Paul Goldsmith
Despite the complaints I have made about the dangers to pluralism in this country (click here and here), I am …
Continue reading -
What we can learn from Jason Millard disqualifying himself from the biggest golf tournament in his life.
Leave a commentJune 21, 2014 by Paul Goldsmith
The best way to judge someone’s true character is how they behave when no-one is looking. Another way to test …
Continue reading -
Youth jobs and skills plan – how I know Ed Miliband’s onto something good
Leave a commentJune 20, 2014 by Paul Goldsmith
Yesterday, Ed Miliband announced a new plan to tackle youth employment that addresses the short term problems of youth unemployment …
Continue reading -
Dr Sarah Wollaston – the type of person who gives MPs a good name
Leave a commentJune 19, 2014 by Paul Goldsmith
Dr Sarah Wollaston is the answer I give to anyone who lazily tells me that MPs are all the same …
Continue reading -
How do you solve a problem like Tony Blair?
Leave a commentJune 18, 2014 by Paul Goldsmith
The problem with Tony Blair is that for a number of reasons people aren’t prepared to actually listen to anything …
Continue reading
Goldblog 
Recent Comments