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“Je Suis Charlie” – we have the right to FEEL offended but we don’t have the right not to BE offended
1February 1, 2015 by Paul Goldsmith
I’ve been thinking, and reading, since January 7th, about free speech. Should it really be unlimited? What does ‘offensive’ mean? …
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Phone hacking – “it all started with a knee”
1January 31, 2015 by Paul Goldsmith
All great democracies need great journalists. You can’t hold the powerful to account without courage. “It all started with a …
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Syriza coalition with Independent Greeks shows Tsipras refuses to accept he can’t control Economics
1January 30, 2015 by Paul Goldsmith
There’s going to be a lot to write about Greece over the next few months. The inevitable result of a …
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Andy Burnham and the NHS – lose the politics
Leave a commentJanuary 29, 2015 by Paul Goldsmith
He won’t like the comparison, but Andy Burnham is going to find out over the next few months what it …
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The development of a ‘Left-Wing bloc’ could spell curtains for Cameron
Leave a commentJanuary 28, 2015 by Paul Goldsmith
It must be lonely being David Cameron these days. As the furore over the TV debates show, we are developing …
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UK Party leader debates….it’s just not how our democracy works
Leave a commentJanuary 27, 2015 by Paul Goldsmith
That the Party leader debates should happen seems to be obvious to everyone. But a closer look at what they …
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Amjad Bashir – time for political parties to do a lot more research on defectors
Leave a commentJanuary 26, 2015 by Paul Goldsmith
Political parties love defections. They say to the public, the parties think, that the defector is so ridden with doubt …
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Let’s hear it for the “Shy Tories”
1January 25, 2015 by Paul Goldsmith
Why do different amounts of people vote Conservative as the number that tell polls they are going to? Those who …
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Why is there a correlation between immigration and inequality?
Leave a commentJanuary 24, 2015 by Paul Goldsmith
Professor Danny Dorling from Oxford University visited our school this week to talk about inequality. It was the very last thing …
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Why the distinction between poverty and inequality is important
Leave a commentJanuary 22, 2015 by Paul Goldsmith
Why is the distinction between poverty and inequality important? Two exchanges in the media this week tell us why. Firstly. …
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Another fine mess EU’ll get Cameron into, if he wins
Leave a commentJanuary 21, 2015 by Paul Goldsmith
If winning the 2015 election didn’t seem enough of a poisoned chalice to be passed, given the difficulties that will …
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The Coalition’s employment record – Labour’s jobs myths or Conservatives’ massaged figures?
Leave a commentJanuary 20, 2015 by Paul Goldsmith
David Cameron has put the Conservatives’ record on employment at their heart of their election battle plan. In a speech …
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A Tory-Lib Dem coalition in May 2015 will only happen with a massive reduction in Lib Dem influence
1January 19, 2015 by Paul Goldsmith
Reports emerged earlier this month that the Conservatives are planning to change the way Coalitions are formed to limit the …
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The ‘Poll Tax’ files released from the National Archives – Thatcher can’t say she wasn’t warned.
Leave a commentJanuary 18, 2015 by Paul Goldsmith
The release of a tranche of documents from the a National Archive under the ’30 year rule’ has cast a …
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There is only so much a school can do
3January 17, 2015 by Paul Goldsmith
The first day I met David (not his real name) he walked very slowly into the tutor room at my …
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Inflation at 0.5% – should we worry about deflation now?
Leave a commentJanuary 16, 2015 by Paul Goldsmith
So inflation has continued it’s fall to the point where deflation is a distinct possibility, with some economists saying it’s …
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Labour can win on the economy if they can explain why ‘their’ type of economic growth is better
Leave a commentJanuary 15, 2015 by Paul Goldsmith
Much has been made of the Institute of Fiscal Studies’ calculation that Labour’s plans for the future would mean that …
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Ed Miliband needs to come clean and say whether or not he wants to re-nationalise the energy providers
Leave a commentJanuary 14, 2015 by Paul Goldsmith
First of all, there is little doubt that no-one in this country should be having to choose between heating and …
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The NHS is a political football for a good reason
Leave a commentJanuary 13, 2015 by Paul Goldsmith
First of all, let me get something straight. Labour has every right to use the NHS as a political football, …
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Why David Cameron wants the Green Party in the TV debates
Leave a commentJanuary 12, 2015 by Paul Goldsmith
It isn’t very difficult to understand why David Cameron has insisted that he won’t be involved in the planned TV …
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The Blair B*tch project – why New Labour DIDN’T need such large majorities
Leave a commentJanuary 11, 2015 by Paul Goldsmith
The further away we get from Tony Blair’s Premiership, the harder it is for my students to understand why the …
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Four possible election outcomes and what they would mean
Leave a commentJanuary 10, 2015 by Paul Goldsmith
Towards the end of last year the pollster Peter Kellner from YouGov set out in The Times four possible results …
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Charlie Hebdo Massacre – “We should be shocked, but not rendered speechless”
8January 9, 2015 by Paul Goldsmith
Amongst the many articles I have been reading about Wednesday’s massacre of cartoonists, writers and editors at Charlie Hebdo, a French …
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Conservative victory could hinge on whether Labour voters hate UKIP more than they love Labour
Leave a commentJanuary 8, 2015 by Paul Goldsmith
Here’s an interesting concept to get your head around. What are the chances of diehard Labour supporters voting Conservative for …
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New Era shows that maybe Russell Brand really is a rebel with a cause
3January 7, 2015 by Paul Goldsmith
Those (like me) who thought Russell Brand was nothing more than a self-publicist with little idea what the results of …
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Day one and Labour quickly falls into Tories’ austerity trap
Leave a commentJanuary 6, 2015 by Paul Goldsmith
Amongst the astonishingly negative start to the General Election campaign yesterday, as the Tories said that Labour would crash the …
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Why deciding if the deficit really has been halved depends on your political view
Leave a commentJanuary 5, 2015 by Paul Goldsmith
The Conservatives ‘fired the starting gun’ on the election campaign last Friday by unveiling a poster. Under the slogan “Let’s …
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A level choices are the key to closing the gender pay gap
4January 4, 2015 by Paul Goldsmith
We’ve been debating the gender pay gap in Economics A-level over the past few weeks. In particular, students are asked …
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Wales 2015 Part 2 – the constituencies to watch
2January 3, 2015 by Paul Goldsmith
As I explained yesterday, it is very likely that the results from Wales will not decide the 2015 General Election. …
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Wales 2015 Part 1 – As you were
Leave a commentJanuary 2, 2015 by Paul Goldsmith
Whereas Scotland’s 2015 results could change the course of the 2015 General election result, the results from Wales will not. …
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2015 New Year Politics Prediction….impossible!
Leave a commentJanuary 1, 2015 by Paul Goldsmith
Happy New Year everyone. Welcome to what promises to be one of the most memorable years of politics of our …
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Northern Ireland 3 – Will DUP be the Kingmakers?
3December 31, 2014 by Paul Goldsmith
It may be possible that a man who lost his seat at Westminster in 2010 could decide who will be …
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Northern Ireland 2 – The most important constitutencies
Leave a commentDecember 30, 2014 by Paul Goldsmith
The best way to predict what will happen in Northern Ireland’s 18 constituencies in the 2015 General election is to …
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Northern Ireland 1 – why FPTP really doesn’t work there
Leave a commentDecember 29, 2014 by Paul Goldsmith
Given that the aims of an election system (how votes are translated into seats), include a range of opinions and …
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The prospect of Labour winning has Conservatives starting to build up funds for a quick second election
Leave a commentDecember 28, 2014 by Paul Goldsmith
Some interesting gossip emanating from Conservative HQ is that they have started to solicit donations to fund a second election …
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Deflation stalks the UK – why we should worry
4December 27, 2014 by Paul Goldsmith
Normally, you would expect the announcement that inflation has fallen as far down as 1% to be greeted with joy. …
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The most significant tactical vote move may be from Green to Labour
Leave a commentDecember 26, 2014 by Paul Goldsmith
Tactical voting has often been seen as a stick to beat First Past the Post with. That people are forced …
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Why Christmas is one big free Coca Cola advert
Leave a commentDecember 25, 2014 by Paul Goldsmith
Joining the many children, both young and grown-up, who are sad to see the back of a Christmas after today, …
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“The Interview” – giving into terrorism leads to more terrorism
Leave a commentDecember 24, 2014 by Paul Goldsmith
Let’s not pretend for a moment that Sony’s decision to pull “The Interview” out of all cinemas in the world, …
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Labour immigration policy cannot exist without offering an EU referendum
2December 23, 2014 by Paul Goldsmith
The Labour Party is undergoing convulsions on the topic of immigration this week. First, Ed Miliband gave what he had …
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No, Theresa, you May not bolster your leadership claims by stopping foreign graduates staying here.
Leave a commentDecember 22, 2014 by Paul Goldsmith
Those blasted immigrants. Who do they think they are? Coming over here, saving our lives, creating products we want. Oh, …
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Torture should be investigated, but within context
Leave a commentDecember 21, 2014 by Paul Goldsmith
There have been some very interesting articles through the last week on the moral judgement of the use of torture. …
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Did you know black/white wealth inequality in the USA is now worse than it was in Apartheid South Africa?
Leave a commentDecember 20, 2014 by Paul Goldsmith
Sometimes, the only way to tell a shocking story is through comedy. There was a fascinating exchange last week on …
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EVEL is not evil. But it will take time.
Leave a commentDecember 19, 2014 by Paul Goldsmith
In the last few days before the Scottish Independence referendum, Alistair Darling, the leader of the “No” campaign, pleaded …
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Why even pointing out the Government’s economic failures hurts Labour
Leave a commentDecember 18, 2014 by Paul Goldsmith
On Monday what looked like a rather arcane economics spat broke out between the Conservatives and Labour. Once again, it …
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“Septimana horibilis” for UKIP? Or just what we have to come to expect?
Leave a commentDecember 17, 2014 by Paul Goldsmith
What a week UKIP have had. Any other political party would have collapsed under the ridicule that they have brought …
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The NHS – contracting out is not privatisation, and the left should stop shouting “squirrel”
Leave a commentDecember 16, 2014 by Paul Goldsmith
If you ever want to see a real Conservative in action, listen to someone from the left talk about the …
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Will Jim Murphy save the Labour Party’s hopes of being in government next year?
Leave a commentDecember 15, 2014 by Paul Goldsmith
Stop most people on the street and ask them to name a single leader of the Scottish Labour Party and …
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Homosexuality, dead dogs and hit men – the strange life of Liberal Party leader Jeremy Thorpe
Leave a commentDecember 14, 2014 by Paul Goldsmith
The recent death of Jeremy Thorpe shines a light on one of the most controversial political lives. It is a …
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Politics and Economics comment. Co-Author of How to Lose a Referendum – the Definitive Story of Why Britain Voted for Brexit [http://bit.ly/2ryynRG]. PhD Student KCL – Parliamentary Scrutiny of 2015 EU Referendum Act. Economics and Politics teacher in London. 18 years teaching experience. Prior to that a management consultant. All opinions here are my own.
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