Expanding the Legacy
Tag: UK
15 Posts
UK Riots About More Than Just Immigration
About three quarters of Britons consider far-right extremism, racism, and religious polarisation serious issues. About half also believe that the UK is currently unsafe for muslims. However, the riots that shook the country last week do not at all represent the values espoused by Britons (73%). The rioters’ ways and means may be almost universally despised and rejected, that does not necessarily mean that most people feel safe and well in their green and pleasant land. Research by More in Common has found that popular opinion cannot be conveniently divided into opposing camps. The research group tries to map and understand the forces that undermine social cohesion and find common ground.
Britain’s Rwanda Plan: Four People Removed for £700 Million
Successive conservative governments squandered upwards of £700 million ($900 million) on an ill-advised plan to deport failed asylum seekers to Central Africa for processing and resettlement. The scheme, promptly cancelled by the new Labour government, saw just four people leave the UK for Rwanda. They did so voluntarily and were handed £3,000 in cash to help fund their new life in Africa. On Monday, Home Secretary Yvette Cooper informed Parliament that the deportation plan had cost much more than previously thought: “It’s the most shocking waste of taxpayers’ money I’ve ever seen,” she told lawmakers. Mrs Cooper also revealed that her predecessor failed to properly inform Parliament of the policy’s total costs which according to Home Office numbers could have ballooned to £10 billion over the next six years.
The Art and Science of Unscrambling Eggs
How to unscramble eggs. That is the question (and task) facing UK Prime Minister Keith Starmer as he meets his country’s neighbours tomorrow for a one-day summit of European leaders. The informal gathering in Blenheim, birthplace of Winston Churchill, takes place under the aegis of the European Political Community (EPC), an initiative launched by President Emanuel Macron of France in 2022, following the Russian invasion of Ukraine. More than fifty heads of state and governments are expected to attend.
On Collective Wisdom and Individual Ignorance & Vice Versa
In this era of electoral upheaval, with Donald Trump and the European hard right rattling the gates of power, it is perhaps a propitious moment to rescue the American satirist and cultural icon HL Mencken from obscurity. Henry Louis Mencken (1880-1956) was an admirer of the German philosopher Friedrich Nietzsche (‘I Am Dynamite’) and as outspoken, if not more so, than the polemicist he idolized.
European Hard Right Stopped in France and Britain
The forward march of the hard right in Europe, deemed unstoppable, has bumped into a roadblock set up by British and French voters. In a surprise outcome of the early parliamentary election, France swung to the left and kept Marine Le Pen’s National Rally well short of the expected majority.
Tory Omnishambles Awaits a Reckoning
On Thursday, voters in the UK will render their verdict on fourteen years of Tory rule. It is expected that the Conservative Party will receive an electoral clobbering of note. Some polls predict that the party may even be relegated to third place, behind both Labour and either the Liberal Democrats or Reform UK, the new kid on the block of Brexit provocateur and Trump-wannabe Nigel Farage.
Seesawing Stock Markets Rattle Investors
And just like that… the party was over. Wednesday’s stock market rally, sparked by the dovish comments of US Federal Reserve Chairperson Jay Powell, not only fizzled out but reversed with Nasdaq suffering its biggest drop since June 2020.
Chapter 68: Tales of Shopkeepers, Trolley Cops, and Bookshops
Thursday, October 29, 2020 – Shopkeepers in Wales have reported a disconcerting increase in the number of scarcely clad patrons visiting their premises, often sporting nothing more than underpants and a facemask. The quasi-streakers roaming the aisles of Welsh grocery stores and pharmacies are on a mission to highlight the...
Hard Limits to Sovereignty
It is not a good time to be a supporter of Brexit. If spin were a tradable commodity, all would be exceptionally well in the realm. Alas, it is not. The attempt by Prime Minister Boris Johnson to supplant essential elements of the Withdrawal Agreement, signed with the European Union...
UK Mulls Breaking Law
Eighty years, to the day, since living its Finest Hour, the Hinge of Fate turned Great Britain towards yet another nadir – the latest in a string of historic setbacks that slowly and painfully disassemble a once great power. On Monday, September 14, Parliament voted on the second reading of...
