Featured Posts

• Two-thirds of Coalition MPs would block George Osbornes charity tax plans
• Hands off our land: An end to the blight of the builders’ charter
• Dumbing down of state education has made Britain more unequal than 25 years ago
• Profit-making companies should run state schools
• Drought: Hosepipe ban prompts borehole boom
• Sir Mervyn King’s successor must show humility
• Metal-on-metal hips do not raise cancer risk in short term

• 
  

  Two-thirds of Coalition MPs would block George Osbornes charity tax plans

  Politics

  With pressure mounting on the Chancellor to abandon the scheme, Labour said it would consider triggering a Parliamentary vote, which would effectively turn into a vote of confidence in the government. High-profile philanthropists, universities and major charities have opposed the ...

• 
  

  Hands off our land: An end to the blight of the builders’ charter

  Earth

  It’s time to heave a huge sigh of relief. After a bloody Whitehall battle – spurred by a seven-month Daily Telegraph campaign – the Government has beaten a remarkable retreat from its attempt to dismantle the planning system that has, ...

• 
  

  Dumbing down of state education has made Britain more unequal than 25 years ago

  Education

  A controversy broke out on Twitter earlier this week about an article in the Times Educational Supplement in which a teacher called Jonny Griffiths describes a conversation with a bright sixth-former who’s worried about his exam results. “Apart from you, ...

• 
  

  Profit-making companies should run state schools

  Education

  Companies are being allowed to generate substantial returns by running nurseries, units for expelled pupils and management and IT services for mainstream schools, it is claimed. The report by the Policy Exchange, one of the Coalition’s favourite think-tanks, said the ...

• 
  

  Drought: Hosepipe ban prompts borehole boom

  Earth

  The ‘borehole boom’ has been prompted by widespread drought across the country, affecting more than 35 million people. Most houses in England are built on layers of water-storing rock such as chalk or limestone which can be utilised. There are ...

• 
  

  Sir Mervyn King’s successor must show humility

  Economics

  The “tyrant” accusation came last week from David Blanchflower, a member of the Monetary Policy Committee between 2006 and 2009. He claimed that Sir Mervyn “controlled the Bank with an iron fist” and “crossed the line [into fiscal policy] by ...

• 
  

  Metal-on-metal hips do not raise cancer risk in short term

  Health

  A study of more than 40,000 patients found no evidence to suggest that the replacement hips raise the risk of cancer, although researchers said longer-term analysis is needed to confirm they are safe. Surgeons last month proposed a ban on ...