On July 27, 2025, the US President Donald Trump invited the President of the EU Commission Ursula von der Leyen and other top EU officials to his golf course, Trump-Turnberry on the West Coast of Scotland. Their meeting sealed a trade deal, which von der Leyen described as ‘huge’, but which critics described as a […]
Sweden is often held up as a role model for those wishing to expand the size of government around the world. But rather than being proof that socialism works, the Swedish experience is in fact evidence for the benefits of free markets, limited taxation, strong societal norms and robust financial institutions. Sweden historically pioneered many […]
The British are coming! The British are coming! As the United States celebrates 250 years of independence from the British, millions of Californians wish to put themselves under British rule. The primary is taking place tomorrow, and Steve Hilton, a British-born former adviser to David Cameron, is not only expected to make it through to […]
If we were to bring UK income taxes closer into line with those in Europe’s major economies, it would cost the average taxpayer £1,015 per year. One argument often stated nowadays is that Britain should move towards European-style taxation. But given this cost to the taxpayer, it is certainly not a policy I would advocate. […]
Americans like their eggs. While for Britons it is but one part of a fry up or mere fodder for toasted soldiers, for Yanks there is a deep romance, whether eaten at an old-school diner or as part of a trendy brunch. It was therefore bemusing for outsiders when the price of eggs caused a […]
When the news came through late last week that Keir Starmer had dropped the Diego Garcia Bill from the King’s Speech – meaning it will not be in the next legislative session – many asked if this is really the end of the road for the dreadful deal. The twists and turns of the Chagos […]
The Atlantic’s Jeffrey Goldberg asked a dying Fidel Castro in 2010 if Cuba’s economic model was worth exporting to other countries. He replied: ‘The Cuban model doesn’t even work for us any more.’ It has taken a decade and a half for the Cuban regime’s fans to catch up and they are still advocating for […]
Hormuz has been front-page news for a month. The oil price has been reported, the tanker attacks recorded and the reserve releases announced. What has not been explained is why none of those responses have moved much oil. Oil does not simply flow through Hormuz, as it relies on a surprisingly large and complex web […]
Iran’s strike on Ras Laffan this week was not just an attack on Qatar, but on one of the most important energy hubs on the planet. In this extract from his book ‘Material World’, Ed Conway explains why this vast LNG complex matters so much – and why damage there could reverberate through gas markets, […]
The war in Iran continues, and Donald Trump is trying to avoid an enduring oil shock by assembling an international alliance to protect the Strait of Hormuz. But as the realities on the ground play out, so too does the war of narratives. Vali Nasr, a professor at Johns Hopkins University who frequently appears on […]
If you want to feel really gloomy, think back to the beginning of the 1990s. The West had won the Cold War. The Gorbachev era seemed to suggest that Russia was embarking on a path of stability and democracy. There were indications that the Chinese leadership was interested in cautious moves towards international legality. Other […]
What is happening in Armenia? Armenia is the world’s oldest Christian country. It is a profoundly Christian nation, and its faith survived decades of Soviet repression. However, what is happening now threatens that legacy. Armenia’s Prime Minister, Nikol Pashinyan, is lashing out against the Armenian Holy Apostolic Church as it refuses to bow to his […]
For years, Iran’s Islamic Republic tried to sell a picture to the world, as George Orwell once put it, by ‘giving an appearance of solidity to pure wind’. Its negotiating technique was never complicated; it was simple stonewalling. Yet it is striking how different administrations interpreted that posture. Barack Obama saw them as complicated, sophisticated […]
Free-marketeers are often accused of a crude anti-statism. According to our critics, we fail to understand that markets don’t exist in a vacuum, but are underpinned and supported by a functioning state. I have never seen much merit in that criticism. Anarcho-capitalists aside (and I’ve had pints with all twelve of them: I really wouldn’t […]
While peace proposals are circulating to end this ruinous conflict, any deal that results in a lasting peace will need to ensure Ukraine is economically and militarily strong enough to resist future Russian aggression. That requires money – lots of it – to rebuild shattered infrastructure and maintain a technologically advanced military. The obvious source […]
When British politicians defend recognising a Palestinian state, they present it as the pragmatic, humane way out of a long-running border dispute. But this framing misreads what the Palestinian national movement has actually been about. When five Arab nations declared war on Israel immediately after it was established in 1948, they assured the Arabs living […]
One can almost feel sorry for Keir Starmer. It was not meant to be like this. Not that he will find the comparison gratifying, but there is a parallel with George W. Bush. Remember back: Bush Jr watched his father take centre stage on global affairs with a massive domestic approval rating. Then the domestics […]
In a move that is expected to widen the gap between the Armenian people and his disastrous leadership, Armenia’s Prime Minister Nikol Pashinyan has recently launched a series of attacks at the Armenian church, an institution that most Armenians around the world associate themselves with and care deeply about. On Friday 30 May 2025, Pashinyan […]
A group of us were trying to make sense of Donald Trump and discussing leadership and weakness. Why was Margaret Thatcher so great? I offered an answer. Uniquely among modern peacetime leaders, Thatcher had an agenda and knew what needed to be done. En route, she displayed more tactical subtlety than some of her most […]
The King and Queen of Canada have made it home to open the 45th Session of Parliament. While King Charles III is the Canadian head of state through the development of unique constitutional doctrines, he, of course, remains the British monarch. Their Majesties’ presence in Canada raises the question of where the long-standing relationship between […]
The human rights NGO sector is in crisis. The moral authority of human rights NGOs is collapsing – and it is authoritarian regimes that are reaping the rewards. Once seen as exemplars of morality on the world stage, many of these organisations are now adrift. They are haemorrhaging credibility not only in the West, but also […]
For transgressive teenagers of the middle 2000s, the film ‘South Park: Bigger, Longer & Uncut’ had everything. There were constant fart gags, an oracular clitoris and – the pièce de résistance – an abusive gay relationship between Saddam Hussein and the devil. But all of that is ultimately window dressing to a war that breaks […]
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