What an unholy mess. A Tory MP acted as a paid advocate for private interests while serving as an MP, was censured, whereupon Boris Johnson decides to retrospectively upend the decision, fire the official finger-pointer and shift the goalposts for the future. The opposition finally woke up, shrieking blue murder and even Tory backbenchers hung … Read more
Rishi Sunak, the UK Chancellor, despite all media rumours that he and Boris did not see eye to eye has indulged in a lavish budget. It has alarmed ‘small government’ Tories and stirred up criticism for those affected by tax rises, with gloomy prognostications about financial pain to come with inflation, rising mortgage rates and … Read more
Poland’s prime minister – a cross between Boris Johnson and Donald Trump – has been using inflammatory language about ‘guns to head’ and starting a third World War as the EU put its foot down about internal Polish moves to threaten the independence of the judiciary. The stand-off has already delayed approval of Poland’s €36bn … Read more
The fraught Aries Full Moon today is the preceding one to the Lunar Eclipse on 19th November. The Moon opposes Sun Mars and squares Pluto, so no surprises there is a challenging, frustrated, stuck mood this week. Occasionally Lunar Eclipse events trigger on the Full Moon before or after – and given that … Read more
The war of words over the unresolved Northern Ireland trade screw up post-Brexit is escalating with David Frost, negotiator on the UK side, threatening the nuclear option of suspending the protocol about the land border between north and south if the EU doesn’t budge by the end of the month – which would breach international … Read more
A surge in energy prices and shortage of gas is causing anxiety to spike along with bills across Europe. The UK appears to be harder hit than most with a perfect storm of energy companies going bankrupt as well as petrol stations closing and supermarkets going bare-shelved because of a shortage of lorry drivers. There … Read more
The day of the long knives reshuffle has turned out to be distinctly vanilla flavoured with a muted reception even from the right-wing media. The two key appointments of Michael Gove to Housing and Liz Truss to the Foreign Office are deemed to be Boris strategies for seeing off rivals. Truss had the highest approval … Read more
‘Live in the midst of difficulties as if they did not exist’ is a laudable I Ching goal for a keep-calm-and-carry-on tranquillity but hardly helpful as government strategy in the face of mounting problems. Empty supermarket shelves, the result of a mixed Brexit and pingdemic effect, are alarming shoppers and likely to worsen towards Christmas. … Read more
In Afghanistan the largest British evacuation since the Second World War brought out 15,000 people, including 5,000 Britons and their families, plus more than 8,000 Afghan former UK staff and their families. But Dominic Raab, UK Foreign Secretary, has been getting it in the neck for the negligence of the Foreign Office in not preparing … Read more
Michael Gove, a close Cabinet colleague of Boris Johnson through Brexit and the pandemic though a questionable friend, has announced a surprise split from his wife of 20 years Daily Mail columnist Sarah Vine. He has been talked of as a possible future Tory leader though he has lost in his last two attempts and … Read more