SPOTLIGHT

Economy

Labour Economics: Economy in 2020

Jeremy Corbyn’s ‘Economy in 2020’ is admirable for the working class in its principles but ultimately has its flaws. Battered and bruised, with knees rocking after a haymaker, Labour’s current predicament within British politics resembles that of a boxer that has been tactically outclassed for ten rounds, it’s close to a stoppage. Granted, politics has […]

Europe

The UK response to the “refugee crisis” is theoretically sound but practically counterproductive

The UK Conservative government has a strategy for tackling the current “refugee crisis” that is theoretically convincing but practically contradictory. The strategy consists of letting as few refugees onto UK soil as it can get away with, whilst increasing efforts to tackle the source of the crisis. The former is implicit in the numbers: until […]

Sport

Athletics’ Quick Fix: How the politics of doping is taking athletics to the brink of ruin

June 2003 As most sport-crazy 9 – 90 year-old boys do, I began reading my copy of the Mail on Sunday from the last page to the first. But on this particular day, my eyes were strangely captivated by the side column rather than the main headline. “World’s Fastest Couple give birth to baby boy”. […]

Green

The fall of oil and the environment


The Fall of Oil and the Environment Bane or Blessing? The recent rapid decline of the price of oil, from around $115 per barrel in mid-2014 to below $50 per barrel by August 2015 (Brent Crude), has prompted widespread concerns about negative impacts of cheap oil on the environment. These concerns can be roughly divided […]

Human Rights

Rufgee crisis: Lessons David Cameron can learn from Lebanon’s example

In the midst of the current refugee crisis it’s easy to get caught up in numbers. Germany is expecting 800,000 by the end of the year – and 500,000 annually for years to come. Australia says they’ll let in 12,000 and David Cameron announced that the UK will accept 20,000 of the most vulnerable Syrian […]


 
 
 

 

The Irony of Empire: Why the Diamond Jubilee is the triumph of Britain without empire

Of all the transformations to have taken place during her sixty-year reign, none can be more apparent to Queen Elizabeth II than the transformation of Britain’s role in the world. But is the story of decline, and fall, of the...
by Alastair Stewart
1

 
 

COP18: Doha Briefs – Common accounting mechanism and the status quo games

Us against them? It had just hit 2am in Doha and everybody was looking at each other with a wee bit of anger. Everyone was tired, obviously. Mugs of coffee were scattered all over the table. Thus far the negotiations have centr...
by Rubin Makomere
0

 
 

Balkan Psychosis and Bosnia’s Enduring Legacy

The traumatic images and gruesome stories of ‘ethnic cleansing’ which emanated from the conflict in Bosnia & Hercegovina dominated television screens in the early 1990s. The conflict ended in November 1995 with the sign...
by Neil Cropper
2

 

 

‘Nul Point’ for the Eurosceptics?

It is a European institution, known for its excess and undemocratic nature. In Britain it provokes a mixture of exasperation and contempt. While this has always been true of the Eurovision song contest, a similar feeling toward...
by Matthew Campsie
0

 
 

Demo-crazy: Where Does it Belong?

Democracy is a term that has become increasingly convoluted over time. It is a word that many people respect, but only a handful understands its true essence. What is democracy? Is it relative or universal? It certainly comes i...
by Hasan Rizvi
0

 
 

Why I Say No to the Military Coup

With no introductions, here is my personal take on the Egyptian recent developments: I disagree with the way they brought Morsi down; if it’s going to be a democracy, then let the impeachment be through the voting ballots...
by Mohamed Belarbi
3