British identity is a puzzle for us all

A third of Asians living in the UK do not feel “British”.
The poll, commissioned by the BBC’s Asian Network, found that among UK residents of South Asian origin under the age of 34 just 38% felt only slightly or not at all British.
More than a third agreed with the belief that to get on in [...]

With special friends like these…

Little wonder that Gordon Brown and his new-look Government are subtly creating some distance between themselves and the George Bush administration in the US.
Obviously Mr Brown and his many ministers will deny this as they know that, for all its faults, the US is still an important and influential ally. This has been proved during [...]

Dour Brown profits over gaudy Cameron

The Blair blueprint always looked so attractive ten years ago.
But a decade on it had certainly lost any of its initial sparkle and appeal, making the desire for change an overwhelming force that not even Team Blair could overcome.
Little wonder, therefore, that so many questioned the decision of David Cameron to reinvent himself as a Blair [...]

ASBOs and adverts

It might be a huge leap I’m making here, but try and stick with me for a minute.
The new report released by an influential (sic) group of MPs suggesting anti-social teenagers are making many of our towns and cities “no-go areas” after dark throws up a few interesting statistics.
The public accounts committee has criticised the [...]

No legislating against nature

As the rain continues to fall and the rivers continue to rise, the finger is being pointed at the Government.
The big question for many seems to be: “What is the Government going to do about it?”
So what can it do?
You cannot legislate against heavy rain or rising river levels - these thing happen.
But there are [...]

Faking it…everyone is at it

Newspapers and rival broadcasters are having a field day putting the boot into the BBC over its admission of faked viewer and listener phone-ins.
There is a certain amount of glee in the coverage that is wholly misplaced, however, as the media in general has a habit of faking it as a matter of course in [...]

Political leaders could learn from armchair ecologists

The UK is a nation of “armchair ecologists” who are concerned about the environment but unwilling to do too much about saving the planet themselves.
That is the conclusion of a new study into our attitudes towards the environmental issues affecting modern society.
It suggests that installing energy-saving light bulbs, turning off electrical appliances when they are not in use and [...]

Wealth gap widens as our aspirations spiral out of control

We live in a nation divided by money.
It is not the most startling admission ever made, but a new report shows just how wide the gulf between rich and poor has grown in recent years.
The wealth map produced with the report shows clearly where the divisions exist and how the already rich areas have become disproportionately wealthier over [...]

Mayor Boris the Bold

I have no real interest whether Boris Johnson stands and indeed wins the election to succeed Ken Livingstone as Mayor of London.
It is, at best, an intriguing sideshow for the vast majority of the population who do not live in the English capital.
But it is for that reason that I wish him well. The Conservative [...]

High cost of cut-price clothes

Another day, another blow to the attempts of some of our biggest retailers to portray themselves as the caring, sharing, compassionate face of capitalism.
Asda, Tesco and Primark are all in the frame after a new report revealed the scale of abuse faced by workers in Bangladesh working an 80-hour week for as little as 4p [...]