From Donald Trump to Boris Johnson to Angela Merkel to Justin Trudeau – what to look forward to in the next year
It’s New Year’s Eve and the last day of the 2010s. The champagne is chilling, the food, party hats and noisemakers are ready, and friends and loved ones are nearby. What’s in store for 2020 when it comes to politics? We can certainly speculate. The U.S. presidential election will be held in November. The Democrats…
If you're looking for some binge-worthy fictional subjects, nothing could be better than Agatha Christie’s signature characters
Ah, Christmas! There are many things I enjoy doing on Christmas, a wonderful holiday. This includes spending time with family, watching Alastair Sim’s version of Scrooge (1951) and animated specials like A Charlie Brown Christmas (1965), listening to Johann Sebastian Bach’s Christmas Oratorio and reading Charles Dickens’s A Christmas Carol. With respect to the latter,…
If Boris Johnson is to get his agreement passed, he needs to change parliament. The Dec. 12 general election provides the opportunity
My Aug. 1 column noted the significance of Boris Johnson becoming United Kingdom prime minister. Given his key cabinet and staff appointments, he was clearly going to force Brexit resolution in a way that his predecessor, Theresa May, was either unable or unwilling to do. This shouldn’t have been a surprise. Both May and her…
It’s time to open up trade. Even the EU accepts that 90% of global growth will take place outside its group over the next 15 years
No other time in the recent history of British politics has been so turbulent. But the United Kingdom needs to stay the Brexit course. Prime Minister Boris Johnson has been accused of lying to the Queen by a Scottish court, the Conservative government has lost its majority and kicked out 21 rebel Tory MPs, opposition…
Brexit will liberate Great Britain from the shackles of the European Union and provide an example for other countries to follow
Three years ago, almost 52 per cent of electors voted in a referendum to pull Great Britain from the European Union. It was the first major, painful defeat for the German-controlled EU’s banks and multinationals. However, Great Britain has still not left the European Union, even though the exit was scheduled to take place on…
That doesn't mean the new U.K. administration will succeed where its predecessor failed. Nor does it mean that leaving the EU is wise
Something interesting happened in the United Kingdom last week. More than three years after referendum voters opted to leave the European Union, a Leave government was finally installed. Prior to that, negotiations on a withdrawal agreement were in the hands of a government whose most powerful players had supported the Remain side in the referendum…
When these two world leaders hold their first summit, the Boris and Donald Show will be a meeting of two unique and different political minds
The United Kingdom has had many impressive individuals serve as prime minister, including Robert Peel, Benjamin Disraeli, William Gladstone, Winston Churchill and Margaret Thatcher. One of the most intriguing political figures to enter 10 Downing St. in decades, Boris Johnson, has now joined this illustrious group. Johnson, a Conservative MP and former cabinet minister, has…
From the failed Franco-British Union during the Second World War to Brexit, some things are just meant to fail
In these contentious Brexit days in the United Kingdom, it’s strange to remember that there was once a plan for a Franco-British Union. No, I’m not making that up. However short-lived, the plan was real. On June 16, 1940, the British cabinet approved a “declaration of indissoluble union” to this effect: “France and Great Britain…
We walked back to our lodgings simply wondering if a better day could be had – anywhere. And already tomorrow was beckoning
We crossed over the stone causeway connecting the mainland to St. Michael’s Mount, just as the tide waters were beginning to lap at its seaward foot. We decided to walk along the beachfront to Penzance. It looked about five km on our map. All along the beach, as far as we could see, there were…
Into the U.K.’s Winter of Discontent came a woman of sharp edges and a clear mind about how change would be managed
On May 3, 1979, United Kingdom voters trooped to the polls and produced a result that nobody would have countenanced a mere five years earlier. Defeating the sitting Labour government, Margaret Thatcher led the Conservatives into a lengthy sojourn in office. The novelty derived from the U.K. never having had a female prime minister, let…