politics

Free healthcare cannot continue

by

So says a Conservative minister in admitting that Andrew Lansley’s NHS reorganisation was the ‘biggest blunder of the Coalition government.’ I never thought I would admit it, but I think he is right. The Health Service is facing massive, and apparently intractable, problems, and many believe that the ‘reforms’ just made them all worse. Unsurprisingly, … Continue Reading

To script or not to script?

by

Ed Miliband admitted this morning that he omitted two key sections from his speech to this year’s Labour Party conference in Manchester—one on immigration and the other on the budget deficit. How could he forget such important sections, when doing do inevitably leads to ruthless criticism? The answer is simple: he gave a 65-minute speech without … Continue Reading

When does help harm?

by

This guest post is a book review by Peter Bates, a friend and member of St Nic’s Church who works in community development. Robert Lupton’s book Toxic Charity (Harper Collins, 2012) is essential reading for anyone who gives time or money to assist the less well off. It’s a remarkably easy read that requires no background … Continue Reading

The most important election issue

by

Polly Toynbee has set out a devastating critique of the Coalition Government’s latest initiative in its strategy of outsourcing. The most terrible power the state can wield is to take children away from their parents for ever. The idea that companies such as Serco and G4S, already under investigation by the Serious Fraud Office, should be invited … Continue Reading

The problem with being a Red-letter Christian

by

‘Red-letter Christians‘ is a movement or network in the States (primarily) initiated by Tony Campolo with the support of Jim Wallis. Alongside Campolo, another main contributor is Shane Claiborne, a leader in the New Monasticism movement. The name of the movement comes from the practice in some Bibles of printing the words of Jesus in … Continue Reading

The problem with capitalism

by

It is not often that a long, technical economic treatise becomes a best-seller. But this is just what has happened with Thomas Piketty’s massive volume Capital in the Twenty-First Century, running as it does to 640 dense pages which includes an enormous amount of economic data and its analysis. Even if that had not happened, as Jeremy … Continue Reading

Maria Miller, corruption and the gospel

by

After a week of pressure and mounting headlines, Maria Miller has resigned her post as Culture Secretary. There has been some speculation that pressure mounted on her from the press because of opposition to the government’s plan to restrict the press and make them more accountable, or from traditional Conservatives because she had been the … Continue Reading

Famous, Rich and Hungry…and Human?

by

I was incredibly moved by the second episode of Famous, Rich and Hungry tonight. If you didn’t get a chance to watch it, then do so if at all you can. The four wealthy celebrities  each moved to a second location, to see if they could apply what they had learnt from their first experiences … Continue Reading

(When) should we retire?

by

The questions around an ageing population and retirement are perhaps the biggest social and financial challenges to Western democracies. To realise this you just need to know some basic statistics on UK Government spending in the current year. Defence        £46.6 bn       6% Education     £49.5 bn     … Continue Reading