Developers are rubbing their hands in glee. Soon, the presumed decision on any planning application in England will be "yes". What does the government have to gain from pushing through these reforms, unpopular with their own voters and the wider public?
Today, local authorities in England have a 'duty to involve' citizens in decision-making. Soon this will be scrapped, leaving only the 'duty to consult'. What is the difference, and what does this mean for English democracy?
Should the marginal rate of income tax be reduced for very high earners? Jeremy Fox argues that there is no obvious link to growth. But the link to government revenue is much better understood, argues Michael Bullen, and the numbers suggest that 50% is too high
The tendency to press reality into a heritage mould traps England in political aspic, says David Hayes.
A pleasant discussion with the authors of the first book on the new young leader of the Labour Party fails to light at least one person's touchpaper.
Financial regulation in the wake of the credit crisis is a simpler matter than the re-moralising advocated by Roger Scruton (Unreal Estates). Simply return to the regulatory environment pre-1999 and press on with transparency in markets
David Cameron pledged in the wake of England's riots to address the country's 'rights not responsibilities' culture. Will the Liberal Democrats stand firm against the Prime Minister's hostility to human rights legislation?
The dinner-party is a symbol of complacent presumption, the last occasion to be associated with genuine dialogue or the jolt of rethinking. But it’s possible to renew the ritual in surprising ways - and really caring about the food is just the start, says Keith Kahn-Harris.
The slow implosion of the Soviet Union in the late 1980s was echoed in the internal divisions and crises that consumed its western associates. Indeed, the once influential Communist Party of Great Britain faced its own trauma exactly a year before the attempted coup against Mikhail Gorbachev. Geof
A four-night outbreak of riotous disorder in London and other English cities in early August 2011 is a potent argument for social repair. But lack of agreement on fundamentals could soon prove fatal to progress, says David Hayes.
What does it take to remoralize society? How do values actually work as social phenomena? Support services for children know that the most successful interventions are long-term ones, but these are not the most attractive options for politicians seeking eye-catching, new policy initiatives.
The UK will be sidelined in Europe as the euro-crisis leads the Euro group to form the faster core of a two-speed Europe. Both Europe and Britain will be worse off for it
