The Sunday review: Starbucks
by Anthony PainterI imagine the first Starbucks store that opened in Pike Place market in Seattle was quite an exciting affair. The coffee was probably great. It must have been a remarkable local...
View ArticleSunday Review: my best books of the year
by Anthony PainterA sense of crisis is good for the world of thought it would appear. 2012 has been dominated by a continuing economic crisis – most particularly in Europe. There is not yet a sense...
View ArticleSunday Review: “the Victory Lab: the secret science of winning campaigns” by...
by Anthony Painter Sometimes you find yourself picking up a book with a degree of scepticism and ambivalence. This was one such occasion. Issenberg’s pacy Moneyball-style look at the evolving...
View ArticleSunday Review: the EU phantom menace
by Anthony PainterIn the space of three years, the prime minister has moved Britain from the EU’s cautious awkward customer to the self-destructively preposterous. Let’s be clear, this has absolutely...
View ArticleThe Sunday review: Lincoln
by Anthony PainterAs a director, how can you possibly cope with a figure such as Abraham Lincoln on screen? The most logical projection is to mesh civil war grotesqueness with the oratorical adeptness....
View ArticleFor Labour, the hard work on immigration starts now
by Anthony PainterWhy is Labour obsessing about immigration? Try the fact that – according to a recent Lord Ashcroft poll – two of the top three most salient issues are welfare dependency and...
View ArticleLabour is fighting the wrong campaign
by Anthony PainterSince 1993, Labour performance in county council elections on a national equivalent basis is as follows: 39%, 44%, 42%, 36%, 22% and 29%. Thursday was better than the absolutely...
View ArticleSunday review on Thursday: Left Without A Future by Anthony Painter
by Atul HatwalBreadth. That is the defining characteristic of Anthony’s book. Left Without A Future provides a clear-sighted overview of the forces – economic, societal and cultural – that are...
View ArticleIn the wake of McBride, we need an OBR style independent regulator for...
by Anthony PainterThis morning’s announcement that Labour is going to seek OBR audit of its fiscal plans in 2015 is a smart one. Tactically, it deflects the sort of ‘black hole’ attack from the...
View ArticleTen hard truths for Labour
by David ButlerLabour looks like it is coming apart at the seams. A big Labour rebellion on welfare, a leadership contest that is dragging the party ever further from the centre ground and George...
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