It is now an archive for my newspaper and magazine pieces. My blog can now be read at: www.spectator.co.uk/stephenpollard
Politics, economics and culture from the master. Unmissable.
Melanie Phillips home page
Melanie Phillips' peerless blog. Read, and learn.
Daniel Finkelstein's Times Comment Central
A daily must-read.
Tim Worstall
Lots of interesting nibbles - and a ruthless swatter of economic gibberish.
Harry's Place
Must-read left of centre blog from writers who understand the threat to the West.
Clive Davis
Always interesting selection of culture and politics, from an Anglo-American bent.
Samizdata
Libertarian blog, packed every day.
Norm's blog
The thoroughly sensible thoughts of renowned left-wing academic Norman Geras, Professor of Government at Manchester. And cricket, too.
Public Interest
Peter Briffa's inimitable take on The Yazzmonster and other assorted demons.
Reform
The public sector reform group; their website is an invaluable source of data and ideas.
Centre for the New Europe
The leading European public policy think tank.
Developed by:
| April | 26 |
| 2006 |
I don't have anything very original to say on Charles Clarke's latest debacle. But heh, that's no reason not to opine.
When I first saw the news yesterday (I was in Brussels) I thought it was a huge cock-up, but that the days of Crichel Down responsibility had long passed, for good or ill. Huge political problem, yes, but not a result of any direct wrongdoing by Mr Clarke. He really did not need to resign.
But that has clearly changed, with last night's revealtion that even after he knew what had been going on - or, rather, I suppose, what had not been going on - in the Home Office, still no action was taken and some 200 foreign prisoners were being released in this government's unique interpretation of care in the community.
Charles Clarke no longer has a leg to stand on, and I cannot see how he can make a credible case that this is not now his own, direct, fault. He did not take chage of his department and clear up a mistake which he knew was being made. He can no longer plead ignorance.
It's not even a question of honour, as some have put it. It's about the most frightening form of incompetence. Other than opening the prison gates himself before their sentences were served (and on that note, I'd love to know how many of them were out on license or parole) you really couldn't get much worse than this.
Charles Clarke simply has to go.
MessageSpace
No wonder he wants to lock us all up without due process and spy on us 24/7. Its just a ploy to cover up for his mistakes.
I think the sad thing about stories like this is it plays straight into the hands of the BNP. They'll probably get an extra couple of councillors out of debacles like this.
Think the latest (Brown inspired?) attack on a key Blair ally has been "distracted" by revalations on Prezza in the way the attack on Ruth Kelly was distracted by revalations about the plot to kidnap little Leo?
This wasn't a mistake. As Pete_London said over on Samizdata, that is 1120 times a prison door was opened and a foreign murderer, rapist, burglar, nonce, committer of violence walked out onto the streets of Britain. Not three or four times, which would be shameful enough and cause for a public investigation. Not one hundred times, which would be horrifying enough to the public. One thousand, one hundred times.
This was no mistake. It was policy. Now they've been rumbled and Clarke, who, like David Blunkett, Peter Mandelson, Stephen Byers, fill-in-the-blanks, has this prime minister's "full confidence", will throw himself on the suttee pyre. Because they've been found out.