Published on
10 April 2013
The strongest in society have a duty to support the weakest. As with any duty it is better that it be fulfilled voluntarily. In this instance this is by far the better course because such a duty frequently concerns the disposal of private property. But this duty is rarely fulfilled to the satisfaction of social […]
Published on
18 April 2012
Posted in Big Society, British Politics, Public Policy, Social Commentary
One measure announced in the recent budget has provoked much discussion, namely that proposing to remove unlimited tax relief on donations to charity. Tax relief on charitable donations was introduced by the Thatcher government as a means of encouraging philanthropy among high-earners. If an individual donates a suitably large amount to charity, the relief means […]
Published on
14 March 2012
Posted in Big Society, Ethics in Business, Political Economy, Public Policy, Virtue
Following the financial crash of 2008 the economic ideas of John Meynard Keynes experienced a revival. Some argue that the recent policies of both the British and American governments are Keynesian. The British Prime Minister at the height of the crisis, Gordon Brown, actually referenced Keynes in announcing a fiscal stimulus. Keynes is well-known for […]
Published on
3 February 2012
From a guest blogger: A position commonly held by ‘reformers’ in various religious traditions in this country may be summarised roughly in the following lines: If the central authority of a religion is at odds with beliefs held by the majority of that its adherents, the former is duty-bound to reconsider and even to change […]
Published on
26 January 2012
Posted in Big Society, British Politics, Civil Liberties, Public Policy, Social Commentary
Let us start out from a hypothetical situation, in which you, the reader, have just taken ownership of an expensive car. Immediately afterwards you go on a brief holiday to a foreign country. The writer of this article offers to look after the car whilst you are on holiday. Most readers do not know the […]
Published on
17 June 2011
Posted in Big Society, British Politics, Education, Public Policy
A question for readers: what is the difference between a Free School, an Academy, and a Swedish School? No, it is not that the latter boasts clog-shod teachers trained in ABBA dance routines, but that they are simply different names for what is essentially the same idea, introduced by the previous Labour Government, and extended […]
Published on
13 June 2011
Posted in Big Society, British Politics, Christianity, Conscience, Ethics in the Media, Religion
As a Catholic and an Englishman I have never quite understood the enthusiasm of some of my European co-religionists for the idea that there must be strict separation between state and Church, and have often thought that the amusement to be derived from watching indignant Frenchmen flail their arms around indignantly about Bishops sitting in […]
Published on
21 April 2011
Posted in Big Society, British Politics
Recent years have seen interesting developments in political thought. Two years ago, Phillip Blond wrote an article for Prospect magazine – ‘The Rise of the Red Tories’ – calling for a new brand of ‘civic conservatism’ which would be ‘socially conservative but sceptical of neoliberal economics’. He criticised the big market vs. big state dichotomy […]