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In the case of George Osborne’s pension reforms the ‘freedom’ to spend your whole pension pot in one go, rather than have a guaranteed income for life through a mandatory annuity, goes too far against the collective good. The Institute for Fiscal Studies says the changes are a serious risk and based on ‘highly uncertain assumptions’, while annuity provider Partnership points out that 35 per cent of Americans run out of money before they die thanks to the kind of system the Tories are introducing. If a third of United Kingdom pensioners were to have their income drop in this way it will inevitably have dire consequences for our social care system which is already on the brink of collapse.

Posted by Edward Davie on 26 March 2014

Decriminalising licence fee evasion is madness. It will only cut funding. So what does the Labour frontbench think it is doing running along behind Tory member of parliament Andrew Bridgen’s bill? I met Bridgen once when I was doing the Daily Politics recently and because I defended the licence fee he assumed I was a BBC employee. I should say ‘accused’. He is vituperative. The Tories do not care about decriminalising licence fee evasion. They simply hate the BBC. Not because it is leftwing but because they are Maoists. They  want a Cultural Revolution. Leave them to it, I say. Do not give them any cover.

Posted by John McTernan on 28 March 2014

For centre-left parties, being hawkish on the deficit is not purely an act of electoral pragmatism, but is also an affirmation of political principle. Following Osborne’s inept handling of the public finances, by 2018-19 the UK will be spending 3.8 per cent of GDP on debt interest payments – more than we presently spend on the entire schools system. It should be remembered that debt interest is current spending forgone on education, early years intervention, poverty alleviation, youth training, and so on. Around the world, election-winning progressive parties have always put macroeconomic prudence and low public debt at the core of their programmatic appeal – especially the Nordic social democrats in Sweden, Denmark and Norway. For Labour in Britain, there should be no compromise on fiscal responsibility.

Posted by Patrick Diamond on 18 March 2014

Workplace sexism

To say I have experienced a degree of sexism in almost every workplace would not be an exaggeration. However, there are a couple of exceptions. Working in the office of Australian prime minister Julia Gillard is one of the exceptions. Political debate and the record of the then leader of the opposition, Tony Abbott, meant sexism was a hot topic in the office. Never more so than in the moments after Gillard walked back from the parliamentary chamber having delivered ‘the misogyny speech’. It is one of the finest examples of parliamentary prowess I have ever seen. Watching it also gives an idea of what the prime minister was having to endure on a daily basis from the man who wanted her job. As in so many cases of workplace discrimination, bullying and sexism this spoke volumes of the perpetrators, not their target.

Posted by Rachel Maycock on 7 March 2014

The mayor of London and police chiefs claim that the use of water cannon has significant public support. It is certainly the case that polls of the public in London appear to support this. However, a city badly let down by police tactics in the last major public disorder may see this as a necessary evil to protect them next time. This is one occasion when public support is not enough to justify a change. This is a test for the leadership of police and crime commissioners across the country. Several have already expressed misgivings, although I was amazed to see that the Association of Chief Police Officers’ briefing suggests that, as an ‘operational’ decision, this is not a subject that PCCs have control over. If PCCs cannot influence a key strategic shift in public order policing it seems hard to see the point of them.

Posted by Jacqui Smith on 24 March 2014

While the current construction boom in Qatar is financed by oil, it is the 1.3 million foreign nationals – 94 per cent of the total workforce – who are paying a heavy price. International attention has now focused on the fact that hundreds of Nepalese and Indian workers have died in Qatar since 2010, and on credible estimates that thousands more are likely to die before 2022. The much-trumpeted ‘workers’ welfare standards charter’ released by Qatari organisers last month will only be applicable to designated ‘World Cup sites’ – a worker fitting seats inside a stadium will be covered, but those building the roads to the grounds or working inside fans’ hotels will not. The narrow definition means that currently only 79 workers in all of Qatar are currently covered. This number will of course increase, but International Trade Union Confederation general secretary Sharan Burrow could be forgiven for damning the new standards as a ‘sham’.

Posted by John Mann MP on 26 March 2014

The single biggest question facing the UK and the European Union is its willingness to accept genuine short-term economic and political pain for the sake of the long-term security of Europe and the maintenance of fundamental international norms. One set of trade-offs, over energy, falls heavily on central and southern Europe. The other, over finance, falls squarely on London. During a period in which the mercantilisation of British foreign policy and the abdication of its leadership role in the EU has already raised serious doubts about the UK’s credibility as a strategic actor, the extent to which Ed Miliband and Douglas Alexander respond to Russian provocation with progressive vigour could hardly be more consequential.

Posted by Kirsty McNeill and Andrew Small on 21 March 2014