The commentators                    28-10-15

...on tax credits

Did the conduct of the House of Lords in voting down George Osborne’s tax credit reform represent wisdom and compassion by the legislature’s revising chamber? Or was it instead a parade of self-indulgent protest politics by a rabble of superannuated placemen, left-behind Lefties and flatulent bishops? The BBC’s account suggests opponents of the measure, led by veteran Labour peer Baroness Hollis, displayed rhetoric worthy of Cicero and the statesmanship of a bygone age. The rest of us, though, are left to scratch our heads about how long the absurdities of the Lords can be allowed to continue.
- Max Hastings, Daily Mail
The Lords is the only thing stopping George Osborne making three million families about £1,300 a year worse off. Not common sense, or the fact that most people – including some Tory MPs – think the £4.4bn of tax credits cuts are dangerously unfair. But a collection of unelected peers, aristocats, Ladies, Barons, and bishops. Poor George Osborne. Well, poor probably isn’t the right word –  in 2012 it was estimated that he was worth £4.5 million. But still, you’ve got to feel for him. He did everything he was supposed to. He spent all that time at private school, gained membership to Oxford's Bullingdon Club, and even went on shoots with a bunch of horsey looking blokes. All of that, only for the Lords to reject his big plan to make the poor poorer
- Max Benwell, The Independent
Allison Pearson
If the Conservative Party had told voters in advance what it was going to do, then the Government would not have been humiliated on Monday night. The Salisbury Convention prevents the Lords opposing second or third readings of a Bill that appeared in the governing party’s manifesto. But the Tories anticipated, quite correctly, that cutting benefits to people who are in low-paid work would be deeply unpopular. So they didn’t bother to spell it out in their manifesto
- Allison Pearson, Daily Telegraph
Even Conservative MPs and ministers who cannot stand Osborne believe that the row over tax credit cuts will ultimately make no difference to his leadership bid. And his large fan club in the 2015 intake doesn’t seem to have lost heart. “Even if he disagrees with what we say, he takes the trouble to listen,” says a new MP. These are the men and women who will, to a large extent, decide whether he succeeds David Cameron. And if the chancellor does manage to mitigate the cuts, and if Labour remains in turmoil in 2020, the electorate at large may conclude that a vote for an Osborne-led Conservative party is a vote for the devil you know. Team Osborne has a lot of hypotheticals to overcome before their man can move next door to No 10. But one thing is for sure: he cannot afford too many more weeks like this one
- Isabel Hardman, The Times
The Conservatives might have won a small majority at Westminster but they cannot rule the UK in the way they, or indeed other parties, used to. Politics is viewed on the assumption that a Conservative Government rules mightily against a Labour party in disarray. There is plenty of ammunition for such an assumption, but take a step back, look around the wider UK and a subtler, complex picture emerges
​- Steve Richards, The Independent
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Corbyn needs to get to grips with the mainstream media. Shunning Andrew Marr and the Sun is not a strategy that will lead to electoral success.
But the Press, too, must rethink. If people are offended by Corbyn's singalong choices or dress sense, it is fair that they are reported. If his oratory leaves something to be desired, it is fair that that, too, is commented upon. But let's get this into perspective. Those are side issues; the first job of the Press is to report the news, so when a new leader makes his first important setpiece speech, it would be good if newspapers told us what he said rather than what they thought
- Editor's blog: All singing from the wrong hymn sheet

Comment Awards, 2015

Yomi Adegoke
Yomi Adegoke: two nominations
Sathnam Sanghera
Sathnam Sanghera: four nominations
Thursday 17 September, 2015 The Financial Times and The Times again lead the way in this year's ei Comment Awards, with eleven nominations apiece in the shortlists announced today.
Sathnam Sanghera is responsible for four of those Times nominations  - featuring in the media commentator, diversity, technology and individual comment piece categories.
Freelance Yomi Adegoke  who founded Birthday Magazine for black teenage girls, is among four writers shortlisted in two categories - in her case young commentariat and media commentator. 
George Monbiot of the Guardian completes the media line-up and is also nominated as science commentator and Gillian Tett of the FT is listed in both business and economics.
Her colleague Janan Ganesh is shortlisted for political commentator and the big prize - commentariat of the year, where he is up against the two most recent winners David Aaronovitch (also nominated for comment piece of the year) and Caitlin Moran.
SubScribe is honoured and surprised to find a place on the individual blogger shortlist, and fully expects to come third behind Barrister Blogger Matthew Scott and Stuart Forster of Go-eat-Do.
You can see all the shortlists here.

Comment archive, 2015

Greek debt
July 3 Grexit
July 2 Heathrow
July 1 Grexit
June 30 Grexit
June 29 Tunisian massacre
Labour hustings
June 19 Greece and Europe
June 18 UK politics
June 17 Politics
June 16 Social mobility
June 15 Politics
June 5 Fifa
June 4 Politics
June 3 Charles Kennedy
June 2 British politics
June 1 Fifa
labour leadership contenders
May 22 UK politics
May 21 UK politics
May 20 The Labour party
May 19 The NHS
May 18 UK politics
ballot box
May 8 General election
May 7 General election
May 6 General election
May 5 General election
Sturgeon and Salmond
April 24 General election
April 23 General election
April 22 General election
April 21 Drowned refugees
April 20 Scottish National Party
Westminster
April 10 General election
April 9 General election
April 8 General election
April 7 General election
Ed Miliband
March 27 Prince Charles's letters
March 26 UK politics
March 25 Cameron's exit strategy
March 24 Lee Kwan Yew
March 23 UK politics
Jim Murphy, Scottish Labour party conference
March 13 UK politics
March 12 Jeremy Clarkson
March 11 UK politics
March 10 UK politics
March 9 UK politics
Rifkind and Straw
February 27 UK politics
February 26 Minor party leaders
February 25 Natalie Bennett
February 24 Rifkind and Straw
February 23 World affairs
Merkel and Putin
February 13 UK politics
February 12 UK politics
February 11 UK politics
February 10 UK politics
February 9 Politics
Alexis Tsipras
January 30 Rape law
January 29 UK politics
January 28 UK politics
January 27 Greece
January 26 UK politics
Hebdo demo
January 16 World politics
January 15 Election debates
January 14 Charlie Hebdo
January 13 Charlie Hebdo
January 12 Charlie Hebdo
Alexis Tsipras
June 26 Monarchy and Brexit
June 25 UK politics
June 24 UK politics
June 23 Greece
June 22 Greece
Merkel, Obama G7
June 12 Politics
June 11 Politics
June 10 Politics
June 9 Europe
June 8 Politics
Picture
May 29 Fifa
May 28 The Queen's Speech
May 27 Europe
May 26 UK politics
New Tory MPs
May 15 Ukip and Labour
May 14 The Labour party
May 13 The Labour party
May 12 UK politics
May 11 Scotland
Picture
May 1 General election
April 30 General election
April 29 General election
April 28 General election
April 27 General election
manifestos
April 17 General election
April 16 General election
April 15 General election
April 14 General election
April 13 General election
dissolution parliament
April 2 General election
April 1 General election
March 31 General election
March 30 Depression 
George Osborne
March 20 UK politics
March 19 The Budget
March 18 UK politics
March 17 Race in Britain
March 16 UK politics
Boris Nemtsov
March 6 Scotland and the election
March 5 Isis
March 4 UK politics
March 3 Radicalisation
March 2 Russia
Copenhagen
February 20 UK politics
February 19 Chelsea and racism
February 18  UK politics
February 17 UK politics
February 16 Copenhagen 
education
February 6 UK politics
February 5 Isis atrocity
February 4 UK politics
February 3 UK politics
February 2 UK politics
Pope Francis
January 23 UK politics
January 22 Chilcot inquiry
January 21 Page Three
January 20 Anti-semitism 
January 19 Religion and freedom
Charb
January 9 Charlie Hebdo
January 8 Charlie Hebdo
January 7 UK politics
January 6 UK politics
January 5 UK politics
For EI daily digests from June to December 2014 please click here
Comment digest courtesy of
Editorial Intelligence
House of Lords
October 27
Tax credits
October 26
​Lords v Commons
Picture
October 23
UK politics
October 22
UK politics
​October 21
Xi Jinping
October 20
Xi Jinping visit
​October 19
Xi Jinping's visit
Picture
October 16
Politics
October 15
Politics
October 14
Politics
October 13
EU referendum
October 12
EU referendum
Picture
October 9
Politics
October 8
Cameron speech
October 7
Conservatives
​October 6
Conservatives
​October 5
Conservatives
Picture
​
October 2
UK politics
October 1
Labour conference
September 30
Labour conference
September 29
Politics
September 28
Volkswagen
Cameron and pig
September 25
Politics
​September 24
Volkswagen
September 23
Politics
September 22
"Pig-gate"
September 21
Politics
Jeremy Corbyn
September 18
Labour
September 17
Jeremy Corbyn
September 16
Jeremy Corbyn
September 15
Jeremy Corbyn
September 14
Jeremy Corbyn
September 11
Jeremy Corbyn
September 10
Migrant crisis
September 9
Drone strikes
September 8
Migrant crisis
September 7 
Migrant crisis
European integration
September 4
Migrant crisis
September 3
Migrant crisis
September 2
Europe
September 1
Politics
Kings College Cambridge
August 28
Virginia TV shootings
August 27
Jeremy Corbyn
August 26
Politics
August 25
Politics
August 24
Labour leadership
Labour leadership candidates
August 21
Politics
August 20
Student debt
August 19
Labour leadership
August 18
Labour leadership
August 17
Labour leadership
Jeremy Corbyn
August 14
Labour leadership
August 13
Politics
August 12
Politics
August 11
Politics
August 10
Labour leadership
Camila Batmanghelidjh
August 7
Kids Company
August 6
Kids Company
August 5
Labour leadership
August 4
Labour leadership
August 3
Calais
Calais
July 31
Calais
July 30
Calais
July 29
Labour leadership
July 28
Lord Sewel
July 27
Labour leadership
Jeremy Corbyn
July 24
Labour leadership
July 23
Labour leadership
July 22
Labour leadership
July 21
Counter-terrorism
July 20
Boris Johnson, Greece
Picture
July 17
UK politics
July 16
UK politics
July 15
Iran
July 14
Greece
July 13
Greece
Picture
July 10
Budget
July 9
Budget
July 8
The Budget
July 7
Greece
July 6
Taxation
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