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Honda Have Bought the British Government...or have they?

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Honda Have Bought the British Government...or have they?

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Watch this Fry and Laurie comedy sketch from the early 1990s.
What parallels and similarities can you find in the sketch with government in Britain today?
Is this really so far-fetched nowadays?

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Hugh Laurie's News Flash - A Bit of Fry and Laurie - BBC

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Pick a blog and follow it. Even if you don't agree with the blogger, it will challenge you to think about issues from a different point of view and keep your knowledge up to date.

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Pick a blog and follow it. Even if you don't agree with the blogger, it will challenge you to think about issues from a different point of view and keep your knowledge up to date.

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The number one political blog in the UK is Guido Fawkes, originally created in September 2004 by Paul Staines. 'The primary motivation for the creation of the site was purely to make mischief at the expense of politicians and for the founding author's own self-gratification,' goes the origin story from Paul, who found other such blogs at the time 'too earnest and serious'. Guido's mix of news, rumour and gossip has since made it a major mover in the world of Westminster, capable of changing the political landscape. Whichever way you're affiliated politically, it's a key place to visit if you want to keep up with the latest goings-on in the halls of power.
2. ConservativeHome
In the same spot as last year's ranking, the 'home of conservatism' continues to encourage conversation among its readers while covering everything going on in the party. A lot has changed since Tim Montgomerie launched the site back in 2005 for grassroots Conservative members. ConservativeHome uses its independent stance to cover news in its ToryDiary section, reports on what's happening across the corridor in its LeftWatch channel, and publishes opinion and feature pieces in the MPs ETC, Local Government, Majority and Think Tank parts of the site. Now edited by Paul Goodman, this blog is one to keep an eye on as the nation watches the ruling party's reaction to the challenges of 2020.
3. Wings Over Scotland
Rev. Stuart Campbell's blog focuses on the political landscape in Scotland with a straightforward style and brutal honesty (the most honest, or brutal, perhaps being its ranking for 'The Thickest Politician In Scotland'). If you're new to the blog, check out the About Us page for choice quotes on its content from media outlets including STV News, The Herald and the Daily Mail, and even opinions from politicians themselves. What you'll also find is sharp insight on how the media is covering politics in Scotland as well as original commentary and analysis from its contributors.
4. LabourList
Supporting Labour while remaining independent from it, LabourList launched in 2009 as a forum for discussion of, and news from, the party. It's News, Comment, Video, Brexit, Unions, Selections, Local and Scotland channels aim to cover everything happening in the party and writers range from grassroots activists to peers and current MPs. Readers are also an important part of the blog, which encourages its visitors to share their takes on the latest political news alongside its contributors. Leading the team is Sienna Rodgers, who brings experience from her work in journalism and activism for the party.
5. PoliticalBetting.com
If something lighter yet informative is what you're looking for in a political blog, PoliticalBetting is a safe bet. Describing itself as 'the best online resource for betting on politics', this platform for political gamblers and forecasters posts analysis, statistics and polls for predicting what might happen next in global politics. Founder Mike Smithson comes from a journalism and politics background and has been combining the two on the blog since its foundation in 2004. With things changing in politics across the world by the day, check out Mike's predictions for what might happen tomorrow.
6. Slugger O'Toole
Multilingual content is what makes Slugger O'Toole unique - contributions come in English, Irish and Welsh and cover news from the Republic of Ireland, Britain and across the globe. Aiming to bring its audience 'open source analysis' from the blogosphere and the mainstream media, the team are 'constantly on the look out for opportunities to add value to the debate of matters of regional, national and international concern'. Slugger O'Toole started life in 2002 as a place for founder Mike Fealty to share Northern Irish political news - now its focus reaches further and doesn't shy away from controversial issues, whatever language they come in.
7. Left Foot Forward
Edited by Josiah Mortimer and Joe Lo, this space for progressives on the left of the political sphere aims to provide fresh takes on current affairs. Unaffiliated to any political parties, Left Foot Forward keeps its posts evidence-based to analyse current policy. Topical contributions from its readers as well as campaigners and politicians are welcomed, particularly if they come with new or unreported data people should know about, reports of unbalanced media coverage, or any debate on the British left. There's certainly lots to talk about - put your Left Foot Forward if you have something to share.

Craig Murray has had a busy career and brings a wealth of experience to his eponymous blog. The campaigner, broadcaster and author was British Ambassador to Uzbekistan from August 2002 to October 2004 and Rector of the University of Dundee from 2007 to 2010 and regularly speaks at events on a variety of topics. This blog has a popular comments section with posts attracting healthy debate among its many politically engaged readers. If you can't get to a family meal to argue politics at the moment but have thoughts to share, this is an ideal place to visit and interact.
9. Bella Caledonia
Unaligned to any party, Bella Caledonia was created in 2007 by Mike Small and Kevin Williamson. Focusing on Scottish independence and aiming to provide conclusions uninfluenced by the mainstream media, the blog welcomes viewpoints from readers, campaigners and people working in the creative industries. Bella Caledonia aims to create a movement that is 'vigorous and insatiably curious' and sections including Arts & Culture, Opinion, Media, International and Economics reflect each way politics influences all aspects of our daily lives.

This blog from award-winning radio presenter Iain Dale often features posts inspired by discussions from his work on LBC's Evening Show - recent posts focus on strains on the NHS, surviving self-isolation and how to help struggling businesses. A respected political commentator, Iain regularly writes for publications including The Daily Telegraph and the Evening Standard, was a contributing editor for GQ magazine, a columnist for Attitude, founded Total Politics magazine and was one of the team behind Politico's Bookstore. Here you can find regular updates and his take on current events on the website as well as news on his books and upcoming talks.

The fundamentals of working with bloggers are the same as with traditional journalists at traditional media outlets: respect their schedules; take time to read their material to learn their interests; and only contact them if/when they want to be contacted.

Vuelio's blog ranking methodology takes into consideration social sharing, topic-related content and post frequency. Profiles of these Political blogs and their authors can be found in the Vuelio Media Database.

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The number one political blog in the UK is Guido Fawkes, originally created in September 2004 by Paul Staines. 'The primary motivation for the creation of the site was purely to make mischief at the expense of politicians and for the founding author's own self-gratification,' goes the origin story from Paul, who found other such blogs at the time 'too earnest and serious'.

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The world in 2021 – how global politics will change this year

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Donald Trump’s departure will alter the face of geopolitics. The climate crisis and Covid response will affect all nations – while others face very particular challenges. Observer correspondents examine the 12 months ahead

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John Locke Institute Essay Writing Competition

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John Locke Institute Essay Writing Competition

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What better way to prepare for studying politics at university than to win a politics essay writing competition! Final date for entries is 30th June 2021.
As they say on their website, "Entering an essay in our competition can build knowledge, and refine skills of argumentation. It also gives students the chance to have their work assessed by experts. All of our essay prizes are judged by senior academics from the University of Oxford. The judges will choose their favourite essay from each subject category and an overall 'best essay' across seven subjects: Philosophy, Politics, Economics, History, Psychology, Theology and Law."

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2023 Essay Competition | John Locke Institute

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Watch this Ted Talk by comedian Al Murray on why politics is important.

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Why politics is no joke | Al Murray | TEDxLondon

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Read the article from the BBC on the UK government's decision to cut the foreign aid budget by £4 billion.
This is an extremely important issue and one which cuts across many different academic disciplines.
Consider how the story could be analysed from the following different perspectives: a UK government minister, an aid worker in a developing country and a person living in extreme poverty in Tanzania.
The ability to analyse issues from different perspectives is a key skill you will need to develop when studying politics at university.
www.bbc.co.uk/news/57362816

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There's growing controversy over cuts to UK spending on foreign aid.

The annual aid budget has been reduced from 0.7% to 0.5% of national income, and opponents of the cuts are calling for them to be reversed.

So where are they falling, and who is likely to feel the impact?

Foreign aid has been increasing over the years, in line with a commitment to meet a target of spending 0.7% of total (or gross) national income (GNI).

The promise to meet this UN-backed target dates back to the 1970s, and was enshrined into law in 2015.

Last year, foreign aid spending fell for the first time in about a decade - although it still met the 0.7% target because the overall economy shrank due to the pandemic.

In November last year, the government announced as part of its spending review that it would reduce aid spending to 0.5% of national income due to the difficult economic situation.

The government says the UK remains one of the largest aid donors in the world.

Before the cuts, it had the second highest contribution as a percent of GNI of the G7 group representing the world's leading economies.

Several other countries exceeded the UN aid target of 0.7% in 2020 - including Denmark (0.73%), Norway (1.11%) and Sweden (1.14%).

And as the UK looks to cut its budget to 0.5% of GNI, some developed countries have pledged to increase spending.

France has committed to a 0.7% contribution by 2025, and US President Joe Biden has proposed an increase in America's foreign aid.

Where does foreign aid go?

UK aid funding supports hundreds of different projects around the world.

The bulk of spending in 2020 - more than 55% - was in the Africa region and used for bilateral aid. That's aid earmarked for specific projects or programmes in particular countries.

The bulk of these go into infrastructure development and initiatives to manage climate change risks.

Government figures for 2019 show that Pakistan was the top recipient that year of bilateral aid, followed by Ethiopia, Afghanistan, Yemen, Nigeria, Bangladesh and Syria.

Some UK money is also given to international bodies like the UN and others to spend as they see fit - this is multilateral aid.

In recent years, most UK aid has been bilateral (roughly two-thirds), rather than multilateral.

This is hard to quantify currently because detailed information about specific cuts to funding hasn't been made available by the government.

However, some charities as well UN agencies have already spoken out about the impact on them.

The UN's family planning agency (UNFPA) looks set to lose some 85% of its funding from the UK, a drop of about £130m.

UNAIDS is also set to lose about 80% of its funding from the UK.

The organisation says that UK funding will drop from £110m last year to just £5m this year.

The International Rescue Committee (IRC) says its work in Syria has been severely impacted with up to 75% of the funding reduced from last year.

In Yemen, regarded as the world's worst humanitarian disaster, the UK's commitment to relief efforts for 2021 has gone down to £87.2m ($123.23m) from the £139.1m ($196.56m) that was pledged in 2020.

In Pakistan, the bulk of the money is spent on poverty reduction programmes, education, managing water resources, health and other humanitarian initiatives.

The nuclear-armed state has high levels of deprivation, with nearly a third of people living in poverty, and one in eleven children dying before they are five years old.

According to the International Rescue Committee (IRC), the cuts will have an impact on education, and nearly 11,000 girls in rural Pakistan may not attend school if the funding stops.

In a letter accessed by the BBC, eight non-governmental organisations (NGOs) that provide humanitarian aid to Bangladesh's Rohingya refugees say UK funding of £321m has been cut by 42%.

In Nigeria, funding goes to projects on financial inclusion, food, education, health care, solar energy for schools and hospitals, electoral processes and civil society organisations.

Women for Women International - Nigeria says the UK has terminated a three-year grant agreement that was "halfway through" implementation.

"I have never encountered a situation in which a funder...reneges on its promise part way through," says Bukola Onyishi, country manager for the NGO.

What does the government say?

He also said that the UK would be the third biggest donor in terms of percentage of GNI based on 2020 data, but did not refer directly to the reductions in spending.

The government has also defended the move as a "temporary measure" on the grounds that at a time of economic difficulty, UK voters would expect priority to be given to domestic spending.

A survey done this February showed more than 70% of Britons believed it should be either stopped or reduced given the impact of the pandemic on the UK's finances.

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Foreign aid: Who will be hit by the UK government cuts?

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There's growing controversy over cuts to UK spending on foreign aid. The annual aid budget has been reduced from 0.7% to 0.5% of national income, and opponents of the cuts are calling for them to be reversed. So where are they falling, and who is likely to feel the impact?

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As you leave us to carry on your studies at university, please make use of the resources on this page. They will help you to develop your knowledge of politics and your skills in preparation for higher education.

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As you leave us to carry on your studies at university, please make use of the resources on this page. They will help you to develop your knowledge of politics and your skills in preparation for higher education.