Radicals and Democrats and Renewals, oh my!

It’s getting very hard to go on social media these days without bumping into someone declaring that they’re going to be creating their own new centrist political party and inviting everyone to join. In this era of Warholian politics, everyone gets to be…

Is ‘centrist’ being used more often now?

Following on from my Prospect article, I’ve been wondering about a perception that we seem to be using and discussing terms like ‘centrist’ and ‘centrism’ now, though there’s also the chance of it being selective perception on my part, given my PhD topic.…

What is centrism?

Because I like to take on the big questions of our time – and probably offend everyone in the process with my answers – I’ve a piece at Prospect magazine attempting to define centrism.

On Macron, elsewhere

My Political Quarterly article ‘Macron’s lessons for the British centre’ is now available free, so please go read it and tell me how many errors I’ve made in it. It’s based in part on this post I wrote a couple of months ago,…

Whether you like it or not

There’s been a few times in Doctor Who‘s history where the show has done stories that have featured thinly-veiled features of its own fans. However, some (and I stress some, most definitely not all, not even a majority) of the reactions I’ve seen…

On the new Doctor

At some point this afternoon, probably around half an hour after the umpire says ‘Game, Set and Match Federer/Cilic’ we’ll find out who the new Doctor is. Whoever they are, they’ll be the fifth new Doctor since the announcement of the series’ return…

Of centrists, radicals and liberals

As the Liberal Democrat leadership election now appears likely to consist of just two stages – closing nominations, and announcing Vince Cable is the winner – attention now turns to what direction the party will head in under its new leader, with some…

Cable needs to speak up and answer questions before he gets crowned as leader

I was once elected as a Liberal Democrat leader without a contest. Long term readers of this blog (I like to pretend there are some) or those few with memories of Colchester politics of more than four years will remember that I was…

Governing, auditing and opening up the Council

Some of you may have heard the news that I’m the chair of Colchester Borough Council’s Governance and Audit Committee for the next year, after being Deputy Chair of it last year. As I wrote last year, Governance and Audit is a committee…

Name that year

It was a tumultuous political time. The Conservative British Prime Minister wanted to consolidate their authority and called a snap General Election. The signs had looked good for an increased majority, but in a surprising result, they actually lost their majority and were…