Politics

By Rachel Wilson, Political Reporter In a rich country such as the UK, there should be certain minimum standards below which no one should fall. In 2010, for the first time ever, the government set itself the target to end childhood poverty for good. Households Below Average Income (HBAI) is the definitive national measure of relative child poverty as set out in the Child Poverty Act 2010 and is based on an annual Family Resources Survey. According to the latest...

By Phil Benton  Follow @paolobento The UK is not a cycling country. Well not yet, at least. In 2012, just two per cent of all journeys were made by bike according to government statistics. In August of this year, David Cameron unveiled ambitious plans to start ‘a cycling revolution’ with the government providing a cash investment of £94 million to help promote cycling in several English cities and national parks. The money is designed to help improve existing cycle routes, fund...

By Joe Mellor, In house Reporter Dangerous immigrants are in this country to sponge from the state, devour royal swans and car jack pensioners.It’s a fact, deal with it.And soon an influx of Bulgarians and Romanians are coming to pester you for change outside your local Pizza Express.But that’s not until January 1st, so in the “mean” time, Home Secretary Theresa May has decided to deport a dying man on hunger strike, after his asylum application failed.What an understanding and caring...

By Pieter Cranenbroek – International Politics Blogger Music has always been a stage used to criticise the political order, but in the past week Morrissey and Billy Bragg both decided to air their grievances on politics and society off stage. Both singers stressed the problem with the lack of accountability in modern society, though they portrayed different views on how such a thing might be rectified. It is refreshing to have entertainers speak out about politics, partly because they can speak...

By Jack Peat, Editor of The London Economic The Madeleine McCann story offers the most potent example of what makes British media tick and what British people want to read. Although crimes and atrocities occur every day, there are criteria which land them on page nine and conditions which qualify it for extraordinary media coverage, bordering on the obsessive. For the missing girls of India or teenagers in London enslaved by gangs it's the former, in Madeleine McCann's case it was...

Ahh Hull, the eternal city of love. Well, not really, but my parents met there, so take that Paris, Rome and Venice. Also, in my murky past I worked in the city as a Regeneration Consultant (don’t ask me what one is, I’m still not sure), so I have spent a lot of time in the jewel of East Riding.  More than most people who scoff at the city, or ignore it completely. To be honest, it’s not a difficult area...

Behind the scenes with Ben Gelblum TV outside the box Today at 5pm GMT on the eighth floor of a high-rise block in Wembley, broadcasting history will be made. Over the past six months, an enthusiastic crew spearheaded by sports presenter and Green Party spokesman turned anti-establishment maverick David Icke have been feverishly putting together the world’s first internet-based live television station. A station dedicated to taking on the mainstream media and giving a voice to the voiceless all over...

By Tomás McGoldrick, Ireland Correspondent  The suggestion by Northern Ireland’s attorney general John Larkin that there should be no further inquiries, inquests or prosecutions for Troubles related killings before the 1998 peace agreement has met with almost universal condemnation. The majority of victims have rejected the idea as an outrage, it isn’t supported by any of the parties in the Executive and David Cameron - just back from telling another state how to deal with the legacy of its own civil...

By Pieter Cranenbroek, International Politics Blogger In recent years it has become increasingly difficult to out yourself as a pro-European. The hosanna accompanying the European project in the 1990s that culminated in the move towards a political union seems to have vaporised. Rather than being forced to promote its policies, the EU has been forced to defend its existence and far right parties reap the harvests of this situation. However, it is important to remember that extremists have never got us...