Tim Worstall

It was a lengthy piece of research from the Joseph Rowntree Foundation on attitudes to inequality in Britain. And the reason it was so absorbing was that it showed that almost all activists’ and politicians’ assumptions – including mine – about how people feel about inequality are wrong. OK This mass delusion Sigh. The people [...]

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At the ASI. Solving the state pension crisis.

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The French eat more McDonalds per capita than any nation except the Americans. Is that true?

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While many at Westminster argue that allowing MPs to hold down outside employment helps attract high-calibre individuals into politics and keeps parliamentarians in touch with industry, the disclosure that some work long hours for private companies is likely to bring accusations that they are effectively “part-timers”. If an MP has to be solely an MP, [...]

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After Marry and Joseph waz all “We’s gonna get marrieded, kthnx”, but befoor dey cood hav hankiez pankiez Mary was all preggarz from Teh Ceiling Cat.

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see more Political Pictures

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I wrote something elsewhere about how someone says they’re going to reveal the Ark of the Covenant to an adoring world. I was not, as you might imagine, all that serious about their claims. But this is scary. In the comments, someone has, I assume seriously, put this: Is anyone even concerned about what will [...]

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Chancellor Alistair Darling could strip the Bank of England of key powers amid a spat with governor Mervyn King. The Financial Services Authority (FSA) is reportedly set to be given responsibility for maintaining “financial stability” as part of regulation reforms. You don’t want to be giving the box tickers at the FSA more powers, you [...]

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At the ASI. On US health care. Do they spend too much or we too little?

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Curly cucumbers and knobbly carrots are to return to shop shelves in a move that promises to cut the price of some fresh produce by up to 40per cent. An EU ban on the sale of wonky fruit and veg which did not meet the ‘beauty pageant’ standards set by Brussels is to be axed. [...]

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Council workers are taking nearly twice as many sick days as private sector employees, according to a study. The ‘sick note’ culture in the public sector is costing taxpayers £4billion a year. On average local authority employees take 13.5 sick days each year, compared with 7.9 days in the private sector. Clearly working in the [...]

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I like this idea: Instead of lighting an Olympic flame, the Island Games have a water ceremony. Each team brings a flask of water from its island’s shores and pours it into a central fountain, which runs for the duration of the Games.

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Most depressing for councils, satisfaction mostly depends on something they cannot change – the population: happiest places have most graduates, fewest children, least ethnic diversity, least population churn, most private housing. Badly run areas (like Surrey) that are posh places will always score higher satisfaction than good councils (like Blackburn) with four-star ratings and a [...]

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This doesn’t bode well, does it? I am not an economist. Even as an undergraduate, I didn’t take one class in economics or political science. Instead, I took courses that had more relevance to real life and were of more practical use: The Idealism of Plato, Medieval Proofs of the Existence of God and The [...]

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Banks which help their customers to avoid paying tax will be targeted by intensive surveillance from HM Revenue & Customs under a new “name and shame” regime to be announced by Alistair Darling next week. The chancellor is understood to have a hit list of UK and international banks which he will invite to sign [...]

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Geoffrey Lean: For the mountains – or rather the measures taken against the main grain one – proved a godsend to Britain’s fast disappearing farmland birds. Sadly, though, they now face being plunged back into crisis, and ministers seem about to reject a rescue plan. That well-known countryman Lord Mandelson may be partly to blame. [...]

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Even if slowly. Oil giants will be forced to tussle for contracts worth an estimated $16bn (£9.7bn) live on Iraqi television in a bizarre contest they fear could end up resembling a game show. More than 30 energy companies, including BP, Shell and ExxonMobil may be forced to make last-minute alliances and reveal their offers [...]

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This is an interesting pair of numbers: In 2008/09, gross income tax receipts were £152.5 billion. In the same year, social security benefits cost the Exchequer £150.1 billion. In 2009/10, the Treasury is expecting to take in £140.5 billion in gross income tax receipts. Social security benefits are projected to be £164.7 billion. Or pair [...]

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Surprisingly good actually: Last, and possibly best, the ultimate reality channel: TONTINE TV (not to be confused with the reality show that has drifted in and out of development over the last couple of years). As originally conceived over 300 years ago, a tontine was an investment scheme, but I see it as a supercontest. [...]

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As some will know, I spent some years working in Russia. One of the things I noted was that the way they named a company was pretty straightforward. If you were the Nabrezny Chelny Ferroconcrete Plant (to use a completely made up name, it’s actually Kamaz in that town) then as like as not your [...]

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