Analysis archive

Penalising securitisation market 'will hit real economy'
The securitisation industry has launched a new label for high quality asset-backed securities, but its effectiveness in helping to solve Europe's funding gap is likely to depend on more positive signals from policy-makers, writes Rick Watson

Top-down leadership too common in charities
Instead of adopting the obvious and easy option of top-down management, charity leaders should opt for a so-called bottom-line approach that puts performance and the future of the organisation first, writes Graham Jones

Anti-smoking campaigners 'hooked on legislation'
As a UK government consultation on plain packaging for cigarettes ends, Christopher Snowdon wonders why anti-smoking campaigners are addicted to new legislation even when bereft of empirical evidence to support their claims

British policing 'plagued' by political correctness
Despite all the talk from politicians about being tough on crime, nothing ever happens – claims Godfrey Bloom as he joins the race to become one of Britain's new elected police commissioners

Olympics perfect platform to boost language learning
The London Olympics have been a celebration of international sporting talent and achievement – but also the perfect opportunity to improve the state of the UK's language abilities, writes Humair Naqvi

Iceland must comply with EU rules if it is to join the club
The EU should not lower its standards on whaling or fisheries whatever the economic rewards might be of allowing Iceland to join the European club - argues Stephen Tindale

Media losing its 'truth-seeking' status - Leveson must act
The negative diet of stories about the political process from the UK media – especially the tabloid press – has created a sense of fatalism among readers, writes Ruth Fox

Handing schools over to private sector would be a mistake
Children's lives are already full of commercial messaging without bringing those pressures into for-profit schools that are removed from state control - writes Rick Muir

Global demand for uranium growing despite Fukushima
Although the accident at Fukushima had repercussions in several countries, ever-increasing global demand means that nuclear energy is set to experience strong growth in rapidly developing parts of the world – writes Luis E. Echávarri

Elites must decentralise power following the Arab Spring
Ruling elites must now disperse power and funding to the grassroots level, if they want real socio-economic change to follow the revolutions – writes Dr Yossef Ben-Meir

Stealth DNA database would be 'dangerous'
A new genetic research centre at London's Olympic park could pave the way for the creation by stealth of a DNA database of the whole population – which would be a dangerous infringement of everyone's rights, argues Helen Wallace

What next for the UN arms trade treaty?
Commonwealth countries are finally pulling in the same direction on the UN arms trade treaty – now the secretary-general should appoint a special envoy to help clinch the deal, writes Daisy Cooper

Referendum result 'the worst' for Romania
There were no winners or losers in Romania's referendum – and the country has more important things to do than paralyse itself with domestic in-fighting, writes Hannes Swoboda

Opening ceremony changed public opinion on London 2012
A successful opening ceremony and weekend of sporting events have helped to turn the tide of public opinion, with many people now forgetting their concerns about the cost of staging the Olympics – writes Coralie Pring

Twitter joke trial shows UK law 'not fit for purpose'
Common sense may have finally prevailed in the 'Twitter joke trial', but it does nothing to tackle the root problem that for the last decade personal liberties and free expression have been trampled in the name of security, writes Andy Halsall