Tag Archives: toby young

Mark Valladares

Toby Young is taught a valuable lesson, that free speech is not without consequence

By Mark Valladares | Mon 8th January 2018 - 8:12 am

It is an unexpected coincidence that, having written a piece on these pages suggesting that a more mutually respectful dialogue might be a good thing, the whole Toby Young story hit the headlines. And, let’s be honest, he has made his reputation by means of saying things likely to offend in order to attract attention. Now, apparently, these repeated offences were “sophomoric and silly”, and thus should be excused so that he might take up a place on the board of the new Office for Students.

I’m not the first person to suggest that he really isn’t a fit person to …

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Posted in News and Op-eds | Also tagged , and | 14 Comments
Caron Lindsay

Vince: Toby Young appointment “completely unsustainable”

By Caron Lindsay | Sun 7th January 2018 - 1:05 pm

Theresa May admitted today that she had been unaware of Toby Young’s appalling comments before his appointment to the board of the new Office for Students. The Guardian reports:

In her first public statement about Young’s appointment, the prime minister said she was not aware of Young’s history of making sexist and homophobic remarks when he got the job and that, if he were to use language like that again, he would be sacked.

But she signalled that she was happy for him to remain on the board of the new Office for Students, even though the opposition and the main teaching union, the National Education Union, have said his previous outbursts make him unsuitable for the post.his previous outbursts make him unsuitable for the post.

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Stephen Tall

Your Saturday morning reader – 8 must-read articles

By Stephen Tall | Sat 6th October 2012 - 8:15 am

It’s Saturday morning, so here are eight thought-provoking articles to stimulate your thinking juices…

5 Years On: The Election That Never Was – Damian McBride, Gordon Brown’s former spinner-in-chief whose must-read blog is essentially a memoir-by-instalments, recalls the week in 2007 that turned the new Prime Minister from hero to zero.

Jimmy Savile: The birth of a paedophile hoax on “Have I Got News For You” – John Fleming recounts the curious tale of how some invented, ‘censored’ scenes achieved such wide currency on the internet, eerily anticipating the past week’s revelations.

A speech that, thankfully, will not be made …

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Tom Smith

Opinion: The grammar school debate – an opportunity for distinctiveness?

By Tom Smith | Thu 26th January 2012 - 2:27 pm

Alongside the news that the UK could soon see the establishment of ‘new’ grammar schools in Kent, Devon and elsewhere, and that Labour will be urging the Liberal Democrats to support them in blocking these plans, the Lib Dems should examine the implications – and adopt a distinctive stance – on this disagreement.

The debate has gone over the usual arguments. On one hand, the pro-grammar Telegraph columnists imagine swathes of potential Nobel Laureates and curers of cancer who will irrevocably have their talents and spirits crushed if compelled to attend a comprehensive school.

On the other hand, the anti-side quite rightly …

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Posted in Op-eds | Also tagged , and | 18 Comments
Nick T

Opinion: How much smaller would Labour’s cuts have been?

By Nick T | Tue 29th November 2011 - 2:27 pm

“Too far, too fast” – until recently you could scarcely switch on a TV without hearing Ed Balls repeating his four-word analysis of the coalition’s fiscal policy. It seems to be a line that Balls and Miliband are no longer sticking to. If I were to give them more credit for economic analysis than they deserve I’d speculate that this might be because they realised it is utter nonsense. More likely, their polling showed them that the public just weren’t buying it.

And the public would be right not to believe it, because, on a key measure, the difference between the …

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Posted in News and Op-eds | Also tagged , and | 43 Comments
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