Latest news with #AlastairCampbell
Mint
2 hours ago
- Politics
- Mint
Doctors, teachers and junior bankers of the world, unite!
The best place to consider class consciousness in Britain today is beneath the canvas of a £283-per-night ($381) yurt at Hay Festival, a literary jamboree in Wales. Revolutionary fervour is building among those who 'glamp", as if someone had given Colonel Qaddafi a subscription to the London Review of Books. Here in Hay-on-Wye, the men behind Led By Donkeys, an unapologetically middle-class campaign group that emerged via anti-Brexit gimmicks, can pack out an arena. Alastair Campbell, a once-disgraced spinner turned centrist-lodestar, speaks to sell-out crowds, imploring an audience in expensive walking shoes to channel their anger into a force for change. The middle classes are mad as hell and they are not going to take it any more. Class consciousness is a simple concept. Before an oppressed class can throw off their shackles, they must know how hard they have it. Karl Marx had workers in mind when he devised it. Increasingly those who are most aggrieved in British society are not those at the bottom but those stuck in the middle. Overtaxed by the state, underpaid by their employers and overlooked by politicians, middle-class consciousness is growing. It started with Brexit. For many in the middle class—the relatively well-off, well-educated band of voters who make up about a third of the country—this was a radicalising moment. Comfortable lives were rudely interrupted by politics. Marches against Britain's departure from the eu represented the 'id of the liberal middle classes", argues Morgan Jones in 'No Second Chances", a forthcoming book about the campaign to undo Brexit. What began with 'the longest Waitrose queue in history", as one joker unkindly but not unfairly dubbed the first Brexit march, did not end there. That life is tough in the middle is a feeling that goes beyond people who pay £16 to watch the lads from Led By Donkeys. Traditionally right-wing professions in Britain—such as those in the law and finance—are increasingly unhappy with their lot. The HENRYs (high-earners, not rich yet) are already revolting. Those on six-figure salaries, a small but growing part of the economy given hefty inflation and healthy wage growth, discuss ways of avoiding the grotesque cliff-edges and disincentives that kick in the second someone's salary trips over £100,000. If no one looks out for a class, it looks after itself. Britain's middle class is less disparate than it seems. The banker and the bookseller have much in common. Even those in normal jobs now face high marginal-tax rates. Strangely, the Conservatives bequeathed an overly progressive tax system to Labour. Direct taxes on median earners have never been lower; those who earn even slightly above are hammered. What ails a junior banker today will haunt a teacher tomorrow. If teachers accept a proposed 4% pay rise, the salary of the median teacher will hit £51,000—shunting them into the 40% tax bracket. A tax bracket designed for the richest will soon hit a put-upon English teacher watching 'The Verb", Radio 4's poetry show, in a tent near the Welsh border. It should be no surprise that middle-class unions are now the most militant. Resident doctors—formerly called 'junior"—were offered 5.4% by the government, but the British Medical Association has called a strike ballot. It wants almost 30%. This would be its 12th strike since 2023. Labour had tried to buy goodwill by agreeing a pay rise worth 22% in 2024. It did not work. 'Bank and build" is the mantra of the middle-class Mensheviks. Before their stonking pay rise, doctors liked to point out that some young doctors earned less than a barista in Pret A Manger. It was a delicate point. Everyone likes doctors; no one likes snobs. Yet it is a grievance that afflicts an increasing number of middle-class workers. Graduate salaries are often squished in real terms while the minimum wage cranks ever higher. Cleaners and barmen enjoy better pay thanks to the state; middle-class jobs are left at the mercy of the market. The gap between a publisher on a jolly in the Welsh countryside and the person serving them gourmet macaroni cheese is shrinking. Some do not like this. The history of class in Britain is the history of status anxiety. Partly, middle-class consciousness is a defensive move. When Labour looks to raise money, broad-based tax rises are ruled out. That means niche attacks on the middle classes are in. Pension pots are a tempting target. The Treasury gazes longingly at ISAs, the tax-free saving accounts that are a tremendous bung to middle-class people. Middle England feels about ISAs the same way rural America feels about guns. Being ignored and, at times, abused by politicians is a new sensation for the middle classes. For decades, their wants and needs drove political debate. As recently as 2017, entire books were written about the exclusion of the working class from British politics, arguing that the middle classes had a monopoly on political attention. Brexit inverted this deal. Now every major party (except the Liberal Democrats, who speak for England's most prosperous corners) falls over itself to offer something to an imagined working-class voter. If Brexit taught anything, it was that voters in want of attention eventually throw a tantrum. Aux barricades, doc It is easy to mock the middle class. Perhaps the well-off whingeing about their tax burden, or taking to the streets because a holiday in Europe is now less convenient, is inherently ridiculous (much like spending £283 on a night in a yurt). Politicians can overlook such voters only for so long. It is hard to rule without them; they are simply too numerous to ignore. From the grumpy Remainer to the junior banker scouring Reddit for ways to cut his tax bill to the doctor on the picket line, middle-class consciousness is spreading. Few are content—least of all those in a luxury tent. Subscribers to The Economist can sign up to our Opinion newsletter, which brings together the best of our leaders, columns, guest essays and reader correspondence.
Times
2 days ago
- Politics
- Times
Starmer still perfecting the art of how not to bomb at home
Sir Keir Starmer SAMIR HUSSEIN/WIREIMAGE I t is a difficult balancing act to be friendly to a visiting US president, but not so friendly that it alienates people at home. Of course, Sir Keir Starmer is not the first prime minister to face that dilemma (surely the incessant bagpipes didn't help on his visit to Turnberry to meet President Trump). When Tony Blair was getting ready for his 2003 television address telling the nation that they were commencing the invasion of Iraq after George W Bush bombed Baghdad earlier than expected, he asked his advisers how he should begin. Alastair Campbell suggested: 'My fellow Americans.'
Times
4 days ago
- Entertainment
- Times
The lesson of Lily Allen's time-out: every podcaster deserves a break
Alastair Campbell and Rory Stewart, Lily Allen and Miquita Oliver, Rob Beckett and Josh Widdicombe are 'always on'. In podcast parlance, that is — I can't vouch for them socially. Where other shows have seasons, these presenting double acts release episodes twice weekly, year-round. With the holidays upon us, I have been wondering: how do 'always on' podcasters take a break? With group-presented shows like The News Agents or Americast, the rest of the team can pick up the slack. But duo shows like Miss Me? with Allen and Oliver, Parenting Hell with Beckett and Widdicombe and all of Goalhanger's The Rest Is… formats rely on the specific dynamic of their presenting pair.
The Independent
6 days ago
- Politics
- The Independent
Taskforce calls for male role models to put boys on right path
A new 'Lost Boys taskforce', backed by Paul Barber and Alastair Campbell, has urged Sir Keir Starmer to protect young men from harmful online influences, such as Andrew Tate. The taskforce proposes a 'Trusted Adult Guarantee' scheme, aiming to train 10,000 adults to act as role models for young people, initially focusing on boys from impoverished backgrounds. Mr Tate, a social media influencer, faces charges in the UK including rape and human trafficking. The initiative follows warnings from Deputy Prime Minister Angela Rayner about the 'profound impact' on society of increased online time and new guidance to help schools combat misogyny. The government is also considering measures like two-hour app limits for children and teens on platforms such as Snapchat and TikTok to address compulsive screen time habits.
Daily Mail
6 days ago
- Entertainment
- Daily Mail
Alastair Campbell reveals how he visited Jeffrey Epstein at his 'very fancy' £63m New York mansion after being invited by Ghislaine Maxwell
Alastair Campbell has opened up about his visit to Jeffrey Epstein 's 'very fancy' New York mansion after being invited by Ghislaine Maxwell. Tony Blair 's former spin chief knew Maxwell from his work on the Daily Mirror, and happened to be on the same plane as her when asked if he wanted to meet her new boyfriend. Later that evening, he arrived at the same £63 million Manhattan home that Prince Andrew was famously photographed leaving. Campbell described the mansion as 'incredibly luxurious' and 'very fancy', reminding him of an 'old-fashioned University-style club'. He recalled numerous photos displayed Epstein with famous faces, including 'most of the presidents of our lifetime', but he added he was unsure if Donald Trump had made the cut. After being left alone with Epstein for an hour, he admitted he 'got a bad vibe' and believed there was 'something a bit sly about his face'. Speaking about his visit on his podcast, The Rest is Politics, he said: 'It was very fancy, it was incredibly luxurious. 'It reminded me of those really old-fashioned sort of University-style clubs, where old alumni gather to talk about the old days. 'It felt sort of old-fashioned, but a lot of very fancy art. 'He sat for a while behind this really big desk, which sort of reminded me a little bit of the Resolute desk (the Oval Office desk). 'He has photographs of himself with really famous people all over the place. I didn't see if he had one of Trump. 'Trump wasn't probably remotely on my radar at the time, but definitely most of the presidents of our lifetime.' He described Epstein as being an 'incredible name dropper'. 'I got a bad vibe, and not because of any sense of all the sexual stuff that we've since known about, but just the name-dropping and the arrogance,' he said. 'There was something a bit sly about his face as well.' His invitation to Epstein's mansion came while he was on a flight to America to attend a funeral, when Maxwell happened to be on the same flight. Campbell worked under Maxwell's father, Robert Maxwell, who owned the Daily Mirror, when he worked at the paper in the late 80s. He revealed he knew Ghislaine Maxwell 'pretty well' and added that he 'socialised with her quite a bit', describing her as 'quite funny' as well as 'very energetic and very lively'. 'I always quite liked Ghislaine, I must be honest. I thought she was a really warm personality. I always felt a bit sorry for her because her dad was such a monster,' he said. After the pair 'completely lost touch', they reconnected on a flight while Campbell was working with the government around 20 years ago. 'She actually introduced me to Jeffrey Epstein, the one time I have met him,' he said. 'It's the reason I am in the famous black book. Very hurt that he spelt my name wrong.' He continued: 'She was sitting a few rows behind me and came up and had a chat. 'She just said, and I can definitely remember this, "what are you doing tonight?" and I said "not much, just staying in the hotel". 'She said, "do you want to come and meet my boyfriend?".' That was the last time he saw Epstein and Maxwell, Campell went on to say, before adding he was 'surprised' about her involvement in the scandal. He said: 'I can't say I was surprised he [Epstein] was involved in a real scandal because he struck me as a bit of sleazeball. 'I was surprised [about Ghislaine]. I can imagine children who have had the sort of parent they had to end up with all sorts of psychological stuff going on.' He also added that he finds it 'incredible that she is the only one who has gone to jail' and believes she may 'claim she had an unfair trial because she thought she was covered by this deal in a previous another era'. 'I don't think saying when I knew her, that Ghislaine was a warm and quite attractive personality, is defending her,' Campbell continued. 'It's saying what my experience of her was. I don't remotely and would never defend what she has done in league with Epstein.'
