Politics

The Daily Briefing: Thursday 24 October

John Major on energy prices, China's economic problems and the closure of Grangemouth refinery

October 24, 2013
article header image
Sir John Major has broken his silence – let’s hope the party is listening (Daily Telegraph)

The former PM wants less 'ideology’ and more talk about what matters to ordinary people, writes Peter Oborne.

Grangemouth could help shape the Scottish referendum (Guardian) The SNP has cast itself as defender of the economy from the icy wind of global markets. What's icier than closure on the Forth, asks Martin Kettle.

Legal or not drone strikes set a dangerous precedent (Financial Times, £) A nation at war with an abstract threat has no right to mount a pre-emptive killing spree, says David Pilling.

Osborne is best when he’s most unpopular (Times, £) There is a Bad Osbo who obsesses about political tactics and a Good Osbo who takes long-term decisions, says Tim Montgomerie.

China having a credit crunch? (Financial Times, £) It's always hard to know exactly what's going on in China's vast economy. This however is a worrying sign, says Simon Rabonvitch.

Oil and troubled waters for Alex Salmond(Daily Telegraph) The closure of Scotland’s sole refinery would be a body-blow to the SNP’s dream of independence, says Alan Cochrane.

The worship of children brings only misery(Guardian) We revere our children as infants but neglect them as soon as they approach adulthood. No wonder they're miserable, says Suzanne Moore.

Play by the rules, don’t bend them like Fergie (Times, £) Loyalty to players governed Sir Alex’s time at Man Utd but is missing from his book, writes Matthew Syed.

David Cameron should listen to Sir John Major on energy prices (Financial Times, £) Siding with the providers will buttress the Labour charge that for Tories it is the rich versus the rest, writes Philip Stephens.

It's the spies, not the leaks, that threaten our security (Guardian) The NSA-GCHQ machine is about global power, not protecting its citizens. US and British intelligence still fuel the terror threat, writes Seamus Milne.