Make no mistake: I am not a fan of Carrie Symonds. Equally, this doesn’t mean that I am content to watch idly while legitimate criticism of her is is railroaded through channels of misogynistic fanfare. The news that the Bow Group, a think tank to…
Gavin Williamson’s recent ‘landmark’ proposals to strengthen free speech certainly paint a dystopian picture. In a statement evocative of George Orwell’s ‘1984’, the education secretary earnestly claimed that UK Universities were failing to prevent the chilling effect on campuses of ‘unacceptable silencing and censoring.’ Williamson’s…
On Friday 19th February, Australians awoke to find that something was a little off about their Facebook feeds. Not only were they unable to share news from local or international outlets on their pages, but they also couldn’t even see any news that those same…
In December 2020, the National Infrastructure Commission advised the government to delay plans for the proposed stretch of the High Speed 2 rail line which would run from Birmingham to Leeds. The spiritual successor to the dead-on-its-feet Conservative policy of the ‘Northern Powerhouse’, the multi-phase…
Health Secretary Matt Hancock announced last week several health service reforms for the coming months. These changes will focus on the structure of the NHS and the rolling back of reforms implemented in the early years of David Cameron, particularly the 2012 Health and Social…
The fashion world has had its fair share of faux-pas when it comes to diversity and representation. A recent blunder from Louis Vuitton confirms that corporations, regardless of size and global reach, continue to be euro-centric to the point of obliviousness. Though no longer on…
Housing secretary Robert Jenrick has promised £3.5 billion in grants to remove flammable cladding from UK homes, in a long-awaited government announcement. But more than three years after the fire at Grenfell Tower that killed 72 people, many see the new funding as too little,…
From 8 March (International Women’s Day) till the end of the month, Backbench would love to feature articles from writers considering this year’s International Women’s Day theme: #ChoosetoChallenge. The theme centres on an encouragement to people everywhere to call out gender-based discrimination – however large…
There is an impression in Britain, that we are a nation of people that tends to give people a chance to show their colours before we judge them. Increasingly, it feels as if that impression is being removed or replaced by a judgemental and somewhat…
If the last few years of politics proved anything, it is that the most unexpected situations quickly become reality. Few, even Nigel Farage, thought that Brexit would ultimately triumph in 2016. Though Jeremy Corbyn was hugely defeated in 2019, his remarkably better than expected performance…
Mass protests have continued throughout Russia after the recent sentencing of Alexei Navalny, the Russian opposition leader. The Kremlin critic was sentenced to three and a half years in a ‘prison colony’. Due to the time he has already served, he’ll spend two years and…
What is it about the English character that idealises the remnants of a medieval system which symbolises supine submission to aristocratic authority? The monarchy may appear as a quaint link to our past, an institution which binds the living to the dead in an eternal…
Do not waste your sympathy on Boris Johnson and his cronies. Whilst nobody anticipated the COVID-19 outbreak to be as prominent and as devastating as it was and still is, there can be no excuse for the constant missteps this government has made. Though it…
Everything Biden has done since becoming president has been carefully crafted to negate every personal and political characteristic of his predecessor. This is not just clever optics – Biden is the antithesis of Trump in every way. He cherishes the institutions that Trump is accused…
On the 3rd February, it was announced that Dr Alex George, a contestant from the 2018 series of Love Island, was appointed as the ‘Ambassador for Mental Health’. While the move may reverse some of the PR damage that influencers have experienced recently and might be a…
A recent study from the University of Washington has found that women reporting sexual harassment are more likely to be believed if they conform to stereotypes of femininity and normative beauty standards. Participants in the study displayed strong beliefs that ‘prototypical women’ – ones viewed…
Problems with the housing market in Britain are certainly not new, but they are persistent. To put it simply, the UK does not have enough homes, and in turn, housing is increasingly unaffordable. For decades, house building has occurred too slowly, failing to keep up…
The EU often portrays itself as being above things such as nationalism and competitiveness. Instead, it wishes to be seen as leading the fight for globalism and global cooperation. Therefore, it was with great surprise that many learned last week, that when push comes to…
The 2019 general election was a huge moment for the United Kingdom – one that proved to be vital in our exit from the European Union. But if you wanted to find an example for the term ‘double-edged sword’, this was exactly what the last…
Spare any pity for this government’s handling of the pandemic. It has been a challenging year for any government, yet some have fared better than others. It’s not some trick of fate but showcases how strong leadership can alter the course of a public health…