Since Suez, the US has struck a balance with its allies, whereby they shoulder enough of the burden to show willingness, but not so much as to be capable of strategic independence. Trump seems to get only the first.

As we keep being told it’s that nasty capitalism, that pursuit of profits, which is everything that ails the water system in England and Wales.

Not that we’ve an official position on the legal change here but: If Maxime Chapoutier sold his new red and white wines in France, he would provoke an outcry and risk arrest.

Schumpeterian profits for the win here: A breakthrough Chinese chatbot has sparked alarm about the country’s advances in artificial intelligence (AI) and wiped close to $1 trillion off global stock markets.

The chronic unreliability of the Clyde and Hebridean ferries, a monopoly owned and operated by Scottish government agencies, has caused serious economic decline within island communities.

As everyone knows - well, everyone not wholly, drivellingly, unperceptive - competitive markets are what drive standards up over time.

The Chancellor’s new growth proposals have been heavily leaked. They are worth serious consideration.

Now we are in favour of the free movement of people. We’re also aware of Milton’s point that free movement and also a welfare state that incomers gain access to doesn’t really work. Only ever trade offs and all that.

Nick Shaxson gives us his absolute proof that Amazon is a vile, dirty, monopolist that definitely needs to be regulated into something something:

The Guardian tells us that: Women in Britain are paying up to £11,154 for a hysterectomy in a private hospital, amid huge delays for NHS gynaecological care, research reveals.

In line with our introductory post last week, the UK has become more adventurous, at this point more facing westwards.

Thanks to a healthy combination of private sector innovation and pragmatic public health policy, the UK had, for a long time, led the way in reducing smoking rates. Over the past decade, they have plummeted from 20% in 2012 to just 14.7% in 2021.