The news that banks appear so quickly to have forgotten the crisis into which they plunged us all has not gone down well. This appears to be the case in government.

Economic confidence may have bounced since the lows of September last year and March this year but unemployment is still rising.

Compass today launched a campaign for a High Pay Commission with a hundred leading supporters. I understand where this is coming from but I am not convinced.

The debate about Afghanistan is actually beginning to settle down a bit in the sense that what we are really talking about is becoming clearer.

It is depressing that it has taken the death of so many soldiers to reawaken the debate about our aims in Afghanistan. Nevertheless, the debate can be a healthy one if political posturing is avoided, and we all have a responsibility to engage in it.

Congratulations to Mark Harrison, elected as a Labour councillor for Princes ward in Kennington (Vauxhall constituency) on Thursday. Mark received 1,726 votes, or 41% of the vote, compared to the LibDem candidate who had 1,396.

Easy to forget that only a couple of months ago it was considered almost insulting to suggest the economy might not perform as badly as many were suggesting. Now, sentiment has shifted the other way.