July 2021 issue
Why a referendum on the death penalty might not be as far away as you think, what happens when politicians and judges pass the buck on law-making, why Britain struggles to escape the shadow of hands-off economics and the tricky moral terrain of growin...
Past issues
Essays
From Hartlepool to the hangman: the flag-wavers now running the Tory Party could take Britain back to the gallows
Eventually the new nationalists will need a new populist cause: a referendum on the death penalty is becoming a frightening possibility
Chris Mullin
Mykhailo Polenok / Alamy Stock Photo
Spending
The philosophy underpinning how money works
Whether it’s bullion or Bitcoin, its value always comes down to trust
Ben Chu
© Tim McDonagh
Politics
Ursula von der Leyen: Europe’s second-rate first lady
On paper the President of the European Commission looked perfect for the job, but her talent isn't a match for her connections and the EU is paying the price
Andrew Adonis
Michael Lewis in his book and bike-lined study. Photo: New York Times / Redux / eyevine
Government
Michael Lewis on how to spot a crisis coming
Michael Lewis has spent decades chronicling the life of US institutions. He tells Jay Elwes why the US’s shocking failures on Covid-19 could have been avoided
Jay Elwes
In his meetings with the EU’s leaders, Barnier (centre) fought to preserve a united front. Photo: © Ye Pingfan/Xinhua/Alamy Live News
Culture
Michel Barnier’s diaries show how he overachieved on Brexit
A blow-by-blow account by the former chief negotiator contains an important lesson: unbending rigour is not always the asset you might think
Julian King
Up Front
Mykhailo Polenok / Alamy Stock Photo
The philosophy underpinning how money works
Ben Chu
Illustration by Ian Morris
When no one makes the law
DAT Green
Illustration by Ian Morris
We can fix the high street—and this is how
Vidhya Alakeson
A single wasp colony in your garden, meanwhile, can remove up to half a kilogram of insect prey per season. Illustration: Ian Morris
Wasps have a bad reputation. Is it deserved?
Seirian Sumner
Photo: Cezary Kowalski / SOPA Images/Sipa USA
The IOC and government in Tokyo have failed to bully Japan’s people into submission
Lesley Downer
In data: capital flight
Tom Clark
McCloskey is not convinced by "the lovely photos from Nasa’s journeys out into the solar system." Dmytro Olegovich Zakharchuk / Alamy Stock Photo
The duel: Is space exploration worth it?
Marcus Chown & Deirdre Nansen McCloskey
Essays
From Hartlepool to the hangman: the flag-wavers now running the Tory Party could take Britain back to the gallows
Chris Mullin
© Tim McDonagh
Ursula von der Leyen: Europe’s second-rate first lady
Andrew Adonis
Gamekeeper turned poacher: Minouche Shafik has quietly broken with the thinking of many of the institutions she has spent her career in © Jason Alden/Bloomberg via Getty Images
Do it like Denmark
Tom Clark & Clive Cowdery
Existential threats: the leader of Poland's ruling Law and Justice Party, Jarosław Kaczyński, speaks to supporters during the 2019 election count © Carsten Koall / Getty Images
Poland’s authoritarian turn could destroy its relationship with the west
Christian Davies
Illustrations by Adam Howling
Consent: the dynamite at the heart of the British constitution
Helen Thompson
Condemned to be liberal: why Britain can’t easily break with economic laissez-faire
Duncan Weldon
Critical Thinkng
Illustration: Charlotte Ager
Replotting the human: the thorny ethics of growing babies outside the womb
Philip Ball
Michael Lewis in his book and bike-lined study. Photo: New York Times / Redux / eyevine
Michael Lewis on how to spot a crisis coming
Jay Elwes
Jacqueline Rose. Credit: Faber
Why Jacqueline Rose wants you to embrace the unknown
Rebecca Liu
Jellyfish have no central brain, but they do have a central nervous centre with decision-making powers. Illustration: Kate Hazell
What it's like to be a jellyfish
Cal Flyn
Arts & Books
Photo: Andrew Savulich/AP/Shutterstock
Two minutes to midnight: how humanity copes with disaster
Peter Frankopan
Fiction follows life: Rachel Cusk. © Katherine Rose / Guardian / eyevine
Rachel Cusk’s imitation game
Miranda France
Jacqueline Rose. Credit: Faber
Why Jacqueline Rose wants you to embrace the unknown
Rebecca Liu
In his meetings with the EU’s leaders, Barnier (centre) fought to preserve a united front. Photo: © Ye Pingfan/Xinhua/Alamy Live News
Michel Barnier’s diaries show how he overachieved on Brexit
Julian King
Ed Miliband in 2020. Credit: REUTERS/Simon Dawson/Alamy
Why Ed Miliband still finds reasons to be cheerful
Sameer Rahim
Boris Johnson leaves after visiting the G7 foreign and development ministers meeting in May. Credit: PA Images / Alamy Stock Photo
After Brexit, where does Britain go next?
Jake Richards
Rabindranath Tagore talking to Young Pioneers in the Soviet Union. Credit: Sputnik/Alamy
Experiments in living: how to build a perfect society
Zoe Apostolides
Captain Leigh and His Dragoman by David Wilkie. Credit: Alamy
The irreplaceable art of translation
Emily Lawford
In a Brief History of Stuff, Nihal Arthanayake explores in detail a series of everyday objects that you might find in the home. Photo: Courtesy Science Museum Group
The best new podcasts in the UK this June 2021
Charlotte Runcie
Ben Wheatley makes a Blair Witch-style film about an ancient evil lurking in the woods. Photo: Courtesy of Sundance Institute
The best films in the UK this June 2021
Wendy Ide
James McAvoy and Sharon Horgan as a husband and wife locked down in the same house. Photo: BBC
The best television in the UK this June 2021
Chris Harvey
© David Iliff
The best classical and opera in the UK this July
Alexandra Coghlan
Policy & Money
Photo: PA Images / Alamy Stock Photo
We are raising a mighty cyber-shield against the great threats ahead
Ben Wallace
Photo: REUTERS / Alamy Stock Photo
We all need to do our bit to tackle cyber threats—but ministers keep us in the dark
John Healey
Photo: CSueb / Alamy Stock Photo
Policy report: how to secure a country against digital hacks
Emily Lawford
How a clampdown on insurers could make them a better investment prospect
Andy Davis
Photo: Alamy
What investors need to know about Bidenomics
Megan Greene
And Finally
Algorithms are ubiquitous. Scroll through your social media feed or chat to Siri and you’re interacting with them. Illustration: Hannah Berry
No ctrl: how my life got taken over by machines
Hephzibah Anderson
Illustration by Nick Taylor
Esther Freud: “In the end a writer has to sit down and actually do it”
Prospect Team
About us Subscribe Contact us Submission guidelines Jobs and vacancies Corporate subscriptions
Facebook Twitter Linkedin
© 2024 Prospect Publishing Limited
Press Room Acceptable Use Terms of Use Contributor Terms & Conditions Privacy Complaints Advertise with us Advertising Guidelines