The Week: Most Recent uk-politics

Grading Kate Middleton's first year as a royal

The Week — Mon, 30 Apr 2012 12:51:00 -0400

On Sunday, Prince William and his wife, Catherine Middleton, celebrated their first anniversary as a regal couple. In the year since their controversially lavish wedding, royal-watchers have been scrutinizing "commoner" Kate to see if she can pull off her high-profile gig more than 30 years after William's mother, the late Princess Diana, charmed the public with her own debut. Critics have been more than charitable. Here, a sampling of their enthusiastic impressions:

1. Kate is saving the monarchy
Recent decades have seen the popularity of Britain's monarchy plummet, says Autumn Brewington at ...

Queen Elizabeth's diamond anniversary: By the numbers

The Week — Mon, 06 Feb 2012 16:25:00 -0500

On Monday, Queen Elizabeth II marked the 60th anniversary of her accession to the British throne by watching schoolchildren in an eastern England town perform a play in her honor. The U.K. will also host a glitzy, days-long Diamond Jubilee in June to more formally and lavishly honor the Queen. In the meantime, here's a statistical look back at her six-decade reign:

25
Elizabeth's age when she became queen

85
Her current age

12
British prime ministers during Elizabeth's reign

12
U.S. presidents during Elizabeth's reign

6
Popes during her reign

30
Corgis Elizabeth has owned during her reign. Currently, she has...

Queen Elizabeth's royal pay cut: By the numbers

The Week — Wed, 07 Dec 2011 16:23:00 -0500

Not even the royal family is safe from Britain's plummeting economy. For decades, Queen Elizabeth II has been receiving a little less taxpayer funding each year. But now, under new austerity measures, she'll have her pay frozen until 2015. Instead of receiving tens of millions annually in taxpayer money, she'll receive 15 percent of the profits from the Crown Estate, which collects rents and taxes on Regent Street, a prime retail area, and much of the United Kingdom's shoreline. While many predict that the Queen's income will dip even further, it's hard to get exact estimates. "You don't really...

Using Facebook to incite London riots: Is a 4-year sentence too harsh?

The Week — Wed, 17 Aug 2011 18:03:00 -0400

Swept up in the London riots last week, 20-year-old Jordan Blackman created a Facebook event advertising "massive Northwich lootin'" at a specific date, time, and location. Nobody showed up. A tipsy Perry Sutcliffe-Keenan, 22, posted a similar message, but removed his post from Facebook the next day. Even though their Facebook activity provoked no actual crimes or riots, both men were arrested and have just been handed four-year jail sentences for using the social-media site to "organize and orchestrate" disorder. That's the harshest penalty yet in the post-riot aftermath, part of the "tough message...

Punishing London's looters: Will tough love work?

The Week — Tue, 16 Aug 2011 15:09:00 -0400

British Prime Minister David Cameron is blaming last week's riots in the U.K. on the "slow-motion moral collapse" of his nation, and promising tough new measures to turn things around. Among his contemplated fixes: Imposing curfews, blocking social networking sites from smartphones, and evicting looters from public housing to discourage lawlessness. There’s even talk of naming William Bratton — America's "supercop" — to head London's Metropolitan Police. But critics say a harsh response might simply aggravate the root of the problem: A contempt for authority. Is Cameron's crackdown...

London riots: Could they happen in the U.S.?

The Week — Fri, 12 Aug 2011 14:51:00 -0400

Riots, irrational violence, and hedonistic looting devastated London for the better part of a week, slapping Britons awake to disturbing truths about what many consider a historically civil society. Now, many Americans are wondering if the same thing could happen on this side of the Atlantic. Are such fears founded?

No. Americans would never stand for this: A culture and history of self-reliance would lead ordinary Americans to take matters into their own hands, says Tim Stanley at Britain's Telegraph. Remember when Koreans shot looters during the L.A. riots in 1992? Plus, political...

5 ways technology shaped the London riots

The Week — Fri, 12 Aug 2011 07:36:00 -0400

For better or worse, social media and smartphones have been at the forefront of the London riots, which have claimed the lives of at least four people and led to the arrest of more than 1,300. Digital messages helped looters turn British cities into chaotic messes — which were subsequently cleaned up by community efforts organized through social media. Here, five ways technology has been a part of the riots:

1. Rioters used BlackBerry Messenger for subversive communication
London authorities say that social media played a key role in helping rioters organize and spread disorder...

London riots: 6 shocking stories

The Week — Thu, 11 Aug 2011 16:21:00 -0400

The riots and looting that have unhinged England for the better part of a week have produced dozens of tales of loss, injury, and anxiety. But even so, several stories stand out as particularly tragic, outrageous, cruel, or even bizarre. Here are six:

1. London's "Samaritan" robbery
Malaysian student Mohammad Asyraf Haziq, 20, was bicycling to the grocery Monday evening when a mob knocked him down, stole his bike, and beat him, breaking his jaw. Then, a "Good Samaritan" helped the bleeding Haziq up, but opted to rifle through the victim's backpack, stealing a Sony PSP game console. (Watch the video...

Unrest in London: A visual history

The Week — Thu, 11 Aug 2011 10:44:00 -0400

Wednesday night may have been London's quietest after a violent, days-long riot, but the city's residents and British Prime Minister David Cameron remain on edge. By Tuesday, 16,000 police converged on the city, enacting tougher measures to quell the violence, while copycat riots unfolded in other British cities. Londoners now face the wreckage — from chic Notting Hill in west London to gritty Hackney in the east — dealing with torched cars and taking inventory of what's left in looted stores. As authorities estimate the cost of the massive clean-up job in the tens of millions...

British teens' 'unsettling' riot interview

The Week — Wed, 10 Aug 2011 15:29:00 -0400

The video: An "unsettling" BBC video of the London riots released Tuesday (see clip below) records two teenage girls bragging about the fun they had taking part in their neighborhood's wanton destruction. During the voice-only interview, conducted at 9:30 am, the girls drink from a stolen bottle of rosé wine and enthuse about their looting. "Everyone was just on a riot, going mad, chucking things, chucking bottles," one says. Her friend adds, "Breaking into shops — it was madness, it was good fun." When the BBC interviewer asks why they are rioting in their own community, hurting their...

What caused the London riots? 5 theories

The Week — Wed, 10 Aug 2011 10:48:00 -0400

While 16,000 police officers managed to keep London (mostly) calm Tuesday night, the riots and looting that have swept through England's capital since Saturday are now moving north to cities like Manchester. Britons are grappling with how a peaceful protest over the police killing of 29-year-old Mark Duggan, an Afro-Carribean resident of the London suburb Tottenham, turned into a nationwide rampage of firebombing and looting youths. What really sparked Britain's worst rioting in at least a generation? Here, five theories:

1. Social and economic inequality
"Britain is less equal, in wages, wealth...

London's 'terrifying' riots: Can David Cameron restore order?

The Week — Tue, 09 Aug 2011 13:17:00 -0400

As rioting, looting, and torching of buildings spread from London to Liverpool and other British cities, Prime Minister David Cameron cut short an Italian vacation to take charge of the "terrifying" situation. The damage is already in the tens of millions of dollars, and one person has died from gunshot wounds. The riots started in the poor, minority-heavy London neighborhood of Tottenham on Saturday, after peaceful protests against the Aug. 6 police slaying of 29-year-old Mark Duggan, who is black, turned violent. Cameron recalled Parliament to session and ordered 16,000 police to the streets...

The latest tweets on the 'London riots'

The Week — Mon, 08 Aug 2011 15:08:00 -0400

Kate and Will's North America trip: 6 petty controversies

The Week — Tue, 12 Jul 2011 18:25:00 -0400

The Duke and Duchess of Cambridge returned to England Monday after a whirlwind two-week tour of North America. By most accounts, their first official trip as a married couple succeeded wildly. They were greeted enthusiastically in Canada and California. Kate's fashions enthralled critics. Above all, the newlyweds looked convincingly happy. But the excursion wasn't without its minor hiccups and supposed controversies. Here are six:

Newsweek's 'creepy' Princess Diana cover

The Week — Tue, 28 Jun 2011 14:41:00 -0400

The image: What would Princess Diana be like if she were alive today? That's the subject of Tina Brown's controversial new Newsweek cover story, "Diana at 50: If She Were Here Now." In the feature, Brown hypothesizes that the icon would wear J. Crew "à la Michelle Obama," keep up with "strategic Botox shots," and be best friends with her ex-husband, Prince Charles. The magazine's package also includes a slideshow comparing Diana and Kate Middleton's fashion, a fake Facebook page, an update of her causes, and a Photoshopped image of Diana holding an iPhone. There's also digital...

The '$1 million' royal honeymoon: An instant guide

The Week — Thu, 12 May 2011 15:25:00 -0400

The Duke and Duchess of Cambridge — better known as Prince William and Kate Middleton — started their honeymoon in the Seychelles this week. Details about the trip are being kept quiet for security purposes, and to respect the newlyweds' privacy. But it's a safe bet that their 10-day getaway will be relaxing... and pricey. Here, a brief guide to what travel experts have to say about the royal honeymoon:

Where exactly did Will and Kate go?
The couple reportedly flew by private jet to Mahe Island airport, the gateway to the string of 115 islands about 1,000 miles off the eastern coast of...