😡People can be extremely hostile when they disagree. 💡That’s why I’m so excited about Professor Paul Dolan’s new book “Beliefism: How to stop hating the people we disagree with”

Amazon.co.uk

Amazon.co.uk

Extract from a forthcoming paper: — A life well-lived For those of us who believe life has purpose higher than mere existence, it seems indisputable that liberty is not some optional accessory; it is the cornerstone on which rests our safety and security, our identity and morality, our relationships, our prosperity and our fulfilment. Whether elaborating natural rights, rebelling against tyranny or making a utilitarian case for prosperity, the classical liberal and conservative tradition holds that each individual must be free to think, speak, act and innovate - provided they do not infringe upon the same freedom of others. This balance of universal and reciprocal rights and responsibilities under a stable rule of law fosters societies in which virtue can thrive, economic opportunity can flourish and individuals can pursue happiness in ways that are meaningful to them. In such an environment, we find not the chaos of unbridled license, but the promise of cooperation and the dignity of moral choice - proving once again that liberty is both a moral necessity and a practical framework for enduring human progress.

Talk of a "uniparty" aggravated me. Then I recalled I used to say, "Vote Labservative for same"… What does history and public choice tell us about parties, their intentions and their actions in power?

The "uniparty", benefits, public choice and political history

Talk of a "uniparty" aggravated me. Then I recalled I used to say, "Vote Labservative for same." What does history and public choice tell us about ...

💡Delight or shock, horrify or amuse your friends and family, with a custom Cameo video by yours truly. cameo.com/SteveBakerFRSA

💡Book me to speak through Specialist Speakers:

Search for Speakers - Specialist Speaker Bureau

Right turn ahead for Reeves and Starmer This is Reeves’s fundamental problem: our system of social democracy is coming apart as it becomes increasingly unaffordable. The situation is grave. The post-war settlement is breaking down on all fronts—at home and abroad. It is a great unravelling. To placate the furious Labour left, Reeves will likely resort to yet more damaging tax rises while cutting welfare and increasing defence spending. The centre-right must respond with clarity and discipline. Any other strategy is a mistake: • Welcome every spending cut. • Oppose every tax rise. New article: Right turn ahead for Reeves and Starmer Against all their instincts, Labour are about to turn further right. Centre-right politicians and think tanks must drive them forward in a situation which is more serious than commonly understood.

Right turn ahead for Reeves and Starmer

Against all their instincts, Labour are about to turn further right. Centre-right politicians and think tanks must drive them forward in a situatio...

I love high-minded idealism as much as anyone, but don’t expect it from the USA for a few years. No amount of fulminating about how President Trump treats President Zelenskyy appallingly by whichever historical comparison will make him behave any differently. The scene is set for Trump to get all he wants, partly by giving Putin what he wants: a broad slice of Ukraine. In all its brute ugliness, we just witnessed the USA wield its mighty power to great effect to meet its own ends, ends which Europe was hoping against hope would not materialise. Expect within weeks for everyone to claim victory as Europe commits to guarantee the peace for a smaller Ukraine, a Ukraine mining minerals for America as America moves on.

Trump vs Zelenskyy

If you don't want disaster, have short press conferences. But President Trump wanted it to run on – why? Power politics: politicians feel the hea...

Sometimes it seems we live in a world where every virtue is twisted and perverted into vice. Love for country is one such virtue, for it is one element which provides for a healthy identity and a basis for those moral sentiments which bind us together as a voluntary community against adversity, both everyday and existential.

Love of country, for good and ill

We can have too much of a good thing: nationalism becomes militant and dangerous. Legitimate love for our country is rightly tempered by respect fo...

🇺🇦 With talk of UK “boots on the ground” in Ukraine to keep any peace, remember the fiasco of Iraq was supposed to have taught everyone what questions to ask. 💡Now would be the time to apply those lessons. https://assets.publishing.service.gov.uk/media/5a81f19440f0b62305b91a48/TheGoodOperation_WEB.PDF

🙋🏻‍♂️“The methods of money production in society today are profoundly corrupting in ways that would matter to everyone if they were clearly understood.” 📣As gold flows out of the Bank of England and CoinDesk reports on the US National Bitcoin Reserve, here’s my 2014 speech on money 📺Bitcoin, gold and the Bank of England 🗽The most important subject we face is discussed too little: how money is created and how the process corrupts society. My speech on "Money Creation and Society".

Bitcoin, gold and the Bank of England

The most important subject we face is discussed too little: how money is created and how the process corrupts society. My speech on "Money Creation...

Too soon Nigel. Too soon. Nigel Farage is now treading a fearful path to grand failure of his own making; today’s “sources close” story tells me he knows it. The future of our nation already rests on the shoulders of Nigel Farage: he will decide the next government. He has trapped himself by his success and seems to know it.

Too soon Nigel. Too soon.

The future of our nation already rests on the shoulders of Nigel Farage. He has trapped himself by his success and seems to know it. He will decide...

❓With the post-war social democratic system in collapse as it runs out of young workers to meet pension, health and care obligations, would returning to the EU solve our growth problem? 🤦🏻‍♂️Not a chance.

Return to Growth

There is hope. Lord Jon Moynihan's "Return to Growth" sets out a clear plan. Of 15 years. The sooner we start...

New article: Compromise As we left the EU, eventually I did and my word did it hurt. But it was the right decision The price tarnishes the prize. But you get to keep the prize and that is why it must be done. We all prefer total and final victory. It is rare. Leaders compromise. And that is tough.

Compromise – a dirty word

We all prefer total and final victory. It is rare. Leaders compromise. And that is tough.

❓Is someone’s birthday coming up? 😂I’ll be glad to help. 🔗

Rt Hon Steve Baker FRSA – Bio, Birthday, Age, Video | Cameo

🏃The world is changing and the pace of change is only accelerating 💡Book me via Specialist Speakers for unrivalled insight into the forces which shape our world:

Specialist Speakers Speaker Bureau

Steve Baker Speaker Profile

Steve Baker, speaker, former MP, engineer, and business advisor as half of The Provocation People.

👀Yes, that’s right: Journalists - five scenarios 📣You are making the news. Here’s how to survive and win. 5️⃣These are the five key situations with journalists you will face as an MP: 🧻the press release 🧐the proactive individual briefing 😱the unsolicited inquiry 🏉the scrum 🥴lunch

Journalists: five scenarios

You are making the news. Here’s how to survive and win.

🔥”Much more usual in politics is scandal or danger to the community. 😡“Politicians are always alleging one thing or another or seeking to juxtapose the burning platform with the sunlit uplands. 🌱“That is the fertile territory on which the politician usually operates.” 🔟Can't live with them. Can't deport them to South Sudan: ten rules for working with the Press

Journalists – ten rules for working with the Press.

Can't live with them. Can't deport them to South Sudan. Ten rules for working with the Press.

I spent 14 years in politics experiencing the “fundamental attribution error”, yet Paul Dolan explained it in the first 30 minutes of his new book, out in May. That’s why together, The Provocation People can help your business make a step change in fostering cognitive diversity without the downsides. Please contact us for an initial conversation.

Fundamental Attribution Error – The Provocation People

✍🏻Journalists 🤷🏻‍♂️Can't live with them. Can't deport them to South Sudan. Ten rules for working with the Press 🐺They will get you if they can. It is in their nature.

Journalists – ten rules for working with the Press.

Can't live with them. Can't deport them to South Sudan. Ten rules for working with the Press.

Fundamental Attribution Error How I learned more about the causes of hostility from Prof Paul Dolan in 30 minutes than in 14 years of Parliament

Fundamental Attribution Error – The Provocation People