From the audacious opening ceremony — the first to take place outside of a stadium — to the allegedly “anti-sex” beds in the Olympic village, Paris 2024 is doing things a little bit differently.
The news this morning of a massive arson attack which has brought chaos to France’s rail network serves as a reminder of the security undertaking involved. And no doubt, there are misgivings from some Parisians, as indeed there were among Londoners in the build-up to 2012.
But with a fair wind, those are likely to melt away as even the most curmudgeonly of locals are caught up in the Olympic magic.
The Games have also been good news for London. The capital is no one’s second prize, but our city has become the official overspill venue, with occupancy at top end hotels pretty much at capacity, and the Eurostar enjoying a roaring trade. We wish all Team GB athletes bonne chance.
Tories at a crossroads
Even at the best of times, it is said that being leader of the Opposition is the worst job in British politics. And for the Conservative Party, these are far from the best of times.
Following the general election, the Tories have been reduced to a rump of 121 MPs — but of course, they still need a leader. It would be easy to assume, given the state of Parliament and low esteem the last government was held in by the public, that the Conservatives have a free hit. That the next leader has no chance of becoming prime minister. Yet this would be to ignore the growing volatility of British politics. If Labour can go from Jeremy Corbyn to Downing Street in less than five years, there is no reason why the Tories cannot tread a similar path.
But in order to do so, they will need to elect the right leader. And for any chance of that happening, MPs and ordinary members will have to properly analyse why their party lost the election so decisively. They will need to make people care about the process — using the summer months to have debates about policy, not simply personality. We will know more about how likely that will be when the nominations close on Monday.
Still Bossing it
The Boss is back — though in truth, he never went away. Bruce Springsteen screamed “no surrender” as the rain began to fall over Wembley Stadium last night.
At 74, he is not yet old enough to run for US president, but he more than wowed the crowd and the Standard’s Robbie Griffiths, who awarded all five stars while concluding: “In the end, it’s just an ordinary night for Bruce and his gang, but one of the best shows most of us have ever seen.”
