Author: Rosie Shakerchi

There is an annual rehearsal of the same debates on the red poppy in the weeks leading to Remembrance day. Each year we are greeted with a reboot of old arguments: typically a figure in the public eye refuses to wear one (Footballer James McClean, BBC presenter John Snow, ITV presenter Charlene White) and receives […]

Earlier and earlier every year, more and more poppies appear on the lapels of all kinds of people. It’s hard to avoid them while walking through town, and it’s very hard to fail to remember their significance. It is also very hard to deny their importance in aiding a society whose social fabric has been […]

In politics, human life ironically seems to be of little interest; the response of the USA and Japan to the UN resolution outlawing nuclear weapons last week served as a painful confirmation of what years of raging against Western history textbooks, with their shockingly brief allusions to Hiroshima and Nagasaki, had made me suspect. The […]

I was sat at a table having lunch with friends, friends from all over the world with myself as the token Scot, when they began asking me if I thought there was going to be another independence referendum in Scotland. Moments later, my trusted BBC app gave me the answer: it looks like it. I […]

Theresa May proclaims that she wants a society that “works for everyone.” It is surprising, then, that she seems to be side-lining an issue which will certainly hurt everyone if it isn’t tackled. She has barely acknowledged the dangerous reality that is climate change since becoming Prime Minister. We desperately need more action to combat […]

Until recently, Wallonia remained a relatively unknown region of Belgium. This October, however, the French-speaking federal region of Belgium blocked an EU-Canada free trade agreement known as CETA. Although talks resumed the following day and the trade deal has now been agreed, the ability of such a small region to bring down the entirety of […]

‘The camp is now almost completely on fire and not safe. Volunteers are reporting hundreds of unaccompanied minors under the bridge not knowing what to do.’ The words of the Facebook post from Help Refugees are every bit as powerful as the picture that accompanied it, showing towers of billowing smoke covering what seems to […]

Every autumn, universities up and down the country open their doors to new students excited by the thought of independent living. The first challenge is that of settling in – the second, for many, will be surviving Freshers’ week. This can be a time of great fun, traditionally including partying, drinking and late nights. It […]

Jo Johnson, Minister of State for Universities and Science, said in a statement in June 2016, “The UK’s future access to the Erasmus+ programme will be determined as a part of wider discussions with the EU.” Since these wider discussions have so far determined basically nothing, it’s not surprising that students and those concerned with […]

We are living in dissatisfied times. The representative democracy which governs daily Western life is not ideal – perhaps some disenchanted voters in Europe think that democracy itself is not ideal, threatening a return to authoritarianism on the far right for the sake of some certainty. This is not an idiosyncratic moment in history; indeed, […]

The large majority of those reading this will be entitled to healthcare under the National Health Service (NHS). This means that if needed, free contraception and free safe, legal abortions are generally available to you. Many women in other countries do not have this same entitlement. 56 million abortions are performed worldwide per year. Twenty-two […]

Labour’s divisive leadership election has come to an end. Although technically a resounding victory for Jeremy Corbyn, neither of the contestants really won. All that has been achieved is a demonstration to the wider population of the dire state the Labour party is currently in. The election was the result of a vote of no […]

On a recent visit to Denmark, I was amazed by the number of Danes who spoke so passionately about their tax system. This, despite it claiming on average more than a third of their income. In fact, Danes are frequently touted as some of the happiest people on the planet. How is this possible given […]