Woke agenda sets sights on the Queen

Dear Reader,
Tensions over Northern Ireland and the Brexit deal are threatening to derail Boris Johnson’s moment on the global stage. President Joe Biden landed in the UK last night amid the news that he ordered his diplomats to formally rebuke the UK for jeopardising the peace process. You can read the details here. The EU is meant to be fighting Ireland’s corner, but is it acting in Dublin’s best interests? Ray Bassett, a former Irish diplomat, makes the case that it’s time for the Republic to ditch the EU, too.
The University of Oxford has long been at the centre of the cultural debates raging in Britain. The ancient institution caused fresh ructions this week when it emerged that Magdalen College graduate students voted to remove a portrait of the Queen over “colonialism”. What is it like to enter a debate with these elite progenitors of the ‘woke’ agenda? Anna Pasternak did just that at the Oxford Union and recounts her experience here.
Euro 2020 is finally upon us, albeit 12 months late. England kick off their campaign against Croatia on Sunday, with Wembley playing host. The return of the European Championship to the national stadium (and Phil Foden’s new hairstyle) has stirred memories of Euro 96 and Paul Gascoigne. In a wonderful piece, Thom Gibbs tells the full story of Gascoigne’s tournament, from dentist’s chair to penalty shoot out despair.
(Don’t forget to download your tournament wallchart and use our predictor to see all the possible permutations, and sign up for regular Euros updates in our daily newsletter.)
How prepared are you for retirement? New research by the Pensions Policy Institute claims that as many as 90 per cent of private sector workers with “defined contribution” pensions will not be able to afford a comfortable retirement, with the pandemic only making things worse. Jessica Beard reports on what’s going wrong. You can also contribute your stories of facing a retirement crisis.
Chris
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