Comment & Opinion
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Athena: Sacrificing the Arts for 'self-imposed' fiscal rules?
Cuts to our cultural institutions will only save a minimal amount of money, but could do a significant amount of harm.
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'Rural England need not be retirement England': How hybrid working can save the countryside
Forcing people back to the office reeks of management insecurity, and tracking them on their computers is Orwellian. What hybrid working can do is make people happy and bring life back to rural communities.
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Beware experience, lest we forget what actually makes these places important in the first place
Jousting in castles? Falconry demonstrations? That's all fine, says Athena, as long as people don't forget about the real purposes of our visitor attractions and cultural institutions.
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Minette Batters: Happiness is in the little things
The cross-bench peer and former NFU president uses some down time to reflect on the big questions, and prepares for a charity bike ride in Africa.
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Labour's new National Planning Policy Framework is a 'wolf in sheep's clothing'
We can expect fireworks: Labour’s draft plans for a new planning policy contain subtle, but devastating amendments that bear closer inspection.
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'Every month since June 2023 has now ranked as the planet’s hottest... we are challenging everything on which we rely — our weather, our health, our water and our food security'
The effects of climate change 'reach right down into every aspect of the planet’s life, from the spread of disease to the profound changes wrought by rising sea levels and intensive storms,' writes our columnist Agromenes.
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Curious Questions: What are the finest last words ever uttered?
Final words can be poignant, tragic, ironic, loving and, sometimes, hilarious. Annunciata Elwes examines this most bizarre form of public speaking.
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The rest is photographs
An afternoon spent going through dusty old albums puts our columnist Jonathan Self in contemplative mood.
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No calls after lunch? The Probate Office is in disarray and the new Chancellor needs to sort it out, and fast
Delays in receiving inheritance are making inheritance tax almost impossible to pay, leaving grieving families in limbo, says Agromenes.
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'It was Labour that ushered in chemical-driven agriculture: it must be Labour that puts that legacy to rights'
The countryside is supposed to be a mess. It's time to farm alongside nature, rather than against it, says Agromenes.
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Patrick Galbraith: 'For a couple of hours, I was part of a rich culture that will soon be lost'
Our columnist travels to Northumberland to 'long net' for sea trout, and laments the slow decline of a heritage craft.
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Minette Batters: The quest for the holy triumvirate
A call from the Prime Minister on election day comes as a surprise, heralding an unforeseen return to the Defra office.
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'Although exams are important, they are a limited measure of talent and no guarantee of future success': Or, why you shouldn't take your A-Level results too seriously
Throughout history, the character, drive and tenacity of such prodigiously talented 18 year olds as Nelson, Elizabeth I and Brunel have come to define success, rather than exam results alone, contends Alice Loxton.
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'Keep thy device clean': Country Life's Tech Commandments
We all use our phones too much. The least we can do is agree on a set of rules for modern etiquette in a digital age.
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The Last Word: 'Portmeirion’s charm is rooted in eccentricity and this is why I love the place'
Pamela Goodman travels to north Wales in a rusty Land Rover Defender, where long walks, wild swimming and a visit to the 'eccentric' town of Portmeirion are on the cards.
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To Oliver Walston: A visionary, a farmer and a friend
Carla Carlisle writes of her friend Oliver Walston, who was often known for 'thinking the unthinkable and saying the unsayable' in the agricultural world of East Anglia.
