David Lipsey's Top Book Recommendations

David LipseyBefore I went into the House of Lords, I used to write ‘Bagehot’, The Economist’s weekly column on British politics. I am therefore biased when I recommend, as the finest book on the subject ever written, The English Constitution by Walter Bagehot, a Victorian editor of the magazine. Of course, it is a bit quaint now from the title on: if you talked of the English constitution in Glasgow or... (Source)

David LipseyNone of these books competes however as the most influential in my life. One that does is Katharine Whitehorn’s Cooking in a Bedsitter. Sent at the age of 18 to teach English to newly arrived immigrants in Bradford, this was the book that accompanied me into my bedsit – basin, gas ring, tiny fridge. Not all the recipes are good but they kept me alive. Meanwhile, the advice – how a well-regulated... (Source)

David LipseyWell, Bernard Donoughue’s The Heat of the Kitchen, an autobiography by a former policy adviser to Prime Ministers Harold Wilson and James Callaghan (in the 1970s) complements Crosland. Lord Donoughue combines a brilliant mind with strong emotion and beliefs. Reading the extraordinary story of his rise from nowhere provides an insight into the latter which is more important with politicians than... (Source)

David LipseyI have spent most of my adult life in or hanging around British politics, so perhaps it is natural to start with the two books that, to me, best reflect what political life is like. Both, it is true, are from a few years back. They thus perhaps understate one of the dominant factors of modern politics – the ubiquitous power of the media – and overstate the importance of Westminster life. But... (Source)

Matt RidleyMost of the environmental trends in the world are getting better not worse. There is more forest now than there was 50 years ago. (Source)

David LipseyThis is for those more interested in politics than politicians. Environmentalists hate Lomborg, who dares to questions their all-or-nothing ideology. Economists on the other hand love him, since he (unlike most environmentalists) understands that environmental decisions can involve costs as well as benefits. For example, take Lomborg’s position on global warming. It probably is happening, he... (Source)