Ross Clark (born 12 September 1966) is a British journalist and author whose work has appeared in ''

The Spectator ''The Spectator'' is a weekly British political and cultural news magazine. It was first published in July 1828, making it the oldest surviving magazine in the world. ''The Spectator'' is politically conservative, and its principal subject a ...

'', ''

Daily Telegraph ''The Daily Telegraph'', known online and elsewhere as ''The Telegraph'', is a British daily broadsheet conservative newspaper published in London by Telegraph Media Group and distributed in the United Kingdom and internationally. It was foun ...

'', ''

The Times ''The Times'' is a British Newspaper#Daily, daily Newspaper#National, national newspaper based in London. It began in 1785 under the title ''The Daily Universal Register'', adopting its modern name on 1 January 1788. ''The Times'' and its si ...

'' and other publications. He is the author of several books, including ''How to Label a Goat: the silly Rules and Regulations that are strangling Britain'' and ''The Great Before'', a novel which satirised the pessimism of the

Green movement Green politics, or ecopolitics, is a political ideology that aims to foster an ecologically sustainable society often, but not always, rooted in environmentalism, nonviolence, social justice and grassroots democracy. Wall 2010. p. 12-13. It ...

. He is a frequent critic of British government policy, especially on its interventions in the housing market and net zero emissions strategy.

Early life

Clark was born in Worcester and brought up in East Kent, where he attended the Simon Langton Grammar School for Boys. He studied at Trinity Hall,

Cambridge Cambridge ( ) is a List of cities in the United Kingdom, city and non-metropolitan district in the county of Cambridgeshire, England. It is the county town of Cambridgeshire and is located on the River Cam, north of London. As of the 2021 Unit ...

Career

In 1989, Clark won ''

'' Young Writers Award, part of the prize for which – a lunch — he later claimed not to have received. He established himself as a freelance journalist, with his work appearing in ''

The Daily Telegraph ''The Daily Telegraph'', known online and elsewhere as ''The Telegraph'', is a British daily broadsheet conservative newspaper published in London by Telegraph Media Group and distributed in the United Kingdom and internationally. It was found ...

'' and '' Sunday Telegraph'', the ''

Daily Express The ''Daily Express'' is a national daily United Kingdom middle-market newspaper printed in Tabloid (newspaper format), tabloid format. Published in London, it is the flagship of Express Newspapers, owned by publisher Reach plc. It was first ...

'', the ''

Daily Mail The ''Daily Mail'' is a British daily Middle-market newspaper, middle-market Tabloid journalism, tabloid conservative newspaper founded in 1896 and published in London. , it has the List of newspapers in the United Kingdom by circulation, h ...

'' and ''

The Mail on Sunday ''The Mail on Sunday'' is a British conservative newspaper, published in a tabloid format. Founded in 1982 by Lord Rothermere, it is the biggest-selling Sunday newspaper in the UK. Its sister paper, the ''Daily Mail'', was first published i ...

'' and ''

'', where he frequently writes the Thunderer column. His work is strongly associated with

libertarianism Libertarianism (from ; or from ) is a political philosophy that holds freedom, personal sovereignty, and liberty as primary values. Many libertarians believe that the concept of freedom is in accord with the Non-Aggression Principle, according t ...

and free market economics, writing the "Banned Wagon" and "Globophobia" columns in ''The Spectator''. In 2013, he was co-winner of the Bastiat Prize run by the Reason Foundation. He was also shortlisted for the prize in 2004. In 2010, shortly before the general election, he co-wrote, with Neil O'Brien, ''The Renewal of Government'', the manifesto of Policy Exchange, a think tank strongly associated with

David Cameron David William Donald Cameron, Baron Cameron of Chipping Norton (born 9 October 1966) is a British politician who served as Prime Minister of the United Kingdom from 2010 to 2016. Until 2015, he led the first coalition government in the UK s ...

. However, he later showed hostility towards some

Coalition A coalition is formed when two or more people or groups temporarily work together to achieve a common goal. The term is most frequently used to denote a formation of power in political, military, or economic spaces. Formation According to ''A G ...

policies; in a piece in ''The Times'' in March 2013, he accused the

Chancellor Chancellor () is a title of various official positions in the governments of many countries. The original chancellors were the of Roman courts of justice—ushers, who sat at the (lattice work screens) of a basilica (court hall), which separa ...

, George Osborne, by means of a plan to underwrite £130 billion of mortgage debt, of forcing the taxpayer to take the same speculative risks which had caused the banking crisis. In 2012, Clark's musical ''Shot at Dawn'' was performed as a workshop at the Etcetera Theatre in Camden. The musical was a success and was later restaged as a full-scale professional production in 2014 at Upstairs at The Gatehouse in

Highgate Highgate is a suburban area of N postcode area, north London in the London Borough of Camden, London Boroughs of Camden, London Borough of Islington, Islington and London Borough of Haringey, Haringey. The area is at the north-eastern corner ...

, north London and the Mumford Theatre,

. He also wrote, with Martin Coslett, '' The Perfect City'', which was performed at the Etcetera Theatre in March 2013. In 2015, the musical ''Shot at Dawn'' was renamed ''The White Feather'' and performed at the Union Theatre in Southwark.

Personal life

He lives in Reach,

Cambridgeshire Cambridgeshire (abbreviated Cambs.) is a Ceremonial counties of England, ceremonial county in the East of England and East Anglia. It is bordered by Lincolnshire to the north, Norfolk to the north-east, Suffolk to the east, Essex and Hertfor ...

. In 2011, he was elected to be a member of the village's parish council.

Books

* * * * * * * * *

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Clark, Ross 1966 births Living people Alumni of Trinity Hall, Cambridge British libertarians