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Revision as of 00:22, 18 May 2004 by 82.43.50.196 (talk)(diff) ← Previous revision | Latest revision (diff) | Newer revision → (diff)Peter Hitchens is a British journalist, author and broadcaster. He is the younger brother of Christopher Hitchens.
Hitchens started his journalistic career at the Daily Express newspaper. He left to join the Mail on Sunday in 2001 in protest when the Express was bought by Richard Desmond, a publisher of pornographic magazines.
A former Trotskyist, Hitchens now espouses conservative values. An unabashed reactionary, he advocates the restoration of capital punishment, staunchly opposes Britain's membership of the European Union and Tony Blair's constitutional reforms, and the Northern Ireland peace process, which he sees as a sell-out to the IRA. He has denounced the decline of religious faith and family life, progressive teaching methods, the influence of television on children, permissive society, and metrication of Britain's weights and measures. However, he has often been at odds with fellow conservatives, opposing the 2003 US intervention Iraq, and the privatisation of Britain's railways.
In response to a comment that he was known to friends and enemies alike as 'Bonkers', he replied. 'Anyone who calls me by this unpleasant and profoundly intolerant name is mistaken if he thinks he is my friend. And if he wishes to be my enemy, he will have to do an awful lot better than that.'
He is frequently dismissive of the modern British Conservative Party and has spoken of his desire for a new conservative movement to take its place.
Hitchens has written two books - The Abolition of Britain and A Brief History of Crime - both strongly critical of the changes that have taken place in British society since the 1960s.