Politics

Read about the latest UK political news, views and analysis.

Friday

Carl Heneghan and Tom Jefferson

The dire effects of Italy’s coronavirus lockdown

Locking down Britain sooner would have saved thousands of lives, according to Neil Ferguson. But while Ferguson’s claims have been rightly contested – and the merits of shutting down Britain, particularly in view of today’s woeful GDP figures – remain debatable, one thing is very clear: lockdown is having a dreadful effect on the lives of many. A survey from Italy, which went into lockdown a few weeks before Britain, shows why. 20,000 people were quizzed by researchers at the Mario Negri Institute in Milan on the psychological consequences of forcing people to quarantine themselves. And the findings – almost certainly replicable in Britain – make for grim reading. Over

Thursday

Douglas Murray

In defence of liberalism: resisting a new era of intolerance

45 min listen

Are we witnessing the death of the liberal ideal? (01:02) Next, what’s behind the government U-turn on primary schools and what effect could it have on the poorest students? (20:14) And finally, Britain’s ash trees are facing a pandemic of their own, with so-called ash dieback sweeping the nation. Can Britain’s ash trees be saved? (30:12) With Douglas Murray; The Spectator‘s economics editor Kate Andrews; Coffee House contributor Melanie McDonagh; political editor James Forsyth; associate editor of the Evening Standard Julian Glover; and professor at the Laboratory of Tree-Ring Research at the University of Arizona Valerie Trouet. Presented by Katy Balls. Produced by Gus Carter and Matthew Taylor.

Gus Carter Gus Carter

How long can the two-metre rule last?

12 min listen

Tory MPs are increasingly concerned about the impact of the two-metre rule, with No. 10 facing pressure to relax the policy to help save businesses. Gus Carter talks to James Forsyth and Katy Balls.

James Forsyth James Forsyth

Why it’s vital that schools are fully open by September

Chris Whitty, the chief medical officer, was explicit at Wednesday’s press conference about how concerned he was about a second Covid-19 spike in the winter months. This would coincide with the flu season, placing maximum pressure on the NHS. One consequence of this is that if something is not open by the beginning of October, it isn’t going to be open until the end of February next year. As one of those at the heart of coronavirus policy-making warns: ‘If Sage are this cautious going into summer, then they are not going to want to be playing fast and loose with the R number heading into winter.’ This shows why

Lockwood Smith

‘Global Britain’ should learn from New Zealand’s mistakes

One of the greatest prizes from Brexit is the opportunity to make the Global Britain aspiration a reality. Included is a leadership role at the World Trade Organisation (WTO) where the UK, the fifth biggest economy in the world, could help drive much-needed progress to facilitate global trade. Leadership, however, requires respect to back it up. In trade terms, that means walking the talk of trade liberalisation at home. Once free of the EU, the UK knows that its thriving farming sector will therefore require access to global markets. But the trade agreements to deliver that access must be consistent with WTO rules. Recent talk of the UK adopting a

Matthew Lynn

Unilever has shattered the great Brexit myth

Goldman Sachs is still operating out of London. Airbus is still making wings in Broughton, even if the order book is not looking so healthy right now. Nissan has backed its Sunderland factory. Still, at least those who are clinging to the notion that leaving the European Union would lead to a mass exodus of multinational corporations always had one company they could rely on: Unilever. The Anglo-Dutch conglomerate would surely always champion the European Union cause. It had already tried once to flee the country as it plunges over the Brexit abyss and would no doubt try again as the transition period expired. Except, er, hold on. Not any

The Spectator

It’s time for the PM to take back control from the scientists

There is a grim inevitability to the trickle of round-robin letters from scientists who feel aggrieved at the government’s handling of the Covid-19 crisis. Right from the beginning, the Prime Minister gave scientific advisers a very public platform at the heart of government. He realised that if it became necessary to impose the most severe restrictions on personal freedom any government has had to introduce in peacetime, it would help if the public could see policy was being shaped by experts who understood the threat. But as time has gone on it has become increasingly clear that there is no such thing as ‘the science’ — a mythical set of

Charles Moore Charles Moore

What is Dominic Raab not telling us about Hong Kong?

The government’s promised ‘pathway to citizenship’ to Hong Kong people is wonderful, but has the Foreign Office arranged a get-out clause? Last week, Dominic Raab told parliament that ‘if China enacts the [proposed new security] law, we will change the arrangements for British National (Overseas) passport holders in Hong Kong’. He added, however, that ‘We do not oppose Hong Kong passing its own national security law’. Behind this lies the fact that the Basic Law of Hong Kong, arising from the Sino-British Agreement of 1984, prescribes that Hong Kong ‘shall enact its own laws to prohibit any act of treason, secession, sedition or subversion against the Central People’s Government’. So

Camilla Tominey Camilla Tominey

Why Boris Johnson poached Prince William’s right-hand man

The appointment of Simon Case to the role of No. 10’s new permanent secretary last month is already creating an interesting new power dynamic in Boris Johnson’s top team. Dominic Cummings, Downing Street’s resident grenade-thrower, is now working with someone more adept at defusing bombs. Case, a Barbour-wearing career civil servant, was poached from Kensington Palace, where he was Prince William’s right-hand man, by cabinet secretary Sir Mark Sedwill. In his new role, Case sees anything Covid-related that crosses the Prime Minister’s desk. He is being hailed as the man to rescue the government’s erratic handling of the coronavirus crisis. His experience with the dysfunctional royal household will stand him

Wednesday

James Forsyth James Forsyth

The danger of Britain’s slow journey out of lockdown

The most striking thing about the lockdown easing that Boris Johnson just announced is how limited it is. Single parents and those who live alone will be able to form a support bubble with one other household; churches and other places of worship will re-open for individual prayer, and zoos will be able to admit people to their outdoor facilities. Listening to Boris Johnson, on the day that Professor Ferguson claimed an earlier lockdown would have halved the death toll, it’s clear that the UK is going to come out of lockdown very slowly. Johnson talked about how the government has ‘to proceed with caution’ and warned that ‘this epidemic

Kate Andrews Kate Andrews

Is Britain set to be the sick man of Europe?

The global lockdown has seen economies shrink and unemployment soar across the world, pushing governments to borrow at rates never seen in peacetime. On Wednesday, the OECD published country-by-country estimates for the economic hit – and its projections for the UK are some of the worst. Under the scenario of no second wave (that is, assuming countries won’t need to lockdown again this year), Britain’s economic downturn is forecast to be the worst in the G7, and fourth-worst in the OECD, with an 11 per cent fall in annual GDP. In the case of a second wave, prospects still aren’t great: in the G7, Britain’s 14 per cent downturn is on

Lloyd Evans Lloyd Evans

Sir Keir Starmer’s split personality at PMQs

It’s official. The Labour party now has two leaders. Both are knights. But it’s hard to say which is the real Sir Keir Starmer. Not even Sir Keir Starmer seems to know. Good Sir Keir is the kindly, decent comrade who wants to aid his fellow man at a time of crisis. Wicked Sir Keir is the dastardly villain who plots to unhorse his foe with a poisoned lance or a hidden dagger. At PMQs he began as Good Sir Keir. He thanked Boris for extending the furlough and for voicing his opposition to racial prejudice. Then he got all dastardly. He read out a fistful of statistics proving that

John Connolly John Connolly

PMQs: Johnson and Starmer clash on schools

13 min listen

Prime Minister’s Questions is becoming an increasingly heated affair. This week, Keir Starmer and Boris Johnson clashed over school closures, as well as the government’s response to the Black Lives Matter protests. John Connolly talks to James Forsyth and Katy Balls.

Ross Clark Ross Clark

Our coal-free months aren’t as impressive as they seem

At midnight last night Britain passed a milestone: it was two months since a coal plant anywhere in the country fed any electricity into the national grid. You have to go back to the 1880s for the last time this occurred – to 1882, to be precise, when a single coal-fired power station was opened in Holborn to feed the street lights. Unsurprisingly, the moment has caught the imagination of the green lobby which have hailed it as a triumph for renewable energy. Maybe not so fast. Few will mourn the passing of coal, which is the dirtiest form of electricity generation and which might have passed into history before

Steerpike Steerpike

A guide to renaming London’s landmarks

Yesterday, London Mayor Sadiq Khan announced that he was forming a new commission to investigate the landmarks, street names and statues of the capital, to see if they should be knocked down or renamed because of their racist past or links to the slave trade. The announcement came after a statue of the slave trader Edward Colston was pulled down in Bristol by Black Lives Matter protestors this weekend. Khan’s ‘Commission for Diversity in the Public Realm’ will examine various sites across London to see if they reflect the diversity of its population, and the mayor has indicated that it is not appropriate for certain figures to be memorialised in

Tuesday

Katy Balls Katy Balls

Why aren’t schools reopening?

12 min listen

The government has shelved its aim of reopening primary schools before the end of term amid growing pressure from parents and unions. But how will that affect the poorest students? Katy Balls talks to Fraser Nelson and James Forsyth.

Steerpike Steerpike

Will Sadiq Khan have to knock down Millicent Fawcett’s statue?

London mayor Sadiq Khan promised today that he will begin the process of pulling down ‘inappropriate’ statues around London – after Bristolians dumped the statue of slave trader Edward Colston in the river at the weekend. To investigate London’s landmarks, Khan has created a ‘Commission for Diversity in the Public Realm’ which will review statues and street names in the capital to make sure they reflect the diversity of its people. Khan said he expected the commission to find that it’s ‘not appropriate to be memorialising, or to be celebrating’ certain figures, especially those with a racist past and links to the slave trade.  Mr S wonders though if Khan’s

Nick Cohen Nick Cohen

Is George Bush brave enough to tell voters to back Biden?

For an instant, it looked as if George W. Bush might be an example of integrity all who believe in liberal democracy could grudgingly admire. Last week, he announced his anguish at the police killing of George Floyd. ‘America’s greatest challenge has long been to unite people of very different backgrounds into a single nation of justice and opportunity,’ Bush explained. But African-Americans remained harassed and threatened in their own country. ‘There is a better way,’ Bush sighed as he rose to his peroration. ‘The way of empathy, and shared commitment, and bold action, and a peace rooted in justice. I am confident that together, Americans will choose the better way.’

Steerpike Steerpike

Health minister: I can stick this on the scientists

Throughout the coronavirus crisis, the UK government has insisted that its decisions and policies have been led by the scientific advice on the virus. It’s a commitment that has allowed the government to convince the public that drastic interventions to stop the disease have been necessary. But, equally, there have been criticisms in some quarters that the scientists advising Number 10 have been used as human shields for the mistakes and unpopular policies of politicians. Health minister Helen Whately did nothing to allay those fears when she appeared on Sky News this morning. Asked by presenter Kay Burley about the government decision to discharge patients to care homes without a

Nick Tyrone Nick Tyrone

Are Remainers wrong about a no-deal Brexit?

As a Remainer, I was always convinced a no-deal Brexit would be a disaster for Britain. Now, I’m not so sure. And while I once thought anything – even a painful and protracted transition period – would be better than leaving without a deal, I’m convinced Britain should push ahead with leaving the EU, whatever happens. The reaction to coronavirus – and, in particular, people’s thoughts about the pros and cons of lockdown – has convinced me why. Ask someone’s position on the lockdown and you’ll probably have a fair idea of whether they are a Brexiteer or a Remainer. Some Remainers have become passionate defenders of the lockdown, seeing