Politics

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

Thursday

Emily Sheffield

Diary – 28 July 2016

When asked to write the Spectator diary, I diligently collated a list of topics to cover. But the problem is I still need to talk about Brexit. Because I’m not over it yet. I don’t mean I am still raging against Leavers and calling for another referendum. Nor do I regret we held it. Instead, by the Monday I was extolling the virtues of thinking positive for obvious economic reasons. I found reassurance in the quiet hum of my office that morning after the despondency of the weekend (moments when I stood in a corner of my bedroom, unable to control the ricochets of fury; resisting the tempestuous urge to

The Spectator

Hope vs gloom

For all Gordon Brown’s economic mistakes, he at least tried to build confidence in the British economy. In the build-up to the European Union referendum, David Cameron and George Osborne did the opposite. Osborne, as Chancellor, ignored the good news, accentuated the bad and tried to portray Britain as an economic weakling propped up by EU membership. He was joined by a great many investment banks who produced analyses saying that Britain’s life outside the EU would be catastrophic. Since the referendum, these anticipations of doom have continued. It is rather strange to watch. Encouraging economic news — the increase in high-street spending, the buoyant demand for jobs through recruitment

Neil Rimer

Does Theresa May really welcome global talent? If so, why destabilise EU nationals?

After the Brexit vote, we at Index Ventures had been operating under the assumption that the new government would be sensible and not seek to dismantle one of the best things to have happened to London over the last 20 years — namely its transformation into a premier base for entrepreneurs starting and building innovative, technology-driven businesses. So it’s deeply troubling that the status of EU nationals already living here has been put into question. The advocates of Brexit said this was not about Britain turning in on itself; that this was about global ambition. Today, however, the world is not quite sure — every one of these small signs

Angus Robertson

Theresa May’s EU migrant stance is a chilling reminder of how nasty the Tories are

There may be confusion about the role of EU immigrants in Westminster, but there’s none in Scotland. Our message is clear: this is your home, you are welcome here, your contribution is valued. Scotland needs immigration, and we’ve been delighted to welcome EU citizens here over the last few years and decades. They are the new Scots. They are our nurses, teachers, small-business owners and are an important and cherished part of our society. It’s quite understandable that people are aghast at Theresa May using EU immigrants as bargaining chips. But it is a chilling reminder of just how ‘nasty’ the Tory party still is. As Nicola Sturgeon was able

Martha Lane-Fox

Kicking out EU nationals would be an act of unthinkable self-harm. Why is the PM even considering it?

I am still angry at the exaggerations made by the Leave campaign, but even they did not stoop so low as to question whether EU migrants already in Britain should be somehow deported. It would be an unthinkable act of self-harm not to let EU nationals stay and continue to contribute to our economy — and, just as importantly, contribute to the wonderful cultural richness we value. My own businesses would suffer terribly without the hard work of many EU nationals. I cannot understand why the hideous idea of kicking them out is even being considered. One in five tech businesses in the UK is started by an immigrant. These

Tom Goodenough Tom Goodenough

Hinkley Point is the imperfect answer to a pressing problem

Brits had been told that we’d be cooking our turkeys on power generated at Hinkley Point by next Christmas. It’s clear that for those still holding on to that promise, cold lunches will be on the menu. But nonetheless the drawn-out, long-running saga of Hinkley Point should at least reach some kind of conclusion today. Or, at the very least, the end of the beginning. It seems all but certain that EDF – who hold the final piece in the puzzle for funding the project – will agree to give the go-ahead to Britain’s first new nuclear power plant in two decades at a board meeting later. The resignation of

James Forsyth James Forsyth

Big boost for Jeremy Corbyn after court victory

The Labour donor Michael Foster has lost his High Court case attempt to force Jeremy Corbyn to get 51 nominations from MPs and MEPs to be a candidate in the Labour leadership race. The Judge upheld the Labour National Executive Committee’s decision that Corbyn, as the incumbent, should automatically appear on the ballot. Today is a significant victory for Corbyn. If he had to get parliamentary nominations to appear on the ballot paper, he would have struggled badly to do so. Indeed, he might well have lost by default. But now, Corbyn can get on with his leadership campaign. Corbyn goes into this campaign as the firm favourite to win.

Fraser Nelson Fraser Nelson

In defence of EU migrants: a plea to Theresa May

During the Brexit debate, there was a wide mainstream consensus that EU nationals living in Britain should not be affected. As even Ukip said, it would be unthinkable that someone here legally could later be declared illegal. Labour, the CBI, SNP, Vote Leave, pretty much everyone ruled out the disgusting idea of repatriating a single one of the three million EU nationals living in Britain. Or even putting them under the threat of repatriation. As Sajid Javid put it, they’re here because we need them – to work for the NHS, our other shops and businesses, to make our society stronger. During the referendum campaign this was not an issue

Violet Hudson

Money digest: Lloyds axes 3,000 jobs

Lloyds bank is to axe 3,000 jobs in the UK and close 200 branches in an attempt to save £400m by the end of 2017. Chief executive António Horta-Osório said that ‘a deceleration of growth seems likely’ following the UK’s decision to leave the European Union. Nevertheless, in the six months to June the group reported pre-tax profits to £2.45bn – more than double their 2015 earnings. The board of French energy company EDF will meet in Paris later today to discuss whether to approve the Hinkley Point nuclear power plant plans – and they are likely to give the green light, reports The Guardian. The power plant, in Somerset,

Cormac Murphyoconnor

Why won’t Theresa May respect the status of our 3m EU immigrants?

There are many reasons why a majority of people in the UK voted to leave the European Union. Among them was certainly not a wish to be inhospitable and uncooperative with our fellow Europeans (Leading article, 23 July). Now it is even more important that EU nationals in Britain should have their status respected and not be used as a bargaining point in future relations with Brussels. Nor should we forget the considerable contribution that so many of them make to our national wellbeing. Furthermore, what about the two million or so UK nationals living and settled in many parts of Europe? Are they to be ignored and their security

Steerpike Steerpike

George Osborne prepares to put pen to paper

Although George Osborne is now on the backbench, the former Chancellor of the Exchequer is keen to make sure that he remains a busy bee. As well as jetting off to New York this week to attend Tina Brown’s Brexit bash, the MP for Tatton is now considering putting pen to paper for a book. However, readers hoping for a salacious account of his time in No.11 are likely to be left disappointed. Speaking at the Guildhall, Osborne hinted that he may revisit a literary project he began several years ago with Danny Finkelstein, the Times columnist: ‘Almost 15 years ago, I started to research a book with a friend of mine, Daniel Finkelstein,

James Forsyth James Forsyth

Three key tests for any Brexit deal

‘Brexit means Brexit’ is one of the most brilliant political soundbites of recent times. It worked wonders for Theresa May during the Tory leadership contest. It showed that she didn’t intend to ignore the referendum result — that would have been politically suicidal — but the phrase is essentially meaningless. Brexit could mean many things. The question of what it actually is will define British politics for the next five years at least; it will be no surprise if we are still arguing about it in a decade’s time. At its most basic, Brexit means leaving the European Union. But the real debate is going to be about how the

Wednesday

Ross Clark Ross Clark

Pre-Brexit jitters? No, Britain boomed during the Referendum campaign

It is still a little too early to say for sure that George Osborne’s gloom-laden economic forecasts for post-Brexit Britain were bunk. But never mind the future, it now emerges that he wasn’t much good at telling us what was happening in the present. Throughout the referendum campaign he could barely disguise his contempt for the whole exercise, telling us that the UK economy was suffering from the mere fact we were having a vote. A week before referendum day, for example, he told us that  ‘The economic uncertainty that the ‘Leave’ campaign carelessly insist won’t be caused is already being seen.’ Whatever he was seeing, it didn’t reflect reality.

Steerpike Steerpike

Watch: Owen Smith says he wants to ‘smash’ Theresa May back on her heels

Oh dear. Owen Smith’s decision to go off piste in his leadership speech today has not worked out all that well. While discussing the need for a stronger opposition than the one currently provided under Jeremy Corbyn, Smith said Labour could not allow Theresa May to claim Labour’s centre ground. Alas he used a rather unfortunate phrase to make his point. Discussing PMQs, he said that when May had lectured Labour on social injustice, he had wanted to ‘smash her back on her heels’: ‘It pained me that we didn’t have the strength and the power and the vitality to smash her back on her heels.’ Although Smith has previously

Steerpike Steerpike

‘Theresa May is awful,’ says Prime Minister’s favoured designer

It’s a difficult business being Prime Minister. On top of running the country, they are regularly open to criticism from those they admire. Mention a band and there’s every chance the lead singer will blast you for austerity policies in the next day’s paper. Today Theresa May has felt the heat from one of her favourite designers. When May launched her leadership bid she did so in her favourite Vivienne Westwood tartan suit, which retails at £1,190. Alas in an interview on the Today show, Dame Vivienne Westwood was less than cheery when asked how she felt about May as a politician: ‘Do I mind if Theresa May wears my clothes? No,

Tuesday

Katy Balls Katy Balls

Suzanne Evans ends leadership ambitions as she calls on Ukip to shed its ‘rugby club’ image

With nominations for the Ukip leadership contest set to close at the end of the month, today Suzanne Evans called a press conference to make a ‘significant announcement’ about the future. However in light of the current hostage situation in France and Labour’s upcoming court battle, her speech failed to make it onto the news channels. Perhaps that was for the best given that Evans — who is currently suspended from Ukip for disloyalty — used the conference to announce that she would neither be quitting the party nor running for leader. Instead, she promised to fight to make sure Ukip was a party founded on the ‘common sense centre ground’ rather than a ‘hard right Tea Party tendency’. Speaking

Steerpike Steerpike

Andrea Leadsom march was a ‘bit of a cock-up’, says campaign chief

It’s less than a month since Andrea Leadsom bowed out of the Conservative leadership contest, leading to Theresa May’s appointment as Prime Minister. Now Leadsom’s campaign manager Tim Loughton had given an interview to the Times in which he conducts a post-mortem on the failed bid. While the Conservative MP for East Worthing and Shoreham is adamant that the negative headlines regarding Leadsom’s CV and motherhood comments were simply down to the ‘get Andrea campaign’, he does concede there were some things he could have done better. Take for example, Leadsom’s march of the zombies. The stunt saw a handful of supporters including Loughton take to Westminster in their suits and pearls

Tom Goodenough Tom Goodenough

Jean-Claude Juncker comes out fighting over Brexit

Although Theresa May has repeatedly assured us that ‘Brexit means Brexit’, we’re still no closer to finding out what that actually means. The Prime Minister has done her best to play hardball in talks with other European leaders, having told Angela Merkel that control over free movement was an issue she would deliver on. But the fighting talk doesn’t actually mean much in practice. At least not yet anyway. And like it or not, one man who will play a key role in Brexit negotiations, Jean-Claude Juncker, is making it clear he’s not going to lie down and accept compromise on free movement. Here’s what he had to say: ‘There will

Alex Massie Alex Massie

Nicola Sturgeon’s Brexit test is designed to fail

Nicola Sturgeon still believes in Scottish independence. I know, who knew? That’s the point of the SNP, a party Ms Sturgeon joined as a teenager back when she felt, or so she has said, that Neil Kinnock was busy leading Labour into the wilderness. That, remember, is when she says it all started going wrong for Labour. This is something worth recalling the next time you see or hear some SNP elected representative concern-trolling the Labour party. The weaker, the more unelectable, Labour is the better that suits the SNP. Anyway, the First Minister gave a speech yesterday in which she spoke about Scotland’s five ‘key’ EU interests that ‘must be

Monday

James Forsyth James Forsyth

Sarah Champion unresigns and returns to Labour frontbench

Sarah Champion, the Labour MP for Rotherham, was one of the Labour frontbenchers who resigned in an attempt to force Jeremy Corbyn to quit as Labour leader. But today, she has asked for —and been given — her job back. Now, Champion was just a frontbencher, not a full member of the shadow Cabinet. But her un-resignation is another straw in the wind suggesting that things are moving in Corbyn’s favour. Champion’s willingness to return to the front bench suggests that she’s resigned to Corbyn winning when the results are announced in September. It also enables Corbyn to say that by allowing her to come back, he has shown that