Politics

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

Sunday

Jonathan Sacerdoti

Why is the LSE hosting a Hamas book launch?

The London School of Economics’ decision to host the launch this week of Understanding Hamas and Why That Matters – a book that attempts to sanitise and fails to properly condemn a terrorist organisation responsible for the worst massacre of Jews since the Holocaust – has rightly sparked outrage. It is a shameless attempt to rehabilitate a group that revels in the slaughter of civilians, delights in hostage-taking, and has openly vowed to repeat its crimes. If there were any doubts about Hamas’ true nature, they should have been put to rest on 7 October But while the LSE controversy is unsettling, it is merely a symptom of a much larger

Cristina Odone

Audiobooks won’t help children read better

Shakespeare, Dickens, JK Rowling: Britain’s literary heritage is undisputable. Creativity, emotional depth and universal values have ensured that Hamlet, Oliver Twist and Harry Potter are familiar to school children (and grown-ups) around the world. While other pillars of the proud national legacy – the BBC, the army, the NHS – have crumbled around us, we could still take pride in our peerless literary canon.  No longer. The National Literacy Trust, the very institution that should be protecting our literary heritage, is encouraging us to replace reading with audio. They have launched a campaign, #GrowAGenerationOfReaders, that risks pushing teachers and parents to supplant ‘traditional reading’ with audio. ‘Just one in three

Alexander Kolyandr

Why won’t the West use frozen Russian assets to help Ukraine?

Since Moscow launched its full-scale invasion of Ukraine three years ago, there has been a great deal of temptation to seize Russian sovereign assets frozen in the West. There is, after all, an urgent need and moral imperative to make the aggressor pay and use Russia’s money for Ukraine’s cause. But the reality is that unless European governments show urgent determination, Russian money is unlikely to be used to support Ukraine in its totality any time soon.  Amid the spat between Volodymyr Zelensky and Donald Trump last week, which resulted in the US stopping military aid to Ukraine, the issue of financial support for Kyiv has never been more critical.

Robert Service

It makes perfect sense for Putin to befriend America

Would it really be strange if Vladimir Putin started playing off America against China in geopolitics? If he had greater vision, he would have been doing this in all those years when he fulminated against the US as the global Satan. I wrote about this in 2019 in my book Kremlin Winter as evidence of his long-term ineptitude. But Russian policymakers long ago ceased to offer Putin ideas for a more flexible foreign and security outlook, and his aggressive paranoia dragged Russia into a needless and barbaric war in 2022. Donald Trump was the one American leader whom he always exempted from his tirades. They continue to get on famously. Now Trump,

Saturday

Mark Galeotti Mark Galeotti

Why Russia has shrugged off Trump’s sanctions threat

While Donald Trump may be threatening Moscow with major new sanctions, as it continues to hammer Ukraine with drones and missiles, the Russians seem unfazed. They assume this is just rhetorical for now – and they are probably right. This week has seen the US progressively cutting off its support for Ukraine, first suspending arms shipments, then pausing intelligence sharing and even access to the satellite imagery used to help target Russian bases and arms depots far from the frontline. The Russian business press has largely ignored Trump’s sanctions threat The Russians, far from resting on their laurels, have responded with an escalated campaign of drone and missile strikes –

Hamish McRae

Are the markets turning on Trump?

China does not like tariffs, but big money in America likes them even less. If one thing has become clear amid the fog of the past week, it is that what will contain Donald Trump are the financial markets. China’s foreign minister, Wang Yi, attacked Trump on Friday for his imposition of tariffs, adding that major powers ‘should not bully the weak’. While people in Taiwan might find that latter comment a bit rich, his line on tariffs squares with the reaction on Wall Street. The markets do not like it. This week has seen the Nasdaq Composite index of high-technology companies move into a ‘correction’ – a 10 per

Julie Burchill Julie Burchill

Who cares if Elon Musk has fourteen kids?

Historically, the richest and poorest men on the planet tend to father a lot more children than the men in the middle. With the former, its because there’s so much for the spawn to inherit, hence all the aristocratic Fitzes; the latter, because so many offspring die in infancy. The men in the middle tend to look disapprovingly – not without reason, as they pay so much of the taxes the other two dodge – at both. It comes as no surprise then that plenty of people have poured scorn on the announcement by Elon Musk’s partner Shivon Zilis that the pair have welcomed the tech billionaire’s fourteenth child. A

Owen Matthews

Russian spying has become a pathetic, amateurish business

Make no mistake: whatever higher moral authority they may have invoked in their defence, Soviet and Russian spies have never been good or honourable people. Kim Philby, the suave Martini-sipping traitor sent dozens of brave anti-Communist volunteers to their deaths. Konon Molody – alias Gordon Lonsdale, Canadian vending machine salesman and kingpin of the Portland Spy Ring – did not balk at blackmailing and threatening his hapless sub-agents into doing the KGB’s dirty work. But as the sordid revelations about the latest crop of Russian spies convicted yesterday in the Old Bailey’s Courtroom Seven reveal, the major difference between Moscow’s agents of yore and those of today is how lowbrow,

Gavin Mortimer Gavin Mortimer

‘Low-cost’ jihadists are Europe’s new danger

There is a new Islamist terror threat in Europe that the French describe as ‘low-cost terrorism’. The expression was deployed in a television interview at the start of this week by Bruno Retailleau, the Minister of the Interior. Warning France that Islamic State is ‘reconstituting themselves in Africa and elsewhere’, Retailleau said that the other menace was the individual extremist acting on his own initiative. Unskilled in bomb-making and with no access to firearms, these ‘low-cost’ Islamists kill with knives or behind the wheel of a car. One of these ‘low-cost’ extremists was last week jailed for life by a French court. In October 2020, Tunisian Brahim Aouissaoui murdered three

James Heale James Heale

Who would be a Conservative? – Kate Andrews vs Michael Gove

25 min listen

It’s a special (and emotional) edition of Coffee House Shots this Saturday because it is the last with Kate Andrews on this side of the Atlantic. She joins our editor Michael Gove and political correspondent James Heale for a debate on ideology. Kate – a liberal, in the classical British sense – explains exactly why she is not a Conservative and the various tenets that distinguish liberalism from conservatism, whilst Michael makes the case for being a ‘pessimistic’ conservative.  So, what makes a liberal? What makes a conservative? And was Hayek right in saying that while there isn’t much to choose between these two political creeds, ultimately, they need each other.  Produced

Zoe Strimpel

Sadiq Khan and the truth about Brick Lane curry

Sadiq Khan is exceedingly fond of ‘diversity’, not least the word itself. Perhaps as a result, London’s Mayor is willing to overcome his aversion to Donald Trump, even when the US president is looking increasingly like a menace to global peace and stability. “I think it’s important to show those people who believe the contrary that diversity is a strength, not a weakness,” Khan said. “I’d invite President Trump for a good curry in Brick Lane.” Warming to his theme, Khan told LBC: “I say in a non-patronising way, a lot of prejudice comes from pre-judging, and actually one of the joys of the great city of London is our

Jethro Norman

Why Mogadishu has better mobile phone reception than Manchester

While the UK government struggles to deliver reliable mobile coverage across some rural communities, Somalia – a country that hasn’t had a functioning central government for three decades – has built one of Africa’s most resilient telecommunications networks. As a British researcher who conducts fieldwork in Somalia, I’m often struck by an ironic reality: I can find more reliable mobile coverage in hard-to-reach Somali villages than in certain parts of Manchester, where I’m from. This connectivity paradox highlights how necessity can drive innovation in unexpected places. Upon arriving in a new town or village in Somalia, I’ve grown accustomed to an intriguing sight: elders – the traditional authorities in Somali

Friday

Michael Simmons Michael Simmons

Labour is finally waking up to the benefits crisis

The welfare bill currently unsustainably stands at £314 billion. It is forecast to reach nearly £380 billion by the end of the decade. Rumoured Labour cuts, set to be announced as part of the Spring Statement on 26 March, have just been reported by ITV News and include plans for £6 billion of welfare cuts. That won’t do much to stop the bill rising to £380 billion, but the fact that this government is prepared to make cuts suggests it is finally waking up to this unsustainable issue. The reported reforms include £5 billion of savings through making Personal Independence Payments (PIP) – a disability-related benefit – harder to qualify

James Heale James Heale

Reform refer Rupert Lowe to the police

After months of leading in the polls, Reform UK is now in meltdown. This afternoon, the party chairman, Zia Yusuf, and the chief whip, Lee Anderson, released a joint statement which says that they have now referred Rupert Lowe to the police. The pair say that they have ‘received complaints from two female employees about serious bullying’ in Lowe’s offices and that ‘we understand complaints have been made to parliamentary authorities’. They allege that evidence has been provided of workplace bullying, with female staff who raised concerns being targeted. They suggest too that Lowe made ‘derogatory and discriminatory remarks’ about women, ‘including reference to a perceived disability’. Yusuf and Anderson

Andrew Roberts

America has changed sides on Ukraine

Andrew Roberts gave the following speech in the House of Lords, following the publication of the report ‘Ukraine: A Wake Up Call’ from the International Relations and Defence Committee. We must not underestimate the gravity of what has happened, which is that during a war against totalitarian dictatorship, the United States has effectively changed sides. It is very unusual for a country to change sides during a major war. Historically, Italy did it in 1943, but that was hardly decisive. However, the Saxons and Württembergers changed sides on the third day of the four-day Battle of Leipzig in October 1813, which doomed Napoleon in that campaign. Before that, the Stanleys

Harry Cole

Harry Cole, Zoe Strimpel, Michael Simmons, Nigel Warburton and Justin Marozzi

30 min listen

On this week’s Spectator Out Loud: Having returned from Washington D.C., Harry Cole reads his diary for the week (1:16); Zoe Strimpel reports on the Gen Z fliers obsessed with maximalising their air miles (5:37); Michael Simmons argues that Scotland is the worst when it comes to government waste (12:00); reviewing Quentin Skinner’s Liberty as Independence, Nigel Warburton examines what it means to be free (17:45); and, Justin Marozzi provides his notes on possum (25:02).  Produced and presented by Patrick Gibbons.

Damien Phillips

Egypt’s Gaza peace plan will never work

Another week, another peace plan for a seemingly intractable conflict. This time it’s Gaza’s turn, with the launch of a new peace and reconstruction plan for the rubble-strewn Strip. The proposal, created by Egypt and endorsed by the Arab League (a 22-strong group of Arab states) at a summit in Cairo, provides an alternative to President Trump’s ‘Gaza Riviera’ model. Trump’s idea to place Gaza under US control, depopulate it to redevelop the enclave, and decant its residents to nearby Egypt and Jordan was rejected out of hand by the Arab states. The US has signalled that it is open to hearing what an Arab plan for Gaza’s post-war reconstruction

Edward Howell

President Yoon’s trial is tearing South Korea apart

It is now only a matter of days before the 52 million-strong population in South Korea will know the fate of their suspended president, Yoon Suk Yeol. Since his first impeachment hearing at the end of 2024, after which he was arrested and indicted on charges of insurrection, the President has continued to defend his initial decision to impose martial law on the evening of 3 December. But with less than a week to go before the country’s constitutional court rules on his destiny, a central court in Seoul today ordered Yoon’s release from jail, a month after his initial detention. While this is a small victory for Yoon and

Steerpike Steerpike

Mhairi Black blasts Sturgeon over careerist jibe

It’s a day ending in ‘y’, which means the Scottish Nats are arguing amongst themselves again. Ex-SNP MP Mhairi Black has taken a pop at the party’s former Dear Leader Nicola Sturgeon in a new BBC documentary released this week about her time in politics. In the programme – in which Black blasts Westminster culture and laments the toll it took on her mental health – the outspoken nationalist took a pop at Sturgeon over the SNP’s careerist culture. In the Beeb’s new show, one of Black’s friends read out an article about the former first minister’s comments that there were too many careerists in the Scottish National party. Speaking

Katy Balls Katy Balls

How long will Starmer’s ‘war bounce’ last?

11 min listen

Trump has been stealing the headlines when it comes to Ukraine this week, but Europe – and whether it can stay united in the face of the US pulling its support – remains an important subplot. At a summit yesterday, 27 countries backed the plan to increase spending on defence, but when will the cracks start to show? Thankfully, it seems that the Prime Minister is good in a crisis. Back at home, he has seen a modest bounce in popularity and he is making a good impression in Brussels, coming across as assured without grandstanding. He has also been leading on defence spending – could defence be the way