Politics

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

Tuesday

Steerpike Steerpike

The SNP’s Dornan double-dealing exposed

What are the three words likely to turn any SNP press officer’s blood cold? James Dornan MSP. The gaffe-prone Glaswegian has found himself in more scandals than the Salmond Inquiry in recent months, culminating in last week’s social media rant at Tory MP Jacob Rees-Mogg after the latter tweeted his support of the Borders Bill. Dornan told the well-known Roman Catholic: Hope you remember this the next time you go to confession. You and your cronies are already responsible for the deaths of thousands and you’re now happy to see the most desperate people in the world suffer and drown. If your god exists you will undoubtedly rot in hell. None of

Andrew Tettenborn

Troubles’ veterans on both sides deserve immunity from prosecution

The recent decision by Boris Johnson’s government to put a five-year time-bar, save in exceptional circumstances, on the prosecution of British troops for crimes committed during overseas operations, came as a welcome relief to soldiers. Those who served their country abroad now know they are effectively safe from stale prosecutions in the distant future; veterans who have long since moved on can now live in peace.  But note the word ‘overseas’. Why not everywhere? The answer is easy: the Irish elephant in the room. The government feared that any attempt to time-limit prosecutions over events during the Northern Ireland Troubles would stir a hornets’ nest. It chose instead to leave those who had

Stephen Daisley Stephen Daisley

Who can make the Scottish Lib Dems great again?

Willie Rennie’s resignation — announced, as only he could, via a self-shot video while climbing Benarty Hill in western Fife — means there’s now a vacancy at the top of the Scottish Liberal Democrats. Given the party holds just four seats at Holyrood and four at Westminster, the summit of Benarty enjoys a more elevated position than the Lib Dem leadership. But can Rennie’s replacement have any more luck in reviving the party’s fortunes? The party was in government at Holyrood from 1999 to 2007 as Scottish Labour’s junior partner but Nick Clegg’s coalition with David Cameron, the rise of the SNP and the political realignment brought about by the

Isabel Hardman Isabel Hardman

The vote to cut foreign aid is looking tight

Things are looking tight this morning for the government’s vote on aid spending. Ministers were hoping that springing the vote on rebels at the last minute might help to peel away some softer MPs, and there’s a list doing the rounds this morning of 14 backbenchers who’ve said they are supporting a compromise which would mean the government committing to restoring the 0.7 per cent target when economic conditions improve, using OBR forecasts to gauge when that is. The rebels feel the government is already being misleading about who it has pulled over to its side As I’ve written before, a commitment to the cut being temporary was something that

Kate Andrews Kate Andrews

Can the City of London be the world’s first to deliver climate commitments?

56 min listen

The way the City of London measures success is constantly changing. A new generation of discerning consumers has skyrocketed the importance of environmental, social, and corporate governance (ESG) to company decision-makers. The finance sector is increasingly being seen as the next frontier in climate action. As the City navigates the post-Brexit landscape and our pandemic recovery it will also be tasked with redefining its role on the world stage. How will the government’s net-zero commitment and the targets in the Paris Agreement factor into corporate decision-making? How will banks and other financial institutions change how they weigh up sustainable investment choices? And what impact could all this have on the

Steerpike Steerpike

Rees-Mogg’s mask slips on face coverings

Since his Grenfell gaffe in the last election, Jacob Rees-Mogg has kept a much lower media profile, to the consternation of sketch writers across the nation. The Leader of the House now mostly saves his quips, riffes and various bon mots for his appearances at the dispatch box, announcing the government timetable or rapping New Order. Fortunately the ‘Honourable Member for the 18th century’ does still maintain a regular podcast with ConservativeHome to offer us glimpses into his true feelings about various shenanigans in Westminster and Whitehall. Ahead of the easing of Covid restrictions next Monday, the North East Somerset MP was asked about the future of face masks, given the detectable shift

Jonathan Miller Jonathan Miller

Macron’s Covid crackdown is a risky bet

Will the French accept compulsory vaccination against Covid? Health passports to get on a plane or train? Children of 12 jabbed, whether their parents wish it or not? As fears are stoked of yet another wave of infection, we may be about to find out. In recent days, France has seemed rather normal with restaurants open, summer holidays in full swing, tourists returning, shops open. But we’re told that none of this will last. ‘We must vaccinate all of France,’ president Macron announced last night in his fifth Covid television address so far. It was a striking elocution. Macron ditched his habitual black undertaker outfit for a smart blue suit, and

Monday

Ross Clark Ross Clark

A minimum corporation tax is nothing to celebrate

So is this what the new era of global co-operation looks like? The EU has agreed to delay the introduction of its proposed digital levy until the autumn to allow negotiations for a global minimum corporation tax. Biden had demanded that the digital tax be dropped, seeing it as a direct attack on US tech giants. In other words, the EU appears keen to compromise in the face of US pressure — something that it would have been less likely to do under Donald Trump. The move makes it more likely that a global minimum corporation tax of 15 per cent will now become reality. Is that a cause to

Isabel Hardman Isabel Hardman

Johnson urges caution ahead of final easing

How different will life be after 19 July? Not very, if the Prime Minister’s press conference this evening was anything to go by. As with Sajid Javid’s statement in the Commons earlier confirming the final step of the road map, Boris Johnson’s emphasis seemed muted. He said he expected people to continue wearing masks, working from home and generally not making the full use of the freedoms they are being given next week. Johnson warned that ‘this is not the end of Covid’, that he didn’t want the public to be ‘demob happy’ and that we ‘must be cautious’ as we take the next step out of the restrictions. Significantly, Johnson didn’t

James Forsyth James Forsyth

The foreign aid vote may shatter Boris’s fragile majority

The vote on the cut to the foreign aid budget, which Jacob Rees-Mogg has just announced in the Commons, will be tight. The government has said that it plans to return to its manifesto commitment of 0.7 per cent but only when the Office for Budget Responsibility’s forecasts show the UK is no longer borrowing for day-to-day spending and the debt is in decline. But that may not be enough to edge it given that the rebels want it restored when the economy returns to pre-pandemic levels, which will come much sooner. Reducing the aid budget from 0.7 per cent of GDP to 0.5 per cent is a rare example

Steerpike Steerpike

Foreign aid: the return of the rebel alliance

It’s groundhog day in the House of Commons today. Another Health Secretary, another Covid announcement and now another scheduled vote on the government’s decision to abandon the Tory commitment to spending 0.7 per cent of gross national income on international aid. The Leader of the House Jacob Rees-Mogg told MPs this afternoon that there will tomorrow be a three hour debate and a binding vote on a motion about the Treasury’s restrictions on the international aid budget. If the motion is rejected, the previous 0.7 per cent commitment on international aid will be reinstated from January 2022. It comes after last month’s shenanigans in which the Speaker of the House Lindsay Hoyle thwarted an attempt

James Forsyth James Forsyth

Sajid Javid says restrictions could return after ‘freedom day’

In another sign of the government’s more cautious approach to the July 19 unlocking, Sajid Javid has just told the Commons that government guidance will encourage large venues to use ‘certification’ – in other words, proof of vaccination or a negative test – to determine who is admitted, that those working from home should return to their offices gradually and that masks will be expected to be worn on public transport. This guidance is, obviously, not the same as law but it is a clear sign that the government wants people to carry on behaving cautiously after July 19. It is a long way away from any kind of ‘freedom

James Forsyth James Forsyth

Can social media stamp out racist comments?

14 min listen

The new Health Secretary Sajid Javid addresses the Commons this afternoon ahead of Boris Johnson’s 5pm remarks about the lifting of restrictions on July 19. And in what was an already painful night for England it was made even grimmer by the horrific, racist abuse that Marcus Rashford, Jadon Sancho and Bukayo Saka received online from supposed England ‘fans’ after the final. James Forsyth talks to Isabel Hardman.

Steerpike Steerpike

Oxford college’s Rhodes hypocrisy revealed

Regular readers of Steerpike may recall last month the 150 Oxford academics who made headlines by boycotting Oriel College and refusing to teach its students in protest at the decision to keep up a statue of Cecil Rhodes. At the time Mr S published a full register of the names of academics backing the stunt, with top of the list being none other than Kate Tunstall, head of the self-styled ‘People’s Republic of Worcester College’ alongside five other members of the same college.  Tunstall, a French literature expert, is the interim provost of Worcester and a professional feather-ruffler since stepping into the post in September 2019, having tried (unsuccessfully) to end the traditions at meals of standing for dons and

Nick Tyrone Nick Tyrone

Labour’s foreign policy is still stuck in the Corbynite past

I went to my first live political event this weekend, organised by the big tent ideas festival, with actual people in a room together as opposed to talking to each other through their computer screens. It felt like taking a trip back to 2019. Unfortunately, some of the contributions from the speakers felt a little like a throwback to that time as well, particularly in the case of Fabian Hamilton, Labour’s shadow minister for peace and disarmament. Hamilton was speaking about the UK’s foreign policy, and his contribution revealed how little the Labour party really have changed since Corbyn stepped down as leader – despite the party’s ‘under new management’

Jay Bhattacharya, Martin Kulldorff and Sunetra Gupta

Sweden’s lessons for the UK’s third wave

The UK has successfully achieved the ultimate goal in tackling the pandemic: protecting the vulnerable.  In the first week of May, the UK recorded the lowest number of new cases since last August. This was met with excitement after such a devastating winter. The government therefore prepared for ‘freedom day’ on 21 June, when lockdown restrictions would finally be lifted. However, they reversed course as cases rose again, postponing it to 19 July. Over the last two months, infections have surged, with no real way of stopping them. Throughout the pandemic, a rise in cases has been followed by a rise in deaths two to three weeks later, but that

Limor Simhony Philpott

The Afghan withdrawal will only embolden the West’s enemies

‘How many thousands more Americans, daughters and sons, were you willing to risk?’ Biden asked critics of the decision to withdraw forces from Afghanistan last week. He has the support of the American public – most of whom also wanted to see troops leave Afghanistan after 20 years of fighting and 2,400 fatalities. This risk aversion is one of the reasons America decided to withdraw its forces from Afghanistan. There’s a diminished appetite in the US for prolonged military involvement in the Middle East, especially large-scale deployments of ground troops that inadvertently cost lives. In the UK, the Ministry of Defence’s integrated review, which advocates reducing the size of the

Matthew Lynn

Branson vs Bezos: In praise of the billionaire space race

They are rich boys with some very expensive toys. As Richard Branson completes his first space flight, it would be easy to dismiss the race between the Virgin founder and Amazon’s Jeff Bezos to be the first billionaire in space as the self-indulgence of a couple of tycoons with too much testosterone and too much money.  The competition will be seen by some on the liberal left as a symbol of widening inequalities. They will view it as the emergence of a plutocratic class separated from the rest of us, and as proof of the argument that space should be left to the public sphere. Of course there is an element of

Steerpike Steerpike

Diane Abbott: Labour is not a unionist party

We don’t hear much from Diane Abbott these days. Since leaving the front bench in April 2020, the former shadow home secretary has largely dedicated herself to writing her forthcoming memoirs: ‘A Woman Like Me’ due in all good book stores next summer. But this weekend the Mojito swilling backbencher returned to the fray with a pointed intervention on Keir Starmer’s visit to Northern Ireland. Responding to Starmer’s claims that Labour would campaign for Northern Ireland to remain part of the UK in any future border poll, Abbott weighed in to amplify the comments of fellow left-winger Lloyd Russell-Moyle, Brighton’s answer to Citizen Smith. Abbott, who arguably came within just 2,227

Lee Jones

Online learning is bad news for students

Education Secretary Gavin Williamson’s announcement that universities can resume face-to-face teaching this autumn has been welcomed by many students. But vice-chancellors are not so happy about the news. Most Russell Group universities have said they will continue to keep some elements of their teaching online – so-called ‘blended learning’ – revealing their opportunistic embrace of a digital ‘new normal’. For cynical university leaders, it seems that lockdowns weren’t a disaster, but an opportunity to accelerate their pre-existing plans for digital education. Since the disastrous marketising reforms of 2011, most universities have been locked into a ferocious competition to attract students and maximise fee income. For many institutions, this has involved grandiose, debt-fuelled and speculative investments in