World

Tuesday

James Tidmarsh

Marine Le Pen is calling the shots now

Emmanuel Macron projects authority, but he’s trapped. After the collapse of François Bayrou’s government yesterday evening, Macron faces a divided parliament, hostile blocs on both sides, and no obvious way forward. After the crushing no-confidence vote, Macron insists that he will appoint a new prime minister ‘in the coming days’. But appointing a successor without dissolving parliament won’t resolve anything. Without a clear majority, any new government would face the same hostile Assembly and the same threat of immediate censure as his previous appointees. The numbers don’t change just because the names do. Each option Macron explores risks failure. Increasingly, it is Marine Le Pen, and the choices she makes,

Monday

Gavin Mortimer Gavin Mortimer

Macron’s France is descending into chaos

As expected, the government of François Bayrou has lost its vote of confidence in the National Assembly. Three hundred and sixty-four MPs voted to bring down the centrist coalition government, ten months after Michel Barnier’s administration collapsed in similar circumstances. On that occasion 331 MPs cast their ballots against the Prime Minister. Bayrou has been a marked man since he unveiled his budget proposals in July, the objective of which was to slash €44 billion (£38 billion) in spending by 2026 in order to reduce France’s huge public debt. MPs from across the political spectrum condemned his budget. During an afternoon of impassioned debate in parliament, Bayrou had warned MPs:

James Tidmarsh

France has been plunged into crisis – again

Prime Minister François Bayrou’s government has collapsed after a bruising no-confidence vote in the French National Assembly. MPs rejected his budget by a margin of 364 votes to 194, with 25 abstentions, forcing his resignation and plunging Emmanuel Macron’s second term into chaos. On Monday evening, the Élysée released a statement saying that Macron has ‘taken note’ of Bayrou’s fall and will name his successor ‘in the coming days’. The president will meet Bayrou to formally accept his government’s resignation. But naming a new prime minister without calling elections risks prolonging the very deadlock that has brought the country to this point.The defeat marks the unravelling of Macronism – the president’s

Jonathan Sacerdoti

The Jerusalem massacre and the illusion of peace

You can tell a great deal about countries and people by how they react to a horrific act of terror. And this morning’s massacre at the Ramot junction in Jerusalem came at a moment heavy with symbolism: just as the world was waking up to reports of Donald Trump floating a new plan for the release of Israeli hostages held in Gaza, the illusion of a negotiated, civilised discussion with the Palestinian movement was shattered. The gunfire in Jerusalem was a brutal reminder that such fantasies collapse the moment they are tested against reality. To speak of ‘bringing back peace’ in this context is not only ahistorical, it is delusional

David Cohen

Four years on the run: New Zealand’s fugitive dad shot dead by police

A fugitive father who vanished into the rugged bushlands of the Waikato region of New Zealand with his three children has been shot and killed by police. Tom Phillips’s death marks the end of a case that has gripped the country for nearly four years. Phillips first disappeared from his small Marokopa community with his homeschooled kids, Jayda, now aged twelve, Maverick, ten, and Ember, nine, in September 2021, but was nabbed by police shortly afterwards and charged with their abduction, apparently stemming from a custody dispute. A member of Phillips’ family later said the episode had to do with the father needing to ‘clear his head’. Before the case

Gavin Mortimer Gavin Mortimer

For the good of France, Macron must go

This evening Emmanuel Macron will almost certainly be searching for his fifth prime minister since January last year. Francois Bayrou’s decision to call a vote of confidence in his government looks like a calamitous misjudgement, one that will plunge France into another period of grave instability. Comparisons are being drawn with the tumult of the Fourth Republic when, between 1946 and 1958, France went through more than twenty governments. The French are fed up with their political class Bayrou’s coalition government has limped along this year, achieving little other than creating more disenchantment and contempt among the long-suffering electorate. The French are fed up with their political class. Above all, they’re

Saturday

Freddy Gray Freddy Gray

How worried are Americans about Britain?

20 min listen

In Donald Trump and J.D. Vance, Britain has a double-edged sword: one of the most anglophile U.S. administrations of all time – but a greater awareness of UK domestic politics. From Lucy Connolly to the recent arrest of Graham Linehan at Heathrow airport, there is much chatter in America about free speech in Britain and whether it is under threat, especially from the American right. Author Ed West and Spectator World contributor Lee Cohen join Freddy Gray to discuss how much this is cutting through with Americans, what this means for UK-US relations and the new dynamic caused by Reform UK’s success. Produced by Megan McElroy and Patrick Gibbons.

Damian Thompson Damian Thompson

Why the canonisation of the first millennial saint is a cause to celebrate

37 min listen

On Sunday the Catholic Church will acquire its first millennial saint, when Pope Leo XIV canonises someone who, if he were alive today, would be young enough to be his son.  Carlo Acutis, a ‘computer geek’ from a prosperous Italian family, died aged just 15 in 2006. In this episode of Holy Smoke, Damian Thompson talks to Mgr Anthony Figueiredo and the Italian-based journalist Nicholas Farrell about the extraordinary phenomenon of St Carlo, the miracles associated with him – and the scepticism they arouse – and a mean-spirited attack on him by one of the late Pope Francis’s closest advisers.  Produced by Patrick Gibbons.

Iram Ramzan

Do Druze Lives Matter?

It’s not even 10am, but already the Galilee sun is prickling the back of my neck. I’m standing outside a war room set up in the community centre of the village of Julis, watching a delegation of 200 Druze men arrive. One by one, they make their way up the steep path – most dressed in their trademark black robes, baggy trousers, and white hats. They’ve come from across northern Israel to plead for their people on the other side of the border, where a quiet massacre has been unfolding in southern Syria. ‘Tomorrow it could be Europe or the US. These extremists will get stronger, and they will murder each and

Friday

Svitlana Morenets Svitlana Morenets

The Coalition of the Willing is unwilling to defend Ukraine

When Volodymyr Zelensky was asked to describe the security guarantees finalised for Ukraine at the Coalition of the Willing summit in Paris yesterday, the word he reached for was ‘theoretical’. Theoretical guarantees for a theoretical ceasefire: 26 countries pledging, in theory, to support peace in Ukraine on land, sea and in the air after the war ends. With Vladimir Putin actively regrouping his troops for an autumn push to seize the rest of the Donetsk region, nobody knows when this war’s end might be. The plan on the table is a shadow of what Kyiv was promised a year ago The plan on the table is a shadow of what

James Tidmarsh

Will the Bloquons Tout strikes cripple France?

The French intelligence services are warning that next week’s Bloquons Tout mobilisation, set to start on 10 September, could dwarf the chaos of the gilets jaunes protests of 2018 to 2020. Up to 100,000 people are expected to join the ‘Block Everything’ campaign against a €44 billion austerity plan, undeterred by the near-certain collapse of François Bayrou’s government. Motorway blockades, refinery occupations, fuel depot seizures, and targeted strikes to cripple logistics hubs threaten nationwide paralysis. Police have identified 40 coordinated actions, with Marseille, Toulouse and Lyon flagged as flashpoints. The gilets jaunes occupied roundabouts and negotiated concessions. Bloquons Tout is thriving on digital anonymity and potential chaos Bloquons Tout signals

Mark Galeotti Mark Galeotti

Putin doesn’t want to live forever

‘Rejuvenation is unstoppable, we will prevail,’ blared the editorial in the Chinese newspaper Global Times. The subject was China’s resurgence, but it looked oddly apposite in light of an inadvertently overheard conversation between Vladimir Putin and Xi Jinping. Some Western journalists have mistaken this as evidence of Putin’s hubris and his personality cult ‘Biotechnology is continuously developing,’ commented Putin as the two men walked towards the podium in Beijing’s Tiananmen Square during the military parade to mark 80 years since Japan’s surrender in World War Two. ‘In the past, it used to be rare for someone to be older than 70 and these days they say that at 70 one’s still a

Thursday

Freddy Gray Freddy Gray

How scary is China’s military?

Freddy is joined by Harry Kazianis, editor in chief of the National Security Journal, to assess China’s military rise. He argues Beijing aims to dominate the Indo-Pacific with missiles, drones and naval power, posing a growing threat to U.S. influence and Taiwan.

Theo Hobson Theo Hobson

The vampiric desires of Putin and Xi

‘They’re vampires’ was my first thought. I had just heard the news that Putin and Xi were discussing how to prolong their lives, as they walked toward their places at the Tiananmen Square military parade. On the official news footage, Putin’s translator could be heard saying in Chinese: ‘Biotechnology is continuously developing.’ And then: ‘Human organs can be continuously transplanted. The longer you live, the younger you become, and [you can] even achieve immortality.’ Xi responded: ‘Some predict that in this century humans may live to 150 years old.’ Kim Jong-un was there too, but is not known to have contributed to the conversation. Maybe the blood-sucking image came to

Dalibor Rohac

Poland’s divisions are bad news for Europe

Against the background of turbulent transatlantic relations, the visit this week of Poland’s new president, Karol Nawrocki, to Washington was deemed a success. US president Donald Trump affirmed continuation of US commitment to Poland’s security and invited Poland to join G20, in a testament to the country’s impressive economic record. Yet the trip also leaves a bitter aftertaste by exposing the depth of Poland’s political divisions. These splits are starting to affect Poland’s ability to throw around its weight on the global stage – precisely at a moment when Poland’s voice is more needed than ever. The world is not standing still, waiting for Poland to sort out its affairs Poland

Kunwar Khuldune Shahid

Why do western activists keep quiet about Africa’s LGBT crackdown?

Burkina Faso’s transitional legislative assembly passed a bill this week to outlaw homosexuality – making it the 32nd out of 54 African countries to criminalise homosexuality. The legislation, enacted under the military junta-run country’s new Persons and Family Code, penalises ‘behaviour likely to promote homosexual practices’ with prison sentences up to five years. The move is part of Burkina Faso’s military leader Ibrahim Traoré’s vocal crackdown on ‘western values’. Burkina Faso has now become the 32nd out of 54 African countries to criminalise homosexuality. Neighbouring Mali, also run by a military junta spearheaded by Assimi Goïta, passed a similar ban in November. Burkina Faso, Mali, and Abdourahamane Tchiani’s Niger, which

The Spectator

Portrait of the week: Keir Starmer’s reshuffle, Graham Linehan’s arrest and get ready for Storm Wubbo

Home Yvette Cooper, the Home Secretary, told the Commons that new applications for refugee family reunion visas would be suspended. She later said in a radio interview: ‘I have St George’s bunting. I also have Union Jack bunting.’ An injunction stopping the Bell Hotel, Epping, from housing asylum seekers was overturned by the Court of Appeal. Ahmad Mulakhil, 23, and Mohammad Kabir, 23, reported to be Afghan asylum seekers, pleaded not guilty to charges in connection with the rape of a 12-year-old girl in Nuneaton on 22 July. Only 56 migrants arrived in England in small boats in the seven days to 1 September. Tommy Robinson, the right-wing agitator, faced

Colin Freeman

Ukraine’s Foreign Legion was doomed from the start

It seems that people would rather fight for a death cult than a democracy. At most, 15,000 foreigners have fought in Ukraine over the past three years. By contrast, an estimated 35,000 foreign fighters joined Islamic State, despite the risk of prosecution when they returned home. Why have so few westerners joined up, given that Ukraine’s Polish border is just a £50 Ryanair flight away? The answer is that despite having a master showman like Volodymyr Zelensky as its recruiting sergeant, Ukraine’s International Legion was a disorganised shambles from the start. Zelensky announced the Legion’s creation just three days into the invasion. ‘This is the beginning of a war against

Wednesday

Freddy Gray Freddy Gray

How authoritarian is Trump 2.0?

33 min listen

On this episode, Nick Gillespie, Reason’s editor at large, joins Freddy to discuss whether Trump 2.0 is really as authoritarian as people say. Is he closer to a gangster than a dictator? They also discuss tariffs, the weaponisation of the Justice Department, and the state of free speech in the UK.

Simon Diggins

China’s parade spells trouble for Taiwan

The massive military parade in Beijing today definitively marks the end of the post-World War Two era. Nominally, the 80th Anniversary of China’s victory in ‘The War against Japanese Aggression and the World Anti-Fascist War’, it has been used by China’s president Xi to, in the words of Reuters, ‘…demonstrate Xi’s influence over nations intent on reshaping the Western-led global order’ – an order that began with the end of World War Two. Sharing the podium with Xi – but not invited to review the parade – were presidents Putin of Russia and Kim Jong-un of North Korea. Their client status to China is also clear: without China’s financial and industrial support, Putin