Politics

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

Tuesday

17 Jan 2017

Hard Brexit it is – and the currency markets don’t seem to mind

A hard Brexit, currency markets seemed to indicate yesterday, would mean an even weaker pound. How, then, to explain this afternoon’s surge in sterling, which surged from just over $1.20 to just under $1.24 within a couple of hours of Theresa May’s speech? The rise more than reversed the falls since Monday morning, when the contents of the Prime Minister’s speech first became apparent. In other words, the market for sterling seemed to fear hard Brexit, but when it got hard Brexit it turned jubilant. Some have interpreted the rise as a reaction to Theresa May’s announcement that once the Brexit deal has been done it will be subject to

Hamish Macdonell

May just made another Scottish referendum ‘more likely’, says Sturgeon

Nicola Sturgeon inched Scotland closer to a re-run of its independence referendum today by reacting angrily to Theresa May’s Brexit speech. Having already put indyref2 ‘on the table’ – but not for this year – Scotland’s First Minister said the Prime Minister’s speech today had made another independence vote ‘more likely’. ‘The UK Government cannot be allowed to take us out of the EU and the single market regardless of the impact on our economy, jobs, living standards and our reputation as an open, tolerant country, without Scotland having the ability to choose between that and a different future,’ the First Minister said. And she added: ‘With her comments today, the Prime Minister has

James Forsyth

May’s aim: take back control of the Brexit negotiation

Listen to Isabel Hardman, Fraser Nelson and James Forsyth reviewing Theresa May’s speech: Theresa May’s speech today was striking for how much it took off the negotiating table. Britain is, she said, leaving the single market. She isn’t going to spend anytime seeing if free movement – but only for those with a job – might be somehow compatible with single-market membership. She was also clear that the UK is quitting the EU’s common external tariff and commercial policy. Why is May doing this? Well, staying in the single market with no say over the rules is, obviously, not a sustainable position—you couldn’t regulate the City of London by just

Katy Balls

No real opposition from Labour to May’s Brexit speech

With Theresa May opting to give her speech in the grand settings of Lancaster House rather than the Commons, it fell on David Davis to face anxious MPs in the House. With many MPs feeling sidelined by the Prime Minister, the Brexit secretary summarised May’s speech — re-asserting that the final deal will be put to a vote in the Commons and adding that Britain will seek an interim agreement in order to avoid the economy falling off a cliff edge. Keir Starmer, the shadow Brexit secretary, responded by announcing his disappointment that May had avoided answering questions in the Commons. However, while Jeremy Corbyn took to the airwaves to accuse May

Isabel Hardman

Theresa May’s cheery Brexit threat to EU leaders

Theresa May was at pains in her Brexit speech and in the question-and-answer session from journalists afterwards to appear as friendly as possible to European leaders. She pointedly took questions from members of the European press who were present. She told the room that ‘we are leaving the European Union, but we are not leaving Europe’, and addressed ‘our friends across Europe directly’, promising that Britain would continue to be ‘reliable partners, willing allies and close friends’. But she also took a very strong negotiating line, threatening what David Cameron either couldn’t or wouldn’t, which was to walk away if the deal offered wasn’t good enough, particularly if EU leaders

Nick Hilton

Coffee House Shots: Theresa May outlines her Brexit plans

In front of a packed audience at Lancaster House, Theresa May delivered a speech outlining some of the key components of the Brexit deal that she is seeking. As Fraser Nelson dissects in his piece, there was confirmation of the UK’s exit from the single market and customs union, along with other telling hints about her negotiating strategy. Isabel Hardman is joined on Coffee House Shots by Fraser and James Forsyth, the Spectator’s Political Editor, to pick out the essential soundbites from May’s speech, which opened, not unlike the Spectator’s Brexit endorsement, by encouraging the UK to go ‘out, into the world’. You can listen to their discussion here: And if you enjoyed that,

Steerpike

The problem with Brexit Britain? Slavery, says Lily Allen

Today Theresa May revealed her plan for ‘a global Britain’ in a speech at Lancaster House. While her words were well-received by her party and the media, not everyone is so convinced. Step forward Lily Allen. Yes, the pop singer — who last year apologised ‘on behalf of my country’ on a visit to the Calais ‘jungle’ camp — has taken to Twitter to offer her two cents’ worth on May’s proposals. Alas it’s not good news. Allen says although a global Britain ‘could b good’ it might not happen as the ‘world still hates us’ because of… slavery. While many Europhiles and EU officials no doubt have plenty of reservations

Theresa May

Theresa May’s Brexit speech: A Global Britain

Listen to Isabel Hardman, Fraser Nelson and James Forsyth reviewing Theresa May’s speech: A little over six months ago, the British people voted for change. They voted to shape a brighter future for our country. They voted to leave the European Union and embrace the world. And they did so with their eyes open: accepting that the road ahead will be uncertain at times, but believing that it leads towards a brighter future for their children – and their grandchildren too. And it is the job of this Government to deliver it. That means more than negotiating our new relationship with the EU. It means taking the opportunity of

Katy Balls

Philip Hammond steals May’s thunder

As Theresa May reveals her plan for Britain in her much-anticipated speech, Philip Hammond has beaten her to the punch at Treasury Questions. The Chancellor has announced that Britain will leave the single market: ‘We will go forward understanding we cannot be members of the single market.’ Hammond also used the session to try and set the record straight regarding his interview to Welt am Sonntag in which he suggested that if the UK can’t negotiate a reasonable new trading arrangement with the EU then it is prepared to slash tax and to make its economy more competitive. When John McDonnell asked about the repercussions of low tax rates on the NHS, Hammond

Fraser Nelson

Theresa May’s Brexit speech – ten main points

‘A Global Britain’ promised the slogan behind Theresa May as she delivered her big Brexit speech. It was robust and well-judged, very much in the tone of The Spectator‘s leading article endorsing Brexit – she even used the same ‘Out, and into the world’ language we put on our cover. The referendum, she said, was ‘a vote to restore, as we see it, our parliamentary democracy, national self-determination and to and become even more global and internationalist in action and in spirit.’ She spoke so persuasively about the case for Brexit that you almost forgot that she campaigned (or, at least, voted) against it. But after a decent period of reflection, her conversion to Brexistism is

Isabel Hardman

Will Theresa May finally tell us what Brexit means?

How much will Theresa May’s speech today surprise us? The Prime Minister’s promise to offer more detail on Brexit was made before Christmas, but Number 10 types seemed curiously relaxed about the prep for the speech over the holiday. And even though those briefing the speech over the weekend warned of a ‘market correction’, this is likely to have been as much to suggest that the speech was going to be big and revelatory as it was to actually warn about its content. Today we will get the 12 priorities for May’s negotiation of Britain’s exit, which will be guided by four key principles. Those are ‘certainty and clarity’, ‘a

Monday

16 Jan 2017

Nick Cohen

Daniel Hannan ought to be afraid of a hard Brexit – and so should you

The British people, whose good nature is so frequently abused, could have done with hearing today’s argument from Daniel Hannan during the referendum campaign, could they not? Before he and his band of zealots received authorisation to manage our economic and political future it would have been good manners if they had told us how far they wanted to go. All the way, seems to be the answer now. In the bluff language of a drunk roaring on friends in a barroom brawl, Hannan tells us on the Spectator website not to be ‘wusses’. So what if, and contrary to what they told us last year, Brexit now means crashing

James Forsyth

Theresa May can now drive a hard Brexit bargain – and she knows it

The backdrop to Theresa May’s Brexit speech is almost as interesting as the speech itself promises to be. First, there’s the government’s very deliberate decision to make clear—via a Philip Hammond interview in the German press—that Britain will play hardball if it can’t secure a decent deal with the EU. Hammond made clear to Welt am Sonntag that if the UK can’t negotiate a reasonable new trading arrangement with the EU then it is prepared to slash tax and regulation to make its economy more competitive. This is a deliberate attempt to play on European worries about having some kind of Singapore West on its doorstep. Hammond’s intervention is striking

Pádraig Belton

Northern Ireland’s political crisis could cause Brexit problems

And so there we have it. Shortly after midday in Stormont, Sinn Féin’s Michelle O’Neill declined to nominate a replacement for Martin McGuinness, causing the collapse of the power-sharing executive after five months shy of a decade. At 5pm, authority to hold elections passes, under the Northern Ireland Act 1998, to Secretary of State for Northern Ireland James Brokenshire. By custom (though not law) these are held after six weeks. Sometimes the election you get isn’t the one you want. And Northern Ireland, which last went to the voters all of eight months ago, is now slouching towards snap election mode. Each party will bid for support from its ideological extremes:

Daniel Hannan

Who’s afraid of a ‘hard’ Brexit?

Pull yourselves together, you wusses. It’s a minor readjustment of our tariff arrangements we’re talking about, not an epidemic or a foreign invasion or an asteroid strike. Not that anyone would guess it from the apocalyptic vocabulary you’re using. ‘A hard Brexit,’ says Keir Starmer for Labour, ‘would be catastrophic for our economy, living standards, jobs and future prosperity’. Tim Farron, the Lib Dem leader, agrees it would be ‘economically disastrous’. The CBI calls it ‘very negative’. Sound familiar? We became accustomed to such over-the-top language during the referendum campaign. The very act of voting Leave, we were told, would cause an immediate recession. Unemployment would surge and the stock

Steerpike

Portland expands its horizons post-Brexit

As Michael Gove does his bit for US-UK relations in The Times today with a Donald Trump interview on the positives of a quick trade deal, his former staff, too, are on manoeuvres to boost post-Brexit business. Mr S understands that Gove’s former SpAd — and Vote Leave adviser — Henry Cook has joined Portland Communications as the PR firm’s new Associate Director. Cook joins Victoria Dean’s Brexit unit to offer advice to businesses on the opportunities the Leave vote presents. Given that Portland was once the home of New Labour — and remains the scourge of the Corbynistas — his arrival shows just how much the political landscape has changed. But while the firm was founded by Blair

Alex Massie

Princess Diana understood what ‘global Britain’ meant. Does Theresa May?

So, ‘global Britain’ eh? This, we are told, will be the leitmotif for Theresa May’s Brexit speech tomorrow and, indeed, for her approach to international affairs more generally. And who could disagree with any of that? The argument will, of course, be couched in economic terms. The spirit of Britannia will be unleashed to sail the world’s oceans. Britain is back, you know. We shall show the doubters what we’re made of and by jove we’ll make a success of Brexit. Well, let us hope so. There are many kinds of internationalism, however, and I’m not sure – at least not sure yet – the buccaneers really appreciate, far less

Ed West

An ‘Anglican Brexit’ is Britain’s best hope

One of the many admirable aspects of Japanese culture is that they have developed strong taboos against triumphalism in politics. When one person scores a clear political victory over another there is pressure for him to play down that win and to present the result as a compromise. It’s the natural response of an island nation to early modern political turbulence and division, which harbours a desire to never repeat the experience. Likewise with the British, who after the wars of the three kingdoms became adept at creating a political system that rewarded compromise and discouraged extremism. Like many of the good things we’ve come to grow up with, the downside

Tom Goodenough

What the papers say: Donald Trump’s deal with Britain

It’s difficult to escape from Donald Trump’s interview with Michael Gove in the Times this morning. The president-elect’s view that he wants a quick trade deal with Britain is not only leading a number of newspaper front pages, it’s also stirring up excitement in the editorials. Here’s what the newspapers are saying: In its editorial, the Times says its interview with the ‘refreshingly candid’ president-elect should reassure us about the prospect of a Trump presidency. Take Syria, for instance: it’s true that Trump ‘clearly grasps’ the scale of the crisis there. It’s also ‘reassuring’ to hear Trump commit to a strong Nato. And the fact he wants early talks with Theresa May on

Steerpike

Corbyn’s rail union comrade: I’d like to bring down the government

After rail strikes caused havoc over the Christmas period, Sean Hoyle — president of the National Union of Rail, Maritime and Transport Workers — was reported as saying that the industrial action had been coordinated to ‘bring down this bloody working-class-hating Tory government’. While union leaders have since insisted that the strikes are not politically motivated, Mr S was curious to read an interview with Tosh McDonald, president of train drivers’ union Aslef, in the Sunday Times. McDonald — who previously referred to Jeremy Corbyn as the messiah — claims they’re going on strike so that Southern customers don’t have to endure an ‘atrocious service’. He says his one job is to ‘look after the

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