Politics

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

Wednesday

3 Feb 2016

Ed West

Would the migrant crisis have happened without the EU?

For those people already bored with the interminable European question, Radio 4 might get unbearable over the next few months. Yesterday morning the subject was being discussed, in the context of David Cameron’s ‘deal’, and someone from Brussels was explaining that ‘more Europe’ was needed to solve the migrant/refugee crisis. She never got to explain further what was meant by this, but isn’t it actually the case that the migrant crisis is related to the EU? For example, would Greece face a wave of 62,000 illegal migrants a month were it just an independent country that had its own borders and a government with responsibility towards its citizens? The inherent

Tom Goodenough

Listen: Corbyn vs Cameron on the ‘Tory party drama’ EU deal

David Cameron has delivered his statement to the Commons on the draft EU reform package. The PM said it was an ‘important milestone’ and again talked up the agreement – despite the furious backlash in the newspapers today. Have a listen to the opening lines of his statement here: After ignoring the issue during PMQs, Jeremy Corbyn labelled it a ‘Tory Party drama’. He also criticised the PM for going to Chippenham yesterday instead of answering questions in the Commons about Donald Tusk’s draft statement. Listen to what he had to say here: Corbyn was not the only one to take the PM to task over the deal. John Mann

Isabel Hardman

PMQs: Corbyn offers Cameron some respite from the EU deal

David Cameron’s focus today is on his statement to the Commons about his EU deal, and so was much of PMQs. John Mann opened the session by asking dramatically ‘Is that it?’ and criticising the Prime Minister’s deal, forcing him to defend it immediately. Angus Robertson used his questions to complain about the expected date of the referendum and its proximity to the Scottish, Welsh, local government and London Mayoral elections, though Cameron told him he was trying to find things to complain about. The only blessing for Cameron was that Jeremy Corbyn decided to attack him on cancer treatment and benefits, and only Christopher Chope asked a hostile question

Charles Moore

It’s depressing to see David Cameron engage in a culture war

In 2000, the then Chancellor of the Exchequer, Gordon Brown, accused Magdalen College, Oxford, of class bias in failing to admit a student called Laura Spence, a pupil at a Tyneside comprehensive. This was grossly unfair — how could the Chancellor know the details of a particular case? It was also outrageous in principle: why should a politician tell a university whom to admit? This Sunday, David Cameron did much the same thing. In the middle of his EU negotiations, the migrant crisis and the other genuinely important things the Prime Minister must deal with, he found time to offer an article to the Sunday Times, headlined ‘Watch out, universities;

Steerpike

Jeremy Hutchinson discusses his ‘short fling’ with Margaret Thatcher

As the oldest living peer in the Lords at the grand age of 100, Baron Hutchinson of Lullington has a name that commands respect. While the QC stood as the Labour candidate in the constituency of Westminster Abbey in 1945 during which he canvassed 10 Downing Street, Jeremy Hutchinson is known for his illustrious career as a criminal barrister during which he defended the likes of Lady Chatterley and Christine Keeler. However, reminiscing about his life at the Oldie of the Year lunch where he was awarded the top gong, Hutchinson suggested that he may not be as honest and noble as people like to think. He said that in the past ten years, people’s attitude

Katy Balls

Who’s who in Team Corbyn

The first week of Jeremy Corbyn’s leadership in September was reminiscent of a The Thick of It omnishambles. The Labour leader pulled out of scheduled media appearances, ran away from camera crews, was falsely accused of stealing sandwiches from war veterans and suffered the misfortune of having hacks eavesdrop his shadow cabinet deliberations. Four months on and — although one could argue that his leadership remains chaotic — things have certainly improved. He now has a loyal team in place, his office is made up of a mix of those behind his leadership bid and trusted allies. Yet with a larger schism than ever existing between the PLP and the leader’s office, his closest allies are regarded with suspicion by

Tuesday

2 Feb 2016

Isabel Hardman

Theresa May helps David Cameron with strong hint she’ll support ‘Remain’ campaign

Theresa May’s decision to say that the draft settlement for Britain’s relationship with the EU forms ‘a basis for a deal’ has made David Cameron’s rather difficult day – which has involved the Prime Minister trying to insist that he has got the deal he was after, even though his demands on benefits in particular have been watered down – a little easier. It is the strongest indication yet that the Home Secretary will campaign to stay in the EU after all. This is the statement she released this evening: ‘EU free movement rules have been abused for too long and EU law has stopped us deporting dangerous foreign criminals.

Dan Hitchens

Briefing: What is the EU ‘red card’ and will it make any difference at all?

The ‘red card’ on proposed EU legislation has been hailed by David Cameron as a breakthrough; the ‘Stronger In’ campaign have put it at the top of their list of renegotiation successes. But it already pretty much exists. The very similar ‘orange card’ was introduced by the 2009 Lisbon Treaty. (The European Commission’s website explains how it works.) Here’s a comparison of the two: Numbers ORANGE CARD: 51% of the 28 EU parliaments can force a review by the European Commission. RED CARD: 56% of the 28 EU parliaments can force a review by the EU Council. Time limit ORANGE CARD: 8 weeks RED CARD: 12 weeks Effects ORANGE CARD: The European Commission decides whether ‘to maintain, amend

Tom Goodenough

Today in audio: Tuesday 2nd February

Haven’t had a chance to follow the day’s political events and interviews? Then don’t worry: here, The Spectator, brings you the best of today’s audio clips in one place for you to listen to. David Cameron gave his reaction following the publication of Donald Tusk’s proposals for Britain’s renegotiation with the EU. Speaking to a Siemens factory in Chippenham after skipping going to Parliament, the PM told workers: ‘If I could get these terms for British membership, I sure would opt in’ Given the PM’s absence in the Commons, it did not take long for Eurosceptics to pile in and attack the draft document. Steve Baker offered the most colourful

Hamish Macdonell

Scottish Labour attacks SNP from left with tax rise plans

Those of you who live in the rest of the UK will have no idea what a relief it is for us Scots to have some real politics to deal with at last. Scottish Labour’s announcement today that it wants to raise income tax for everybody in Scotland is terrific – simply because it means that this year’s election will be a real contest about real policies. For the first time in years we are going to get an election which is not about the constitution. The tax powers which Scotland is going to get in April are fairly inflexible. A lock-step has been imposed which means that, if you want to raise one

Isabel Hardman

David Cameron’s two problems: benefits and Poland

From his speech and question session on today’s draft EU deal, it’s clear that David Cameron plans to spend the next two weeks promoting his negotiation success, rather than focusing on improving it. He naturally needs to persuade voters – and his colleagues – that this is a good deal that will make a big difference to Britain’s relationship with Europe. But as the press questions following the speech showed, this is going to be extremely difficult. The Prime Minister was insistent that he had secured a good deal on in-work benefits for EU migrants, saying ‘what I’ve got is basically something I’ve asked for’. He was then asked repeatedly about

James Forsyth

Jeremy Corbyn is right: Cameron should have made his EU speech in the Commons

With David Cameron in Chippenham, it was left to the Europe Minister David Lidington to respond to Jeremy Corbyn’s urgent question. Cameron’s absence was poor form. Lidington manfully tried to claim that it was explained by the fact the government didn’t know when Tusk would publish the draft, but the media were only alerted that Cameron would give a speech in Chippenham after Tusk had said the deal would be announced at midday today. Number 10 is defending Cameron’s absence by pointing to the fact he’d already decided to give a statement to parliament tomorrow—once the MPs have had a chance to examine the deal. But it was entirely predictable

Alex Massie

Scottish Labour, peering into the abyss, wake up and decide to do something

Last week Kezia Dugdale, the leader of the Scottish Labour party, ventured south to the Imperial capital to brief the shadow cabinet on her party’s prospects in the forthcoming elections to the Scottish Parliament. Lucky her. According to the New Statesman’s George Eaton, Dugdale’s presentation was greeted with great enthusiasm. It was, one member of the shadow cabinet declared, ‘brilliant’ while another said Dugdale had ‘blown away’ her South British colleagues. Ominously, Eaton reported that ‘After loudly applauding her, frontbenchers left vowing to do more to help their colleagues north of the border (at least one shadow cabinet minister will visit each week)’. To which the only sensible response is, Jeez, hasn’t Kezia suffered enough already? The very

Tom Goodenough

Why won’t David Cameron come clean about his EU migrant benefits deal?

For the last three years, David Cameron has held out the prospect of voting ‘no’ in the referendum if he could not get the deal he wanted. Today he has – unsurprisingly – claimed victory. Yes, he says, there’s more to do on the draft deal – but it not too much because what he’s got is enough. He’s already in full referendum campaign mode, so made his statement to workers in Chippenham, saying: ‘If I could get these terms for British membership, I sure would opt in’ But how much of a compromise has it been? Cameron looked a little shifty as he was spoke ‘emergency brake’ on in-work benefits for migrants.

Isabel Hardman

Draft EU deal: five things you need to know

David Cameron is insisting that there is more work that needs to be done on the draft deal for Britain’s relationship with Europe published by Donald Tusk today. But here are the key points about that draft deal so far: 1. Cameron has got a weaker benefits deal. As explained here, the Prime Minister has not got his four year ban on in-work benefits for migrants that he originally set out to get, nor has he got the ‘emergency brake’ that he was pushing for over the weekend. Instead, Britain will be able to limit in-work benefits for new EU migrants over a four year period, starting with no benefits at

The Spectator

David Cameron’s draft EU Deal: full text

The following document has been released by the European Commission: The Heads of State or Government of the 28 EU Member States meeting within the European Council, whose Governments are signatories of the Treaties on which the EU is founded, DESIRING to settle, in conformity with the Treaties, certain issues raised by the United Kingdom in its letter of 10 November 2015, INTENDING to clarify in this Decision certain questions of particular importance to the Member States so that such clarification will have to be taken into consideration as being an instrument for the interpretation of the Treaties; intending as well to agree arrangements for matters including the role of national Parliaments in the EU and

Isabel Hardman

Draft EU deal waters down Cameron’s migrant plan

Donald Tusk’s draft proposals for Britain’s EU renegotiation are out – and the focus is on whether David Cameron has got what he was after on benefits. The settlement includes the ‘emergency brake’ on in-work benefits for migrants, which would allow Cameron to ‘limit the access’ to benefits for four years. But this limit is not an outright ban: instead, it would be a gradual increase in eligibility starting with a total ban at the start of someone’s employment followed by ‘gradually increasing access to such benefits to take account of the growing connection of the worker with the labour market of the host Member State’. The draft document spells

Tom Goodenough

Boris Johnson: EU ‘red card’ is not enough

Downing Street is doing its best to spin national parliament’s right to use a ‘red card’ against EU laws – apparently won as part of the PM’s renegotiation with Donald Tusk – as a victory. But others are less impressed. David Cameron’s old friend Boris Johnson has been on LBC this morning talking about the EU renegotiation package. The London mayor, no stranger to being a thorn in the PM’s side, tried hard to appear convincing in backing Cameron. He said: ‘David Cameron has done a very good job at huge speed of getting a difficult package of measures.’ But Boris went on to say that what was on the

Tom Goodenough

Eurosceptics get themselves in a tangle over EU red card

The Eurosceptic campaign – already divided between two camps – seems to have got itself into another tangle over the right to use a ‘red card’ to block EU legislation. Vote Leave chief executive Matthew Elliott has dismissed the proposal, which will allow Britain to kick start a process to block EU laws if 55 per cent of other European countries agree, as a ‘gimmick’. Speaking this morning, he said: ‘These gimmicks have been ignored by the EU before and will be ignored again as they will not be in the EU treaty’. But it seems the idea of a ‘red card’ has not always been viewed in the same

Isabel Hardman

Britain’s new EU relationship to be revealed: but is it that different?

Today at 11am we will find out what Britain’s new relationship with the EU will look like. Downing Street insists that the draft renegotiation outline being published by European Council president Donald Tusk is still a draft, and there may well be changes to it (though presumably not all of them beneficial to Britain) in the next few weeks. But it looks as though the European Council summit on 18 and 19 February will be discussing and signing off this renegotiation, and that therefore the June referendum is on. The biggest challenge that David Cameron, who will give a speech later today on the proposals, has to overcome is any