Politics

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

Thursday

The Spectator

Spectator letters: who kept us out of the euro, and how to deal with squirrels

The referendum parties Sir: Zac Goldsmith and Sir John Major are each of them both right and wrong on the EU referendum (‘My dad saved Britain’, 28 February; Letters, 21 March). I was an MP interested in Europe, and then a PPS and minister on EU issues in the Foreign Office from 1997 to 2005, and it was pretty clear to all of us that Sir John’s decision to call a referendum on euro entry was motivated by his need to appease the rising Eurosceptic fronde in his party. He may sincerely believe that the creation of the Referendum party by Sir James Goldsmith had nothing to do with the decision. But

Peter Jones

When Rome’s 99 per cent stood up

In the UK the richest 1 per cent — 300,000 — of the working population control 23 per cent of the nation’s total wealth. Austerity and cuts loom. Oxfam says there are 13 million ‘relatively’ poor in the country. But the poor seem rather relaxed about it. The ancients, however, knew the poor could not be ignored. In the Athenian radical democracy, the poor were in fact the bosses, having total control of Athens’ courts and sovereign assembly. They could have voted themselves pensions for life had they so wished, or stripped the rich of everything they owned. They did not. Instead the rich were taxed in times of war and made

The Spectator

How to fix our defence budget mess

With the exception of 1983, when Michael Foot promised unilateral nuclear disarmament, defence has played little role in modern election campaigns. This is not least because the two main parties appear to have developed a non-aggression pact. They have agreed to heap praise upon the armed forces and commit them to ever more frequent foreign campaigns — while simultaneously nibbling away at the defence budget to fund programmes which offer more instant gratification to the electorate. This week, as the news emerged of Russia’s plan to lease 12 long-range bombers to Argentina, the Defence Secretary, Michael Fallon, announced the results of the latest review into how we protect the Falkland

James Forsyth James Forsyth

Despite Cameron’s win, Labour will be happy with Ed Miliband’s Q&A performance

David Cameron won tonight’s TV head to head with Ed Miliband according to an instant ICM poll. The poll for the Guardian gives the evening to Cameron 54-46. Though, it is worth noting that this 8 point margin is smaller than Cameron’s usual lead on the leadership question. Cameron started with a grilling from Jeremy Paxman, who pinned the Tory leader to the crease with a series of fast, hostile deliveries. Cameron just about kept the ball out. But he was visibly uncomfortable at points. However, there was no killer moment. Cameron was more comfortable with the questions from the audience and with them he repeatedly pivoted to the Tories’

Robert Smith

Gordon Brown laments the ‘constitutional revolution’ of his own making

Given that Gordon Brown has hardly been seen in the Commons since losing power five years ago, it was a bit rich of him to say goodbye now. But the SNP uprising has started — it looks set to claim his own seat of Kirkcaldy — and so he’s off. In his final speech to the House of Commons today, he lamented the gradual breaking apart of the UK which was, of course, started by his own party. After indulging in niceties towards Parliament as an institution, the Speaker and his constituents, Brown promised to devote his efforts away from Westminster to ‘the idea of Britain’ and attacked the Conservatives’ plans to

Sebastian Payne

Is the era of stable government over?

Everyone agrees: the outcome of this election is impossible to predict. But are we witnessing the end of the stable, two-party system of government we’ve become used to? On Monday, the Spectator posed this question to a panel of political experts for their thoughts on whether this election will mark the beginning of a series of coalitions. James Forsyth, the Spectator’s political editor pointed out that ‘you don’t need a single party government for stable government’. He thinks that after polling day, the next government is unlikely to be similar to the current arrangement. Based on the current polling numbers, Forsyth said the Liberal Democrats and Conservatives would be 20 short of a majority

James Forsyth James Forsyth

Revealed: David Cameron’s secret conversations about the next coalition

David Cameron is keen to demonstrate his willingness to give straight answers to straight questions at the moment. But there is a limit to his candour. Anyone who asks him about whether he’s preparing for another hung parliament will be told that he’s not thinking about, that he’s going all out for a majority. However, the Spectator knows of two conversations that David Cameron has had about what he would do in a hung parliament in recent weeks. In both of these, his message was the same: he would rather do another coalition than attempt to run a minority government. For this reason, Cameron won’t—as Boris Johnson suggested he should

Carola Binney Carola Binney

Voters want visions, and powerful posters deliver them – not Twitter

If no-one was very excited about the launch of the Lib Dem’s election poster this morning, it wasn’t just because of the rain. According to The Times, political posters are on their way out. Political parties are spending 50 per cent less on outdoor posters this year than they did in 2010, and unofficial reports have suggested that the Conservatives’ spending on outdoor ads is yet to hit seven figures. By the end of March 2010, the Tories had already splashed out over £3 million. No doubt the barrenness of Britain’s billboards is partly the result of a lack of funds, but it’s also a conscious choice based on the

Steerpike Steerpike

Adam Boulton: David Dimbleby is a backwards step for BBC’s election coverage

Tonight Kay Burley will moderate a ‘town hall’ style Q&A with David Cameron and Ed Miliband as part of the election debate package. When Mr S bumped into Burley’s Sky colleague Adam Boulton at this morning’s Helen Darroze Regency Power Breakfast at The Connaught, there was no sign of sour grapes about him not being assigned the gig: ‘Sky took a decision, really immediately after 2010 – which I was part of – that because they were all male shows last time round, we wanted to put a woman forward.’ Still, not everyone has been able to keep up with Sky according to Boulton. The presenter appeared less than impressed with the BBC’s choice of David

Julia Hartley-Brewer

It’s time for John Bercow to hang up his gown

There was a time when both MPs and viewers of Prime Minister’s Question Time would welcome an interjection from the Commons Speaker. Indeed, there was a time when the Speaker commanded the respect not just of the entire House but the whole nation. But, after almost six years of John Bercow in the chair, that feels like the long and distant past. In the good old days, when Betty Boothroyd was Speaker, MPs on all sides would fall silent at the first inkling that she was about to rise to her feet. First she would daintily withdraw her black-stockinged feet from the green leather stool in front of her. Then she would

Isabel Hardman Isabel Hardman

‘The noes have it’: Government loses bid to topple John Bercow

More crying in the Commons. More applause. John Bercow didn’t try to hide his tears as it became apparent that the government had lost its vote that would have fatally undermined him. The motion to re-elect the Speaker by secret ballot after the general election failed by 202 ayes to 228 noes. It looks as though Charles Walker’s emotional speech shifted a few votes at the last minute, too. The mistake here was not the idea of a secret ballot, which many would have supported for the reasons outlined by William Hague. It was the way the vote was sprung on the Commons at the last minute without any consultation

Isabel Hardman Isabel Hardman

Charles Walker: I have been played for a fool

The Commons has gone beyond uproar on the vote on the secret ballot to re-elect the speaker. There has been clapping, a standing ovation, and tears. Charles Walker, chair of the Procedure Committee, told MPs that he had been ‘played for a fool by the whips and the party leadership who had had meetings with him or bumped into him in Parliament without mentioning that they intended to debate his report today, or indeed to use it as a means of introducing a secret ballot on the re-election of the Speaker’. He was visibly emotional as he spoke. listen to ‘Charles Walker gives emotional speech on much-criticised secret Speaker ballot

Isabel Hardman Isabel Hardman

Parliament finishes in uproar over Speaker vote

Well, after months of Parliament appearing boring, tired and without things to discuss, the zombie seems to have woken up. MPs are currently in uproar in the Chamber over William Hague’s proposal to make the re-election of the Speaker at the start of the Parliament a secret ballot. Naturally, those who really dislike Bercow are very happy with the proposal, but it’s not just Labour MPs who have expressed their distaste for what’s going on. Passionate supporters of Parliament as an institution, including Jacob Rees-Mogg, have criticised the move as one that undermines the House. Rees-Mogg called this ‘jiggery-pokery’ motivated by grudges against Bercow. It was not presented in the

Steerpike Steerpike

How did the Liberal Democrat cross the road?

The Liberal Democrats have unveiled their funky new campaign poster this morning, only to unceremoniously dump it on a yellow line on an empty street in Westminster: Mr S is slightly concerned for the career prospects of whichever party bod designed the poster, as it appears they need to learn how to cross the road. In the UK we drive on the left. If you look left first and only then look right, you would get run over in the middle of the road. Or is looking left first simply a subliminal message about the direction the yellows will go in any future coalition negotiations? Perhaps Mr S is reading too much into

Sebastian Payne

Vince Cable shows how the Lib Dems plan to squeeze the Tories on Europe

Vince Cable has made some ambiguous comments in the chamber this morning about an EU referendum. At the last business questions of this Parliament, the shadow business secretary Chuka Umunna asked Cable whether he agreed that the prospect of a referendum is ‘the biggest uncertainty facing business in this country’. Here’s the exchange: ‘Chuka Umunna: Thank you Mr Speaker. It is indeed the last departmental questions of this parliament and can I say, Mr Speaker, it has been good to see you in your place at all of those. I’ve enjoyed my exchanges with the Secretary of State and note that during his time I think no less than nine

Julianmccrae

5 key ways the next government can deliver on its campaign promises

Every government comes to power eager to deliver on its manifesto pledges and policy ideas. Yet our polling shows that just 1 in 6 of us believe politicians focus on fulfilling their election pledges. This mismatch between ambition and perception may be explained by another widely held opinion – most of us don’t believe that politicians make a priority of running government professionally. There is quite a bit of truth behind this view – governments too often fail to make the right decisions as they set up their systems, structures and relationships from the first day in office. If the next government wants to win the confidence of the electorate, it

Rod Liddle Rod Liddle

How Ukip became the incredible disappearing party | 26 March 2015

The establishment drive to marginalise Ukip has been under way for three months now, and it has having its effect. You will not read anything about Ukip in your newspapers unless it is a negative story — some half-witted candidate’s office fraudulently claiming expenses, or a disappointed member explaining that they’re all vile people and so on. The papers have, by and large, cottoned on to the fact that Nigel Farage saying something a little gamey about race is not, actually, a negative story. Whenever the Ukip leader mused in moderate terms that he found it uncomfortable to sit on a train where he was the only person speaking English,

Ed West Ed West

Convince a generation that Ukip resemble the Nazis and you can make them do anything

There was something genuinely frightening about the disturbance aimed at Nigel Farage and his family this weekend; what’s scary is that there seem to be so many people in our country who think a man having lunch with his family is a legitimate target for such a stunt because of his views. If you’re prepared to do that in front of people’s kids, you can likely do anything. Their self-justification was telling; as one protester put it, Farage was a target because he ‘othered’ people. In my experience people who use the word othered are quite quick to ‘other’ anyone who disagrees with them. Likewise when another one of the

Steerpike Steerpike

Has Ed Miliband been spending £10,000 a day on Obama debate coach?

Tonight Ed Miliband and David Cameron will be interviewed by Jeremy Paxman in two separate interviews, after Cameron declined to do a head-to-head interview with the Labour leader. Now, Mr S hears that the prospect of a Paxman grilling has been keeping Miliband up at night. Word reaches Steerpike that Miliband has hired the help of American public relations guru Michael Sheehan to prepare him for the interview. Sheehan – who has worked closely with Barack Obama – has been trying to help Miliband improve his public speaking ahead of tonight’s event. This is not the first time Ed has tried to emulate Obama, he previously enlisted the help of David Axelrod, one of the president’s most senior