Politics Archives

Monday

2 Sep 2024

Labour must beware crying wolf about a run on the pound

As winter approaches, and fuel prices go up, Keir Starmer’s honeymoon period is well and truly over. The Labour government is clearly getting a little nervous about Chancellor Rachel Reeves’s decision to scrap the £300 given to millions of pensioners to help keep warm over the winter. It is now claiming that it had no choice but to save some money somewhere. ‘If we hadn’t taken some of these tough decisions we could have seen a run on the pound, interest rates going up and crashing the economy,’ argued Commons Leader Lucy Powell over the weekend. ‘It’s something we were left with no alternative but to do.’ ‘If we hadn’t

Gavin Mortimer

Angela Merkel played a key role in the rise of the AfD

To no one’s great surprise, Alternative für Deutschland (AfD) romped to victory in Sunday’s election in the eastern state of Thuringia. The party, classified as right-wing extremist by Germany’s security authorities, also came a close second to the centre-right CDU in Saxony’s election. The result is being described as the first for a far-right party in a German state parliament election since the Second World War. Angela Merkel must share the blame In response to the AfD’s triumph, German chancellor Olaf Scholz urged other German parties to exclude ‘right-wing extremists’ from power, saying: ‘The AfD is damaging Germany.’ If so, Angela Merkel must share the blame. It is the former

Nigel Jones

How long will Germany’s anti-AfD ‘firewall’ last?

Berlin awoke this morning in a state of shock. Although opinion polls had predicted that the Alternative für Deutschland (AfD) would do well in yesterday’s eastern state elections in Thuringia and Saxony, the cold reality that the anti-immigration, anti-Islamist party has topped the polls in Thuringia and come a close second in Saxony, takes some getting used to, even for cynical Berliners. Mainstream centre and leftist parties in Germany have vowed to form a ‘brandmauer’ (firewall) against the AfD The German capital is a left-wing island surrounded by the sea of states of former East Germany, which are rapidly moving to the far right. The AfD scored more than 30

Steerpike

Starmer rehomes ‘unsettling’ Thatcher painting

To Downing Street, where a painting of a former prime minister has been causing quite a stir lately. Sir Keir Starmer found himself at loggerheads with a number of Conservative politicians last week when it transpired the Labour PM had removed a portrait of Margaret Thatcher from the former No. 10 study – after he’d agreed the Gordon Brown-commissioned painting was ‘a bit unsettling’. While Starmer was slammed for his ‘petty approach’ by Tory politicians, it now turns out that the portrait has found a new home – in a first floor visitor meeting room. Talk about a downgrade… The revelation – which emerged during an interview with Starmer’s biographer

Katy Balls

How long will Starmer’s new MPs stay loyal?

It’s show time for Keir Starmer as MPs return to parliament today following the summer recess. The Prime Minister and his team have faced a slew of negative headlines in recent weeks over the planned cut to the winter fuel allowance, an ongoing cronyism row and whether the new government is spooking business with its pessimism and speculation over the ‘painful’ budget in October. Recent polls suggest Labour is losing support. Starmer’s net approval ratings, according to Opinium, are now -13 per cent. It was +19 per cent when he entered 10 Downing Street in July. The PM is already facing disquiet from his MPs Ministers hope to show momentum

Sam Leith

The war on smokers has gone too far

You’d think, wouldn’t you, that after winning a giant mandate from the electorate and having not yet done anything to wick off the people who don’t already hate him, our new Prime Minister might like to bask in a few weeks of good vibes. Things, after all, can only get worse from here. Wouldn’t it be nice to feel like Mister Popular for a bit? The original ban on smoking indoors was illiberal, but it was illiberal to a very legible purpose Sir Keir Starmer, it seems, has a stronger character than would to succumb to that temptation. Already, even his own cabinet ministers are briefing that they think he’s

Constantin Eckner

What the AfD’s ‘historic victory’ means for Germany

Alternative für Deutschland’s success in east German state elections marks a major blow to the government in Berlin. The AfD is set to win almost a third of the vote in Thuringia – putting it nine points ahead of the conservative Christian Democrats (CDU). The AfD’s top candidate in Thuringia, Björn Höcke, hailed a ‘historic victory’. Despite the best efforts of the centrist parties, the AfD is not going away. Scholz’s remarks ignore a simple reality: that the AfD has transcended its status as a mere party of protest. This result, if confirmed once all votes are counted, would mark the first victory for a far-right party in a state

Philip Patrick

Scottish Nats still haven’t worked out why they lost

Unlike a slightly more high-profile reunion event, the ticketing website for the Scottish referendum tenth anniversary show is not expected to crash. But there will no doubt be much looking back in anger at the IMAX theatre at the Science Centre in Glasgow on 14 February as ‘the stars’ (it says) of the 2014 referendum gather to ‘reflect’ on the defining moment in their lives and ‘outline their hopes for the future’. In a fine Scottish tradition, they clearly still see themselves as the moral, if not actual, victors of 2014 The headliner (surprise, surprise) is Alex Salmond, who will be in discussion with STV political journalist Bernard Ponsonby. From the flyer,

Sunday

1 Sep 2024

Stephen Daisley

This could be the first right-wing Scottish Tory leader in years

The Scottish Conservative leadership election is now Russell Findlay’s to lose. The West Scotland MSP has secured three big endorsements: former Scottish Secretaries Lord Forsyth and David Mundell, and shadow Scottish Secretary John Lamont. It means all five Scottish Tory MPs support his campaign, alongside 12 MSPs, two council leaders and leading party donors Alasdair Locke, Alan Massie and Robert Kilgour. Right-winger Forsyth has an op-ed in today’s Scottish Mail on Sunday hailing Findlay’s ‘courage, competence, conviction and compassion’ and predicting that his leadership would see the Tories shift focus to ‘the real day-to-day concerns of every voter’. Left-winger Mundell believes Findlay has ‘the life experience’ and skills to win back ex-Tories

Patrick West

Labour’s puritanical attack on vaping

On Times Radio this morning Lucy Powell, Leader of the House of Commons, said that she wanted the government to ‘tackle the scourge of vaping’. Of course she does. This is the next natural step for a government intent on stopping people enjoying themselves, or exercising individual freedom. Never mind that vaping, according to Public Health England, is 95 per cent safer than smoking and that it is recommended by the NHS for smokers looking to quit. Government ministers just can’t help themselves. There’s nothing more morally intoxicating than stopping others deriving pleasure from something you regard as sinful Labour are drunk on power. They’re in a ban-happy state of

Neve Gordon

The ICC is right to pursue Benjamin Netanyahu

On 20 May, ICC Prosecutor Karim Khan tried to push the borders of the ‘permissible’. In an extraordinary rebuke of existing practice, he not only sought arrest warrants for Hamas leaders who allegedly planned the 7 October, 2023, attack on Israeli military bases, kibbutzim, towns and the Nova music festival where 815 civilians, among them 36 children, and close to 400 members of the security forces were killed, and 251 others (mostly civilians) were abducted and taken to Gaza. In addition, Khan had the courage to ask the Pre-Trial Chamber to approve the arrest warrants of Israel’s Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and its Defence Minister Yoav Gallant – two leaders

Ian O’Doherty

The Irish elite are terrifyingly out of touch

For the average member of the Irish political, media and NGO complex there are several political issues in Ireland which need to be addressed urgently. There is the burning need to introduce more stringent hate speech laws, a topic which seemed dormant until Taoiseach Simon Harris resurrected this prospect last week. There is the race to institute even more regulations which will help Ireland show the rest of the world how to tackle climate change. Not only are politicians failing to understand the entirely legitimate fears and concerns of ordinary people, they are regarding them with something approaching complete contempt Inevitably, ever since Ireland joined forces with Norway and Spain

Sophia Gaston and Justin Bassi

How Labour should deal with China

Keir Starmer’s geopolitical in-tray will arguably be one of the most daunting in recent history. The Prime Minister faces a number of conflicts and hard choices – and a completely different geopolitical landscape to the last time Labour was in power. Key among these challenges is China, which has risen in the past 14 years to become an economic and military superpower, and a disruptive antagonist to the liberal international order. A relationship with China requires careful balance and an understanding of the unseen traps that might lie ahead So far the new government’s position has been mixed. Work has begun on the promised China audit, which David Lammy described as

Mike Parry

A four-day week is bad news for workers

When I was a young reporter on the Daily Express in the 1980s I was sent to Belfast to cover the IRA’s hunger strikes campaign. It was a fast moving story, focused not just on the men who were dying from refusing food but all the riots, bombings and killings that accompanied their deaths. When you heard dustbin lids being banged on the pavements outside the Divis Flats on Belfast’s lower Falls Road at 2am it was the signal that another protestor had died. Employees could be able to insist on finishing their contracted week’s hours on Thursday It was an incredible story in which to be involved. But after

Lee David Evans

How to end the Tory leadership chaos cycle

In the eight years since David Cameron resigned as prime minister, the Conservatives have had four different leaders. Soon it will be five. Between Theresa May, Boris Johnson, Liz Truss and Rishi Sunak, recent stints at the top of the party have averaged just two years. Being the leader of the Conservative Party – a role for which six candidates are currently vying – has become an almost impossible job. Restoring Conservative fortunes will depend upon breaking the cycle of chaos at the top of the party Intractable policy challenges, especially Britain’s relationship with the European Union which felled both Cameron and May, go some way towards explaining the tumult.

Saturday

31 Aug 2024

Richard Kemp

The US should sanction the ICC

The actions of the International Criminal Court’s Chief Prosecutor, Karim Khan, will deprive Israel of its sovereignty and undermine the West’s defence against terrorists and despots. The US must put a stop to it. In a submission to the ICC last week, Khan doubled down on his demands to arrest Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and Defence Minister Yoav Gallant. He was responding to a multitude of submissions made to the Pre-Trial Chamber contesting the arrest warrants he demands. Most of these submissions questioned the ICC’s jurisdiction over Israel. Israel is the canary in the coal mine Israel, like the US and many other countries, is not a state party to the ICC. Before

Katy Balls

Which Conservative leader could be a problem for Keir Starmer?

14 min listen

The Tory leadership contest is still rumbling on, and we’re lucky enough to still have weeks to go! In this Saturday episode, we assess which of the candidates would create the biggest problem for Keir Starmer. Who would be most frustrating at the dispatch box, and whose politics would be the most difficult for him? Who might be a slightly easier opponent? Megan McElroy speaks to Katy Balls and John McTernan, political strategist and former political secretary to Tony Blair.

Matt McDonald

Will Kamala actually build the wall?

32 min listen

In a CNN interview, Kamala Harris has been pressed on why her policies on immigration have become more moderate since 2019, when she ran for president. Republicans have been accusing her of flip-flopping on her border wall policy. In this episode, Matt McDonald, managing editor of The Spectator’s US edition, fills in for Freddy whilst he’s on holiday. Matt speaks to Todd Bensman, journalist, author, and fellow at the Center for Immigration Studies.

Igor Toronyi-Lalic

Joan Collins, Owen Matthews, Sara Wheeler, Igor Toronyi-Lalic and Tanya Gold

30 min listen

On this week’s Spectator Out Loud: Joan Collins reads an extract from her diary (1:15); Owen Matthews argues that Russia and China’s relationship is just a marriage of convenience (3:19); reviewing The White Ladder: Triumph and Tragedy at the Dawn of Mountaineering by Daniel Light, Sara Wheeler examines the epic history of the sport (13:52); Igor Toronyi-Lalic looks at the life, cinema, and many drinks, of Marguerite Duras (21:35); and Tanya Gold provides her notes on tasting menus (26:07). Presented and produced by Patrick Gibbons.

Charlotte Henry

Tottenham’s ‘Yid Army’ chant isn’t antisemitic

‘They tried to stop us and look what it did. The thing I love most is being a yid.’ So chanted the Tottenham Hotspur fans 44 seconds into their side’s 4-0 thrashing of Everton last weekend. That often-repeated song refers to previous, unsuccessful, attempts to try and stop Spurs fans using the ‘Y-word’. The bile underneath the social media posts announcing the deal was as depressing as it was predictable Ask any Spurs fan singing that and similar tunes why they do so, and they will likely say that it started as a response to antisemitism from opposing fans because of Tottenham’s connection to the Jewish community. Chanters would undoubtedly