Politics

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

Wednesday

John Sturgis

Can you tell if he’s dead yet? The secret life and death of Rolf Harris

Rolf Harris, the disgraced entertainer and sex offender, is dead. Harris’s death was confirmed yesterday – but his death certificate showed that he passed away at his home in Bray, Berkshire, on 10 May. This confirmed what many journalists already knew: a fortnight ago, a private ambulance was photographed backing into the doorway of his riverside home. News organisations were ramped up to full alert. Old obituaries were dusted down, pages drawn up, commentators considered for comment. And then…nothing. Two weeks elapsed, almost to the minute, from the moment the rumours began to swirl to the official confirmation yesterday of his death at the age of 93. The tipping point came

Douglas Murray

There is such thing as a stupid question

Some people seem to make a career of being ashamed (or at least claiming to be ashamed) of their country. Personally I don’t feel it – apart from when I see journalists from the BBC, ITV or Sky questioning our political leaders while they are abroad. Then a great wave of revulsion and national shame surges within me. It happened last weekend when Rishi Sunak was at the G7 summit in Japan. These meetings of the world’s leading economies are pretty important affairs, so much so that major media organisations fly journalists out to cover them. But as Sunak and his hosts stood to answer questions about the summit, what

Chris Mullin

British politics has become a nasty game of Gotcha

As Tony Blair once remarked, British politics has become a game of Gotcha. I am, to put it mildly, no fan of Suella Braverman, but for the life of me I cannot get excited about this latest piece of nonsense to do with her speeding ticket. It is certainly no resigning matter. When I have made this point, I have generally received a favourable response. But there are some dissenters. One response was that, ‘We’re talking about Braverman, Chris. How do we get rid of her?’ To which there is an obvious riposte: ‘At a general election, perhaps?’ We live in the age of the feeding frenzy. Originally a tabloid

Katy Balls Katy Balls

Suella Braverman avoids speeding fine probe

Suella Braverman will not face an investigation into whether she broke the ministerial code over her handling of a speeding offence. Following claims that the Home Secretary asked civil servants to arrange a one-to-one speed awareness course for her, after being caught speeding in 2022, Sunak consulted with both Braverman and his independent ethics adviser, Sir Laurie Magnus. In a letter to Braverman, Sunak says Magnus advised that ‘further investigation is not necessary’: ‘On the basis of your letter and our discussion, my decision is that these matters do not amount to a breach of the Ministerial Code. As you have recognised, a better course of action could have been

Kate Andrews Kate Andrews

Inflation falls to 8.7% – but pressures remain

Since the start of the year, politicians and central bankers have been promising a collapse in the inflation rate. But monthly data kept rolling in, and the rate remained in double digits. This put even more pressure on the data this morning, published by the Office for National Statistics, with the Bank of England (BoE) making clear in its last report that April’s figures would turn the corner on price hikes. Unlike its previous predictions in this inflation saga, it seems the BoE has managed to get this one right. Prices rose 8.7 per cent on the year to April – still a staggeringly high figure, but down from 10.1

Euan McColm

Alex Salmond’s firebrand reinvention is hard to take

In power, Alex Salmond was, according to the senior lawyer who successfully defended him against a series of sex charges, ‘an objectionable bully’. Out of power, he breezed into a new career as a presenter on the Kremlin-funded propaganda channel, RT. He maintained his relationship with the broadcaster until the day of Russia’s invasion of Ukraine. Salmond deserves to be yesterday’s man. He’s utterly discredited, both morally and politically – and yet, he’s back. The current crisis in the SNP, still under investigation by Police Scotland as a result of fraud allegations, has given Salmond an in. Suddenly, every TV channel and radio station in the country wants to hear

Tuesday

Steerpike Steerpike

Ron DeSantis set to announce presidential bid on Twitter

Ron DeSantis is expected to announce his 2024 presidential bid during a Twitter Space with the app’s ‘chief Twit’ Elon Musk in the next few hours, according to NBC News. At 11 p.m. UK time Wednesday, DeSantis will appear in a discussion with Musk – perhaps part of a bid to make the governor seem less awkward? – moderated by David Sacks, ‘a Musk confidant and DeSantis supporter’. The Florida governor’s entry into the race is long awaited – and the unique decision to make his announcement on Twitter is earning plaudits from his supporters. ‘@RonDeSantis announcing his campaign with @elonmusk is a big deal – and not only because it’s

Steerpike Steerpike

SNP councillors form breakaway party

These days, it would be news if the Scottish nationalists were actually getting along. The latest row today is part of an unfolding scandal about former SNP North Lanarkshire Council leader, alleged ‘sex pest’ Jordan Linden, who quit his position in July after accusations emerged that he had groped and assaulted a teenager at a Dundee Pride afterparty. Eight former SNP councillors were disciplined by the SNP earlier this month for highlighting their concerns that accusations of Linden’s behaviour hadn’t been investigated properly. Two were expelled from the party, four were suspended, one received a written warning and another is still yet to receive a punishment after leaving the meeting

Steerpike Steerpike

Boris referred to the police over lockdown breaches (again)

Just when Boris thought the worst was over with Partygate. The former Prime Minister has today been referred to the police by the Cabinet Office over fresh claims that he broke Covid lockdown rules. According to the Times, Johnson’s ministerial diary from 2020 and 2021 has revealed visits by friends to Chequers during the pandemic. The trips to the grace and favour residence were highlighted during preparations for the Covid public inquiry. In an incredible twist of fate, this story appears to have come about because the government is currently paying Johnson’s legal fees for the duration of the inquiry. He handed over the aforementioned diaries to the lawyers but

Iain Macwhirter

Humza Yousaf is facing a summer of discontent

You could almost hear the groans from Scots hard hit by the cost of living crisis when Humza Yousaf this week announced another ‘summer of independence’. The FM is promising to bring the campaign ‘to every corner of the country’, setting up ‘regional assemblies across Scotland to bring together and harness the energy of our members’. The intention is of course to do precisely the reverse and revive the divisions over the constitution. We’ve had these summer offensives every couple of years since the 2014 referendum whenever Nicola Sturgeon tried to reboot her campaign for Indyref2. They invariably achieved little except stirring up apathy, as the late Willie Whitelaw might

Brendan O’Neill Brendan O’Neill

We need to talk about Just Stop Oil’s class privilege

I have never felt such a strong desire to buy a man a pint as I did when I watched that builder clear Just Stop Oil protesters off the road. The clip has gone viral. We see an irate bloke take direct action against doom-mongering posh irritants. They were doing one of their funereal marches on Blackfriars Bridge in Central London, to raise awareness about the coming eco-apocalypse or some nonsense, when the man appeared out of nowhere, fuming. He ripped their daft banners from their hands. He pushed one of them off the road. He looked furious, and why not? A man being prevented from getting to work by

James Heale James Heale

Is the ministerial code fit for purpose?

15 min listen

Paul Goodman, editor of Conservative Home joins Katy Balls and James Heale to discuss the most recent victims accused of breaching the ministerial code. The code covers things like telling the truth in Parliament, keeping cabinet discussions secret and not allowing conflicts to arise between public duties and private interests. But is it fit for purpose? Produced by Natasha Feroze.

Christopher Gage

How the Cardiff riot was sparked by social media

After a traumatic night which saw rioters torch cars, volley fireworks at police, and indulge in nine hours of mayhem, residents of the close-knit Ely, in Cardiff, are left to deal with the reality of what a rumour can do in the social media age. It started on Monday evening. A tragedy which would usually define such a night was only the beginning of the destruction which followed. On Ely’s Snowden Road, two teenage boys said to be riding an off-road bike or scooter, were killed in a crash. Such a harrowing event was the catalyst for what reporters on the ground described as a ‘war zone.’ As news of

James Heale James Heale

Tory MPs line up to support Suella Braverman

Once it was David Gauke, then it was Michael Ellis. Now it is Jeremy Quin who bears the honorary title of ‘minister for sticky wickets’. The Paymaster General was called upon to answer an Urgent Question in the House this lunchtime on – what else? – the allegations about Suella Braverman’s speeding fine. He confirmed that Rishi Sunak has ‘asked for further information’ from both Braverman and Sir Laurie Magnus, his independent adviser, after meeting with them both. Quin insisted that ‘It is right that the Prime Minister, as the head of the executive and the arbiter of the ministerial code, be allowed time to receive relevant information on this

Kate Andrews Kate Andrews

Are things beginning to look up for the UK economy?

We learned this morning just how much the government is struggling to keep its promise to bring down the national debt. But news from the International Monetary Fund (IMF) will be lifting spirits in No. 10. Perhaps it can make good on another pledge: to grow the economy. The IMF has once again revised its figures for estimated GDP growth, and it’s good news for Britain. Following on from a fairly dramatic lift last month in which the IMF halved its recession forecast for the UK, but still predicted a contraction, the Fund has once again upgraded its forecasts, now predicting 0.4 per cent growth this year. Moreover, the UK has been lifted from

Alexander Larman

Prince Harry’s legal defeat will be particularly painful

Today, Prince Harry lost a court case. If the law of averages is to be believed, he has involved himself in so many that it was inevitable that at least one was not going to go his way. Still, this particular defeat is likely to be difficult for the Duke of Sussex to take, as it involves one of his most cherished concerns; that of his personal security. The High Court has ruled that the Home Office’s decision that Harry will not be allowed to pay the police to protect him when he is in the United Kingdom is fair and legal. The Home Office had argued that it would

Andy Maciver

The newfound confidence of the Scottish Tories

It is difficult for Scotland’s Conservative and Unionist party to know whether to laugh or cry these days. The last few months have been dominated by the SNP’s implosion – yet the decline of Humza Yousaf’s party could ultimately backfire for the Tories. For now, though Douglas Ross, the Scottish Tory leader, has never looked happier. So what might explain his newfound positivity? The Supreme Court’s verdict that the Scottish parliament does not have the jurisdiction to hold a legally recognised referendum on independence last November was greeted with euphoria by the Tories. It means that without a compliant Westminster government, the second independence referendum is dead. And Scottish Tories

Ross Clark Ross Clark

Is Germany turning against the EU’s Green Deal?

Last week it was President Macron who was rowing back on green measures. In a speech he asserted that Europe has, for now, gone far enough – if it introduces any more regulations without the rest of the world following suit then it will put investment at risk and harm the economy. This week, the European People’s Party – a centre right grouping which includes the German Christian Democrats, the party of Commission President Ursula von der Leyen – seems to be joining in. Germany now seems to be taking over from France as the seedbed of opposition towards zero carbon policies The party is reported to be considering withdrawing

Steerpike Steerpike

Prince Harry loses his police protection legal challenge

It turns out that Home Office can get some things right. The department’s lawyers have today triumphed in their battle to thwart Prince Harry’s legal challenge over his right to make private payments for police protection. Legal eagles for the renegade royal wanted a judicial review of the rejection of his offer to pay for protection in the UK, after his security arrangements changed when the prince stopped being a ‘working royal’ in 2020. But this morning a High Court judge ruled that Harry could not also seek a judicial review over whether to let him pay for the specialist police officers himself. Poor lamb. The decision came after Metropolitan

Jawad Iqbal

Muslim activists can’t cancel The Kerala Story

Britain’s cinemas are in danger of becoming the new front line of protests from angry religious mobs demanding the cancellation of any film that meets with their disapproval. The latest disturbing example of this form of attempted censorship by diktat came when angry Muslim protesters disrupted the screening of a controversial Bollywood film in Birmingham on Friday. Their target was The Kerala Story, a film which portrays the southern Indian state — where just under a third of the population is Muslim — as a hub of Islamist terrorism and forced religious conversions. It has been condemned by some critics as crude Hindu nationalist ‘propaganda’ aimed at destroying ‘religious harmony’. Maybe,