All the latest analysis of the day's news and stories
When the anti-corruption minister is accused of corruption by a foreign government and has no prospect of being able to shut the story down any time soon, it is perfectly obvious that her position is untenable. Yet Keir Starmer allowed the furore over Tulip Siddiq to run for several weeks before the obvious resolution –
Uh oh. Labour’s first six months in government haven’t gone quite as swimmingly as Sir Keir Starmer might have hoped and poll after poll has reflected the growing dissatisfaction with the incumbent government. The latest data dump– by pollsters More in Common – now reveals that the Conservatives are leading Labour by a point, with
The government’s fealty to human rights law is not in doubt. Still, one might have hoped that the human rights lawyers who dominate this government – the Prime Minister, Sir Keir Starmer KC and the Attorney General, Lord Hermer KC – would handle human rights law effectively, distinguishing weak from strong arguments and making a reasonable
The Guardian is reporting that No. 10 is set to delay plans to release beavers into the wild, potentially because it is seen by officials as a ‘Tory legacy’. Could it be that Labour’s Steve Reed is set to join a long line of Defra ministers who, having promised finally to legalise the reintroduction of beavers into
It’s odd being lionised for something you did so long ago you’d almost forgotten you were there. But this is what has been happening to me on social media these last few days, as a result of clips of me on a 2014 BBC3 political debate programme called Free Speech going viral. Free Speech was one of those
South Korean president Yoon Suk-yeol has been arrested after police officers scaled fences and cut through barbed wire to detain him in his luxury Seoul residence. Suk-yeol, the first ever sitting South Korean leader to be taken into custody, was held in connection with his failed attempt to impose martial law last month. But while
Rachel Reeves has found brief respite this morning, with the Office for National Statistics confirming that inflation dipped to 2.5 per cent in the 12 months to December, down from 2.6 per cent the month before. This is a smaller rise than had been expected (the consensus was 2.6 per cent) and roughly in line
The phenomenon that has blighted the live literature world over the last ten years could be classed as a ‘stooshie’, or ‘a big commotion’, in Scots. Indeed it feels rare for any books-based event or literary festival not to provoke one these days. The last decade has seen a huge increase in fractious warring in
It’s not been a happy new year for Sir Keir Starmer. The Prime Minister’s Treasury minister Tulip Siddiq has been forced out following an anti-corruption investigation in Bangladesh. Siddiq’s job became untenable following questions over links to her aunt, the former prime minister of Bangladesh, Sheikh Hasina. Siddiq has denied wrongdoing and an independent investigation
Not a winter goes past without hospitals overflowing; the situation is so predictable it deserves a better word than ‘crisis’. Yet for patients and staff the sense of crisis is real, and connoisseurs of this annual event say that this year’s is especially dire. Health Secretary Wes Streeting has spoken of his distress and shame, saying
Starbucks has announced that it is reversing its rule that allowed people to hang round in cafés in the United States even if they’d not bought anything. From 27 January, Americans will have to buy something or leave. Some people think that’s a bit harsh but it doesn’t go far enough: there are also plenty
The Guardian reports that one in five voters under the age of 45 would prefer to do away with democracy and have an authoritarian strongman govern Britain. It’s almost touching that so many think Britain is still capable of being governed, but it’s concerning that a fifth of millennials and Gen Z have adopted the
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The LA wildfires have been mostly extinguished, but there is growing concern that more fires could be imminent as strong winds are expected this week. Many believe that the destruction has shone a light on the broader mismanagement of California, run by the Democrat Gavin Newsom – who has proposed billions in new funding for
The new year is off to a bad start for Kemi Badenoch’s Tories. The latest update to The Spectator data hub’s poll tracker shows that – on average – Reform have just overtaken the Conservatives to become the second-placed party in British politics. As Steerpike reported this morning, YouGov’s first Westminster voting intention poll since
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New voting intention polling today puts Reform neck and neck with Labour. The YouGov/Times poll reveals that support for Starmer’s army has plummeted nine points, with just over a quarter of Brits backing the government – while Nigel Farage’s Reform party has seen its support soar by 10 points. Kemi Badenoch’s Tories have lost two points,
Thanks to the threat of independence, Scots have – in the words of Harold Macmillan – ‘never had it so good’. Scotland’s current position within the United Kingdom, in which it can hand out many social benefits to its citizens without actually paying for them strongly encourages fiscal profligacy. And why not? Who would argue against greater NHS
Just two weeks into the new year and Keir Starmer has suffered his first ministerial resignation of 2025. Tulip Siddiq has resigned from her role as the economic secretary to the Treasury, following an investigation by the Prime Minister’s ethics adviser Sir Laurie Magnus into corruption claims. Magnus was tasked to look into allegations surrounding
The Pope’s autobiography is out and it’s still not entirely clear why. Carlo Musso, the ‘co-author’ of Hope: The Autobiography, says that it was originally intended to be published after his death, but on account of ‘the new Jubilee of Hope’ (the Jubilee Year), and the ‘circumstances of this moment’ (i.e. him not dying), it’s
And now we have it: Tulip Siddiq has resigned from her government post as City minister after pressure piled on the Labour MP over her links to her aunt and former authoritarian premier of Bangladesh, Sheikh Hasina. After a tumultuous few weeks, the government’s ethics adviser issued his conclusion about Siddiq’s conduct – leading the
In 1996, I flew to Dhaka to meet Sheikh Hasina, the newly elected prime minister of Bangladesh, to discuss her economic strategy. It was not a pleasant experience. Hasina was humourless, arrogant and bitter – by a long stretch, the most unlikeable politician I’ve met in the sub-continent. By contrast her diminutive niece, Tulip Siddiq, Labour’s anti-corruption minister who has just resigned over
Sir Keir Starmer’s army were adamant that theirs would be a ‘serious’ government of ‘grown ups’ – and yet it seems petty politics is back in vogue. It now transpires that No. 10 has blocked plans to bring the beaver back to Britain because officials view it as an, er, ‘Tory legacy’. Talk about wild
Rachel Reeves did her best to keep today’s China visit statement on topic. The Chancellor wanted to talk about ‘cooperation’, ‘competing where our interests differ,’ her efforts to break down market barriers and the £600 million she secured in investment. But other MPs had other ideas. ‘I know the Chancellor has been away,’ said the
It’s gilts season at Westminster. This is one of those unpredictable events, like the passing of a comet, that sees the residents of the political village staring at the skies and imputing all sorts of divine causes to the curious flashing lights they see there. Because of the ongoing excitement in the markets, a lot
Sandwiched between Ukraine and Romania, the tiny republic of Moldova has been easy prey for Russia in the past. Its 2.5 million people are among the poorest in Europe and the Kremlin has been able to exploit the country’s dependence on cheap Russian gas to keep it as an ally. Putin has decided to let
Quarterly reports from the office of National Records of Scotland confirm time and again the existence of an ongoing drug deaths crisis north of the border. And, time and again, the Scottish government reveals itself to be devoid of ideas for how to tackle it. Now, however, there has been a flicker of progress with
Donald Trump has made a long list of promises for what will be done on ‘day one’ of his second term in the White House. Peace in the Middle East was not one of them. Yet it looks increasingly likely that the President-elect will be sworn in having just helped to secure a ceasefire between
For a little while now there have been questions as to whether the commentary of Alastair Campbell and Rory Stewart on their podcast The Rest Is Politics is in tune with reality. Ahead of the US election, Stewart – the former Tory politician – claimed with certainty that Kamala Harris would win only to be
As reports swirl of an imminent ceasefire agreement between Israel and Hamas, Israel stands at a crossroads, grappling with the profound dilemmas that such a deal entails. While the full details of the agreement remain unknown until officially announced, the fragments emerging suggest a complex and controversial arrangement that raises difficult questions: How much is
Clara Chappaz is the minister delegate for Artificial Intelligence and the digital economy in the government of Emmanuel Macron. At the weekend she appeared on a television discussion entitled ‘Trump-Musk: Are we ready?’ Chappaz, 35, is very much a Macronist, an entrepreneur who did her MBA at Harvard Business School before launching a successful start-up.
When it rains for the Labour lot, it pours. Pressure is piling on Labour minister Tulip Siddiq to resign from her anti-corruption role as it now transpires the City minister has been named in a second Bangladesh corruption inquiry linked to her aunt’s corrupt regime. The UK Anti-Corruption Coalition has slammed Siddiq for remaining in
It is half a century since Britain’s native car industry embarked on its long, painful decline, precipitated by Austin Allegros with rear windows falling off, endless strikes over the length of tea breaks and terrible commercial decisions such as to cede the hatchback market to overseas competition. But where Britain led, Germany and France now seem
They drive up prices. Rents go through the roof. And the locals can no longer afford a home. The Spanish Prime Minister Pedro Sanchez is so fed up with wealthy expats inflating the property market he is planning a 100 per cent tax on anyone from outside the EU buying a home in Spain. Of
Next month’s German federal election on 23 February revolves around the disputed meaning of a single toxic word: ‘remigration’. Until the current fiercely fought campaign began, the word was an unmentionable taboo in German politics for obvious historical reasons, since, according to left-wing linguists, it suggested comparison between the deadly forced deportation of Jews by the
Will Keir Starmer have to change his tune on a public inquiry into the grooming gangs scandal? Just last week, the Prime Minister appeared to suggest those calling for a new inquiry into grooming gangs were jumping on a ‘far-Right bandwagon’. However, since then – and following a backlash over the comment – Starmer appears
