All the latest analysis of the day's news and stories
Believing that membership of the European Union was undeniably beneficial for the UK economy, many Remainers struggled to understand why the majority had voted against it. One hypothesis was that ‘Leavers’ felt they’d missed out on the benefits – that perhaps people who thought the wealth hadn’t been spread around fairly had voted for Brexit
The Taliban have always had a strange misogynist world view, weirdly preoccupied by sex. The first time they were in power in Afghanistan in the late 1990s, the governor of the western province Herat banned women from walking or talking in the street outside his office, in case he was distracted by footsteps ‘or hearing
In the years since Russia’s invasion of Ukraine, the west has been forced to tackle the question of national defence with a renewed sense of urgency. As Cold War strategic planners appreciated in the last century, hostile forces can approach not just from underwater, land, sea and air, but also through space. On 9 August
Pavel Durov, Russian-born founder of the Telegram messaging and social media app, has been arrested in France for failing to comply with official demands to regulate content posted by users on his app. According to a warrant issued by France’s Ofmin – an office tasked with preventing violence against minors – Durov’s alleged offences include
Could Labour be about to water down its removal of the winter fuel payment for pensioners? The chorus of muttering is getting louder in the party about restricting it to those on pension credit or other means-tested benefits, with backbenchers saying they have been shocked by the volume of letters from pensioners about it. This
As the dust literally settles across southern Lebanon in the aftermath of the Israeli airstrikes, we are starting to see an answer to the question of whether this will be the escalation that leads to all-out war. Hezbollah has declared an end to the first phase of revenge for Israel’s assassination of its most senior
The Islamic State has claimed responsibility for the attack on Friday at a festival in Germany that left three people dead and many more wounded. In a statement they said one of their ‘soldiers’ carried out the attack ‘as revenge against Muslims in Palestine and everywhere’. As soon as news broke of Friday’s attack in
Congratulations to the artist formerly known as Lorraine Kelly, for taking the gong for this weekend’s most tasteless media appearance. Having repeatedly failed to turn up to host her own show on ITV, the self-styled ‘chatty persona’ decided to take a turn on a rival channel, pitching up to Times Radio on Saturday for an
When Rishi Sunak announced a July election during a torrential downpour, one leftist wag played ‘Things Can Only Get Better’ at high volume in adjacent Whitehall. The audible strains of the D-Ream hit – which served as Tony Blair’s election anthem – added to the impression of a drowning PM and conveyed the notion that
It’s just 50 days since Keir Starmer took office – so it’s impressive he’s already embroiled in a sleaze row. Amid the growing number of controversies about political appointees, the Sunday Times today features an intriguing story as its front page splash. ‘No. 10 pass for Labour donor who gave £500k’ screams the headline, which
An oil tanker carrying 150,000 tonnes of crude oil is on fire and adrift in the Red Sea, after Houthi militants based in Yemen apparently caused three explosions on board. The Greek-flagged MV Sounion now represents a ‘navigational and environmental hazard’, according to the European Union’s naval mission in the region, Operation Aspides. It went
Sumy, Ukraine In the city of Sumy, the jumping off point for the Ukrainian attack on Russia’s Kursk region, the night is punctuated by the sound of explosions, the staccato fire of anti-aircraft batteries, and occasionally the whir of Iranian-made Shaheed suicide drones. In a parking lot in the east of the city a dozen
Six men have died on Japan’s iconic Mount Fuji since the start of the climbing season in July. This figure, two more than last year, is especially worrying given that steps had only recently been taken to mitigate the dangers of climbing the mountain. Various restrictions were introduced earlier this year to deal with overcrowding,
Many have been emotionally drawn to the green revolution in the belief that renewable energy will restore our personal and community independence. According to this, by investing in green technology, Britain will gain freedom from coal barons and gouging sheikhs, and deliver a grass-roots, democratic energy system. Ed Miliband played into this on Friday when
I can think of few things worse than being a tourist. So I must admit that I did manage a smirk, as I swelter my way through yet another Italian summer, at reports that the mayor of Portofino has apparently banned air-conditioning in an attempt to preserve the beauty of his town. Yes, of course,
Something interesting is happening in the Scottish Conservative leadership election, and while I appreciate you might be sceptical about the juxtaposition of ‘interesting’ and ‘Scottish Conservative’, there is a certain dynamic at play. Unlike the race for UK Tory leader, the contest is not between left and right, for there isn’t really a right to
16 min listen
As the Democratic National Convention draws to a close in Chicago this week, Patrick Gibbons is joined by James Heale and Gerry Baker, editor at large of the Wall Street Journal to try to make sense of what a Harris presidency could mean for the UK. Is she continuity Biden? Do we really know what
It is almost six years to the day since the charismatic German left-wing politician Sahra Wagenknecht launched a new movement to counter the rise of the far-right in her country. Wagenknecht is proof that much of the mainstream media go easy on a politician if they are perceived to be left-wing What distinguished ‘Aufstehen’ (Stand
Heading to the UK is a longstanding rite of cultural passage for many Kiwis. People like my youngest son, who will be visiting Britain for the first time this autumn, are a big part of the tradition. But so is returning home again. New migration figures are putting paid to that last bit. Record numbers
If Home Secretary Yvette Cooper is seriously intending to crack down on ‘hateful and harmful opinions’ – as she has promised to do – she will no doubt need the help of a whole army of narks and snitches to keep tabs on such unwelcome views on social media and report them to the authorities. Fortunately, there is
Around the tolerant British dining table, there are few opinions which will see you shunned, instantly. ‘Bring back the birch’ might be one, unless you’re supping with someone who recently had a bike stolen. ‘Xi Jinping has really good hair’ will certainly silence people. However if you say ‘keeping pets is usually wrong, especially cats
As recently as July, Robert F. Kennedy Jr was still winning up to 15 per cent support as an independent candidate in the US presidential polls. Today, however, he just suspended his struggling campaign — and, while trashing the Democratic Party he once belonged to, he endorsed Donald J. Trump for the presidency. ‘In an
Oh dear. Tory leadership candidate Tom Tugendhat has been rather excited about all the support he’s received from his counterparts north of the border. So far almost a third of the 31 Scottish Conservative MSPs have backed Tugendhat – and in his excitement to announce his latest supporters, the Tory contender’s team accidentally, um, fabricated
Can the Ministry of Justice carry on without our failing prison system seizing up altogether? Today we learned that Magistrates are being urged by the Chief Judge not to send convicted offenders to prison until room can be made for them in prison cells. After the riots last month, there are only a few hundred
The Beeb is no stranger to controversy, and now pro-independence Scottish newspaper the National is on the warpath. The editor of the secessionist journal has taken to Twitter to fume after the BBC’s business editor described her august paper as ‘propaganda’ multiple times on one of the broadcaster’s own podcasts. Talk about saying the quiet
17 min listen
Ofgem, the energy regulator, has announced that the price cap will rise by 10% in October. Is this bad news for Labour, or will they be successful in framing it as part of their economic inheritance from the Conservatives? And could this strengthen opposition to the proposed change to winter fuel allowance? Patrick Gibbons speaks
The eco-zealots never do manage to stay quiet for long. After Levelling-Up Secretary Angela Rayner approved the expansion of operations at London City Airport earlier this week – in a rebuke to the Labour-run Newham Council attempting to block it – the Green party has launched its latest protest. But the eco-activists would do better
Is Britain finally heading for growth? This week, the Treasury released its collection of short-term forecasts for the economy. The average growth prediction for this year has reached a new high of 1.1 per cent – still unimpressive, but a significant improvement from the 0.4 per cent expected at the beginning of the year. It’s
Giggle v Tickle. The name of this Australian court case sounds like an A.P. Herbert legal parody. Except that it is no parody. It is an action brought by a transgender person and activist Roxanne Tickle against a woman-only website, Giggle for Girls, founded and run by a feminist businesswoman Sall Grover. Tickle, born male
If it’s not Just Stop Oil eco-zealots causing havoc, it’s the animal rights activists creating a fuss. Now it transpires that Peta (People for the Ethical Treatment of Animals) is on the warpath – about, er, paint names. Just when you think things can’t get much weirder… Peta – which ‘opposes speciesism, a human-supremacist worldview’
Urban speed limits of 20mph and the traps for unwary drivers known as Low Traffic Neighbourhoods (LTNs) really shouldn’t be elevated to the level of national politics. It may be an exaggeration to describe all politics as local, but such small-scale traffic edicts certainly are, and not just because central government has a myriad of
29 min listen
Freddy Gray speaks to Aidan McLaughlin, the editor in chief of Mediaite, and Andrew Cockburn, the Washington editor of Harper’s Magazine, as the Democratic National Convention draws to a close. Kamala Harris has had a dramatic rise to the top of the democratic ticket, but what does she really believe in? And is opposition to
As far as the economy goes, Sir Keir Starmer has enjoyed something of a golden honeymoon. True, he has had riots to deal with, but economic growth has been stronger than many anticipated, while a small uptick in the Consumer Prices Index (CPI) allowed the Bank of England to reduce interest rates earlier this month.