Latest from Coffee House

Latest from Coffee House

All the latest analysis of the day's news and stories

Sunday shows round-up: John McDonnell says he doesn’t trust Theresa May

Andrew Marr’s chief guest of the day was Shadow Chancellor John McDonnell. McDonnell put considerable pressure on the ongoing Brexit negotiations between the government and the opposition. He said this was due to the Prime Minister having allegedly briefed the media on areas of potential compromise such as a ‘comprehensive but temporary customs agreement’, while

Interview with Andrew Adonis: a master of social media

The news over Easter that Lord Adonis, the counterweight to nominative determinism, was standing as a Labour Remain MEP was greeted with a fair degree of scepticism. Many commented that it would be a novelty for him to stand for anything — in his early twenties he became an SDP councillor in Oxford, but that’s

The truth about Noah Carl

My great friend Dr Noah Carl joins a group of distinguished academics removed from their posts this spring. But while Jordan Peterson (visiting fellowship rescinded by Cambridge) and Sir Roger Scruton (sacked as a commission chair by James Brokenshire) can arguably hold their own and get on with their lives, Noah – an early-career Junior

Philip Patrick

Will Japan’s far right spoil the new Emperor’s party?

When the new Japanese Emperor Naruhito makes his first public appearance, greeting well-wishers at the Imperial Palace in Tokyo today, there is a fear that the official images of the cheering crowds will need to be carefully framed, if not cropped. For among the multitudes of proud, happy Japanese welcoming the new Emperor and the

James Forsyth

What a May / Corbyn Brexit deal would look like

The local election results showed that both main parties are paying a price for the Brexit impasse. This, as I say in The Sun this morning, means that the cross-party talks have a better chance of succeeding than they did. Those in the talks are more optimistic than they have been about getting some kind

Steerpike

Gavin Williamson’s cheerful goodbye

When the former defence secretary Gavin Williamson was fired from his position on Wednesday, for allegedly leaking information related to Huawei, China hawks in the Cabinet lost a key ally in their fight against the company’s involvement in the UK 5G network. The defence secretary was said to be one of five Cabinet ministers against

The United Nations and the fracturing of Western unity

The United Nations Security Council was designed to, in a phrase, keep the peace. Life didn’t have to be brutish and short; if the great powers got into a room, they could wield their collective might and solve any problem.  The Security Council’s top priority—“the maintenance of international peace and security”—would prevent a third Great War

What Gavin Williamson must do to rebuild his career

Gavin Williamson is clearly a man who is happy to take a risk. His comments that he would welcome a police investigation increase the chances that one might happen, and yet Williamson’s rationale for wanting an investigation is vanishingly thin.  Williamson claims that the notepad of the Daily Telegraph reporter, Steven Swinford, “would show that I

Robert Peston

The Brexit political earthquake is only just beginning

These are the most extraordinary local elections of my lifetime. The Tories’ loss of more than 1,000 councillors is way worse than the gloomiest projections. And yet Labour should be as depressed as the government because the fact that it is losing more than 100 seats, and its share of the vote is broadly the

Cindy Yu

The Spectator Podcast: the Brexit party, drugs, and fake lesbians

As the two main parties reel from their local election performances today, are we at the beginning of a golden age for smaller parties? James Forsyth evaluates the chances of the Brexit party – Nigel Farage’s new electoral outfit – in this week’s cover piece. The conclusion isn’t pretty for the Conservative party: the Brexit

Isabel Hardman

Ministers shouldn’t be able to escape their mistakes

There is little doubt that Rory Stewart is amply-qualified for his belated promotion to the cabinet. The new International Development Secretary also has a background that means he understands what his brief actually does, and its value. But his move from the Ministry of Justice has also prompted a round of complaining that Stewart will

Steerpike

Baldrick quits Labour

Things are going from bad to worse for Jeremy Corbyn. Labour has had a dismal night in the polls, losing nearly 100 councillors when the party had hoped to make gains at the Tories’ expense. And now Tony Robinson – the actor best known for playing Baldrick in Blackadder – has said he is quitting

Brendan O’Neill

Tommy Robinson and the double standards of political violence

So it’s acceptable now to assault electoral candidates? That’s the pretty scary take-home message from the Tommy Robinson ‘milkshaking’ incidents. Journalists and even politicians have been going wild for the bloke in Warrington who threw his milkshake in Robinson’s face yesterday as he was out campaigning as an independent for the upcoming Euro elections. It’s

Steerpike

Barry Gardiner: Labour is trying to ‘bail out’ the Tories on Brexit

It’s always been the case that politics makes strange bedfellows, but even so, the current cross-party Brexit talks between Labour and the Conservatives have produced the oddest couple in a long time: Jeremy Corbyn and Theresa May. One wants to remould the capitalist order, the other simply wants to survive as party leader until Christmas.

Steerpike

Boris Johnson gets the vote out

With widespread dissatisfaction across the country with the Tory party’s handling of Brexit, a key concern for CCHQ ahead of the local elections last night was turnout, and the risk that their supporters would simply stay at home. So it makes sense that at 8pm yesterday, with only two hours until the polls closed, a

Tom Goodenough

Tories lose over 1300 seats in local elections

The Tories have lost over 1000 seats as both major parties were hit by a Brexit backlash in the local elections overnight. The Conservatives are down 1323 councillors, while Labour lost 77 representatives compared to 2015. Theresa May said voters had sent the ‘simple message’ that her party had to ‘get on’ with delivering Brexit. Labour’s

Could this be the year the Lib Dems make a comeback?

Small issues – the construction of a hated roundabout or an outbreak of pot holes – can matter a lot at local elections. This year however the mood is different. Traumatised by Brexit, voters have been itching to vent their frustrations at the ballot box one way or another. With the two main parties in the

Steerpike

Are local election candidates embarrassed by Corbyn and May?

Voters have been heading to the polls for the local elections today, as a long and gruelling campaign for the two main parties is wrapping up. Activists have been touring the doorsteps issuing heartfelt promises to repair potholes and collect bins faster. It’s been a familiar script – the Tories accuse Labour of waste, and

Robert Peston

Why Theresa May now has nothing to lose

Theresa May is behaving like a prime minister who has worked out that taking cautious steps to cling on to power is a bankrupt strategy. The ruthlessness with which she dispatched her defence secretary Gavin Williamson, who was till recently her closest ally, is one piece of supporting evidence. The point is that when he

Steerpike

Watch: David Lidington takes a dig at Gavin Williamson

As defence secretary in charge of Britain’s armed forces, Gavin Williamson did not exactly conduct himself with the usual stoicism and calm that comes with the role. But one of the least impressive moments he will be remembered for was his response to the Salisbury attack. After Britain had just deported 23 Russian spies from