Eu referendum

Saturday

James Forsyth

Could the Vote Leave strategy work?

The Leave campaign have had their best week of the campaign this week. After months of being battered by the Whitehall machine, they’ve taken advantage of purdah silencing government departments to get themselves onto the front foot. As I write in The Sun this morning, even IN supporting Cabinet Ministers admit that Leave have had a good week. But they argue that they won’t be able to ride the immigration issue to victory on June 23rd. One argues that you can’t focus on immigration week after week, or ‘By week four, you end up sounding like Nigel Farage’. But Vote Leave think their trump card is the link between immigration and people’s

Fraser Nelson Fraser Nelson

The Spectator podcast: David Cameron’s purge of the posh | 4 June 2016

To subscribe to The Spectator’s weekly podcast, for free, visit the iTunes store or click here for our RSS feed. Alternatively, you can follow us on SoundCloud. Naming the best columnist in Britain is like naming you’re the best Beatles song: it varies, depending on what kind of mood you’re in. But who would deny that Matthew Parris is in the top three? The quality of his writing is, itself, enough to put him into the premier league but that’s just part of the art. What sets Matthew apart is his sheer range, and his originality. You never know what he’ll be writing about, whether you’ll agree with him, or

Friday

James Forsyth

Gove asks the British public to trust themselves

It was Michael Gove’s turn in the Sky hot-seat tonight and he came determined to make the democratic case for Brexit. In the initial exchanges, Faisal Islam went after Gove hard on the question of how many economists, international institutions and countries back Britain leaving the EU. Islam pushed Gove to name 11 economists who back Brexit, Gove declined to do so. Islam then asked Gove why the British public should trust him, to which Gove replied that he was asking the British public to trust themselves. But the bigger challenge for Gove was always going to be dealing with the audience questions, which he is far less used to

Tom Goodenough Tom Goodenough

How the papers reacted: Project Fear on trial as PM ‘savaged’ in first EU referendum showdown

David Cameron might have emerged virtually unscathed from his first major EU referendum showdown last night. But the focus in much of the press coverage today is not on the Prime Minister. Instead, the anger and hostility of those in the audience leads most of the round-ups in the morning papers of how Cameron got on in the Sky debate. His ‘scaremongering’ was repeatedly mocked. He was also laughed at over his ‘WW3’ Brexit suggestion by those watching. This was ‘Project Fear’ on trial. So what did the papers make of it all? The Prime Minister’s failure to put a date on when he would meet his promise to reduce

Thursday

Charles Moore

The Spectator’s Notes | 2 June 2016

‘No one can seriously deny that European integration brought an end to Franco-German conflict and has settled the German question for good,’ wrote Niall Ferguson in the latest Sunday Times. I hesitate when confronted by such an assertion by such a learned professor. But I think I would seriously deny it, or at least seriously question it. Surely what brought an end to Franco-German conflict was the utter defeat of Nazi Germany. European integration was a symptom of that end, not its cause. As for settling the German question, isn’t it too early to say? The eurozone is the first large non-German area to have been dominated by Germany since

Alexander Chancellor

Long life | 2 June 2016

It was a famous American editor and columnist Michael Kinsley who once defined the political ‘gaffe’ as something that occurs when a politician tells the truth; and he was right, for it is usually the case that a person gets into most trouble when he publicly says what he actually believes. There were a couple of examples just the other day — one when the Queen said that Chinese officials had been ‘very rude’ to a British ambassador during a visit to London, and the other, even more embarrassing, when David Cameron described Nigeria and Afghanistan as ‘fantastically corrupt countries’. They had both been overheard while chatting with guests at

The Spectator

Letters | 2 June 2016

Cameron’s bluster Sir: Peter Oborne is surely right that lying and cheating are now commonplace in the heart of government (‘The new dodgy dossiers’, 28 May). If David Cameron truly believed that exit from the EU would mean economic meltdown, a third world war and always winter but never Christmas, his decision to hold a referendum would be the most irresponsible act of statesmanship since Chamberlain signed the Munich agreement. But he doesn’t believe it. Something else entirely is bringing out his inner Pinocchio. Having promised a referendum at a time when a Tory majority in the Commons seemed unlikely, the personal political risk to Cameron must have seemed remote.

The Spectator

Continental drift | 2 June 2016

It is a long time since the term ‘sick man of Europe’ could be applied to Britain. France is now a worthier candidate for the accolade — it -increasingly resembles a tribute act to 1970s Britain. A package of modest labour-market reforms presented by a socialist president has provoked national strikes on the railways and Air France. This week, the streets of Paris resembled one big Grunwick or Saltley Gate — the trials of strength between employer and union in which so many of Britain’s most bolshy trade unionists cut their teeth. This week is not a one-off: in recent years France has had a strike rate more than twice

James Forsyth James Forsyth

Cameron keeps calm under immigration fire in first EU referendum show

In a feisty interview with Faisal Islam, David Cameron defended his pledge to cut immigration to the tens of thousands but wouldn’t put a date on when he would achieve it. Cameron argued that when the Eurozone economy recovered, he might be able to meet it. Now, this isn’t realistic. The problems with the Eurozone economy are structural and it is impossible to see how net migration could be reduced to the tens of thousands inside the EU; not that getting it down to the tens of thousands outside the EU would be easy—or even desirable. After the interview, came a series of questions from the audience. Cameron kept his

Henry Williams

History teaches us the Chancellor’s Doomsday warning over Brexit is nothing to be scared of

George Osborne’s doomsday warning over Brexit has an odd historical echo to it. Take James Rothschild’s letter to his brother in 1831, just months before the Great Reform Act was passed the following year. He warned about how ‘the infamous liberal spirit’ could affect markets. ‘Let us get down to the nitty gritty,’ he said. ‘We fell some 30 per cent (in Paris) and I hope To God this will not be repeated this time in England.’ It turns out that historically international financiers have not been the hugest fans of popular revolts. The parallels with the stark predictions regarding Brexit from the Treasury, the OECD, and bankers willing to

Tom Goodenough Tom Goodenough

Angela Merkel wades into the Brexit debate. But what made her decide to speak out?

Angela Merkel has waded into the Brexit debate. Her stance won’t surprise anyone – she hopes that Britain stays put. But what’s interesting about her intervention is that it comes after it seemed she was reluctant to speak out, for fear of helping the leave cause. The Sunday Times reported earlier this month that Downing Street believed such an expression of her views on Brexit would be counterproductive. Admittedly, when she made her comments today, she clarified that they were her personal view. They also appeared to be, to say it mildly, lukewarm. Here’s what she said: ‘Obviously, it is up to the citizens of the UK themselves how they

Fraser Nelson Fraser Nelson

The Spectator podcast: David Cameron’s purge of the posh

To subscribe to The Spectator’s weekly podcast, for free, visit the iTunes store or click here for our RSS feed. Alternatively, you can follow us on SoundCloud. Naming the best columnist in Britain is like naming you’re the best Beatles song: it varies, depending on what kind of mood you’re in. But who would deny that Matthew Parris is in the top three? The quality of his writing is, itself, enough to put him into the premier league but that’s just part of the art. What sets Matthew apart is his sheer range, and his originality. You never know what he’ll be writing about, whether you’ll agree with him, or

Camilla Swift Camilla Swift

If only they could vote…

[audioplayer src=”http://feeds.soundcloud.com/stream/266976520-the-spectator-podcast-the-purge-of-the-posh.mp3″ title=”Camilla Swift and Green MEP Keith Taylor discuss an animal lover’s case for Brexit” startat=1084] Listen [/audioplayer] We British have always had a strange relationship with animals. We spend £5 billion a year on our pets and it is often said that we love our dogs more than our children (perfectly understandable, in my book). It makes sense, then, that we have some of the world’s highest animal welfare standards. Our European neighbours don’t always have quite the same attitude. If we could ask our four-legged friends how they’d vote in the EU referendum, I’m pretty sure they’d woof, miaow or moo for ‘out’. Take the Maltese, for

James Forsyth James Forsyth

The right question at the wrong time

Complaining about the EU referendum campaign has become an integral part of the referendum; even Delia Smith has got in on the act. But politicians on both sides who pretend that the choice is simple, despite having agonised over it themselves for years, are only partly to blame for the dire state of the debate. The bigger problem is that the referendum is taking place at the wrong time. It was meant to take place once the eurozone had decided how to address its own problems. The British public could then decide whether they wanted to remain in or leave the European Union armed with this knowledge. But the question

Wednesday

James Forsyth

Why the opinion polls still matter

This EU referendum is a particularly difficult contest to poll and after the general election we all should be wary of treating them as gospel. But there’s no getting away from the fact that the mood in Westminster—and on the two campaigns—is heavily influenced by the polls. The recent good numbers for Leave have put a string in its step. They have also ensured that Vote Leave’s focus on immigration in the last few days isn’t seen as the last roll of the dice but as an attempt to focus on one of its strongest areas. Interestingly, influential figures on the Remain side privately accept that the referendum appears to

Brendan O’Neill Brendan O’Neill

Every pro-EU argument boils down to not being able to trust the ‘plebs’

We all know that the Remain camp has peddled the politics of fear. But what is the object of their fear? What’s the thing that makes them so scared, so convinced that a litany of social and political horrors will befall Blighty if we pull out of Brussels? It’s you, and me; all ordinary people. It’s the public. It’s our unpredictable passions. When the pro-EU lobby frets about a post-EU Britain having Boris as a PM, becoming a right-wing cesspool, getting rid of workers’ rights, becoming less eco-friendly, and / or becoming vulnerable to neo-fascistic forces, what they’re saying is: ‘You can’t trust the public. You can’t leave politics to

Tuesday

Tom Goodenough

Majority of voters are backing Brexit, according to latest EU referendum poll

The latest EU referendum poll indicates that voters have swung considerably towards backing Brexit. 52 per cent of people surveyed said they were planning on voting for Britain to leave the European Union, compared to 48 per cent who are voting in. The ICM poll, carried out for the Guardian, is significant for two reasons. Firstly, it flies in the face of the prevailing view that remain has surged ahead. In recent weeks, those campaigning for Britain to stay put in Europe appear to have enjoyed a significant margin of support over the leave campaign. A poll of polls compiled by WhatUKThinks last week suggested an almost exact opposite to the figures

Sunday

Douglas Murray

The week in EU deceptions

This has been another fine week for EU deceits, lies and misrepresentations. The chutzpah of the week award must go to Nicky Morgan who earlier this week ‘slammed’ Boris Johnson. Last month the former Mayor of London had urged gay people to vote to Leave the EU and specifically not to believe the lie that gay rights only exist in Britain because of the EU. As Boris pointed out, such rights come from ‘our courts and Parliament’ and not from Europe. Although this is a sectional argument, Boris was responding to an argument that can be heard across wider society. That argument claims that if Britain left the EU all

Saturday

James Forsyth

How Vote Leave plan to persuade the electorate that there are real risks to staying in the EU

The IN campaign’s plan for victory in this EU referendum is relatively simple.  ‘Do you want the status quo or the riskt alternative?’, is how one Cameron ally sums it up. To date, Remain—aided by the various government dossiers—have been pretty effective at pushing this message. That is why they are ahead in the polls. So, Vote Leave know that they need to push the risks of staying in, up the agenda. I write in The Sun this morning that their message in the coming weeks will be that ‘wages will be lower and taxes will be higher if stay in the EU’. Their argument will be that the continuing

Friday

James Forsyth

Vote Leave’s £50 million question

If you ask most people if they wanted to win £50 million, the answer would be: where do I sign up? That’s why Vote Leave has launched a competition this morning (here’ the link to enter) offering £50 million to anyone who can correctly predict the result of every game in this summer’s European football championship, if no-one scoops the whole prize,£50,000 will go the person who came closest. Why is the prize £50 million? Because that’s what Vote Leave say the UK sends to the European Union each day. Vote Leave hope that this competition will get one of its key messages, the cost of EU membership, out to