Eu

Wednesday

Nick Cohen

Why Jeremy Corbyn is the ‘out’ campaign’s secret weapon

Europe has opened up an unbridgeable chasm in the Conservative party. Labour remains, near as dammit, united. On the EU referendum, an opposition accustomed to defeat has a rare chance of victory. Yet when Jeremy Corbyn makes the case for staying in he speaks without conviction. Like a man called into work on his day off, his weary expression and dispirited voice tell you he would rather be somewhere else. Tory MPs, so divided that it is hard to see how they can stay in the same party, unite in laughing at him. The Labour leadership and most of the unions seem unaware that this is a fight over the

James Forsyth James Forsyth

PMQs: Cameron delivers a knockout blow to a struggling Corbyn

This could have been a tricky PMQs for David Cameron. Instead, it will be remembered for Cameron ventriloquising his mother and telling Corbyn ‘put on a proper suit, do up your tie and sing the national anthem’. What gave this jibe its potency, is that it sums up what a lot of voters think of the Labour leader. It was not quite as Flashmanesque as it sounds. For it came in response to a Labour front bench heckle asking what Cameron’s mother would say about cuts in Oxfordshire. Even before Cameron floored Corbyn with that line, the Labour leader was struggling. He chose to go on the NHS and the

Tuesday

Steerpike

Eurosceptic ministers’ SpAds on a sticky wicket over Brexit

Although David Cameron insists that he wishes to remain on good terms with his Brexit-supporting Cabinet members, he’s not planning to make life easy for them. Today Sir Jeremy Heywood, the Cabinet Secretary, has issued new guidance relating to the referendum that means SpAds and civil servants are banned from assisting Eurosceptic ministers with any material that could be used to back Brexit during office hours. While they will have to work in their spare time if they wish to help their Eurosceptic bosses, civil servants and SpAds are allowed to help ministers in the Remain camp during office hours: ‘It will not be permissible for the civil service to support ministers who oppose the government’s official position by providing briefing

Tom Goodenough Tom Goodenough

Today in audio: Philip Davies and David Cameron’s ‘loving hug’

Bernard Hogan-Howe was up in front of the Commons Home Affairs Select Committee today where Keith Vaz did his best to soften up the Met Police commissioner at the start of the hearing by asking him for his views on the EU referendum. But Hogan-Howe said he wasn’t getting involved: Whilst on the subject of Lord Bramall and Lord Brittan, Hogan-Howe resolutely maintained his position. He told MPs that the apology he gave to Lady Brittan ‘was certainly a full apology’ for not having told her early enough that her husband was not being prosecuted: On the subject of the EU, David Cameron said he was ‘great friends’ with Boris

Brendan O’Neill Brendan O’Neill

From Trumpmania to Euroscepticism: Revenge of the Plebs

The Third Wayists are quaking in their boots. The middle-class, middle-of-the-road technocrats who have dominated politics for the best part of three decades are freaking out. These people who bristle at anything ideological, are disdainful of heated debate, and have bizarrely turned the word ‘moderate’ into a compliment feel under siege. And no wonder they do, for on both sides of the Atlantic their very worst nightmare — a revenge of the plebs — is becoming flesh. You can see this sometimes clumsy but nonetheless forceful reassertion of pleb power in everything from Trumpmania to the staggering back to life of Euroscepticism — or what snooty moderates call ‘Europhobia’, because

Tom Goodenough Tom Goodenough

David Cameron on Boris: He’s a ‘great friend’ but he’s wrong

David Cameron must be getting fed up with questions about Boris by now but unfortunately for the Prime Minister they’re not going to go away anytime soon. That much was clear in his public press conference this morning. The PM managed to avoid making direct reference to Boris during his speech, in which he again played up the fact he has no vested interests involved with needing to fight another election, unlike his old friend. But after being asked directly whether he was referring to Boris in his speech in Parliament, Cameron could ignore the thorn in his side no longer. Here’s what he said about Boris: ‘I have huge

Ed West Ed West

Why are so few big business leaders for remain?

How come so few big business leaders signed up to David Cameron’s letter in favour of remain? As the Daily Mail reported this morning: High street shops including Sainsbury’s, Tesco and Next and banks such as Lloyds and Royal Bank of Scotland did not put their names to the letter published today. It had been suggested that bosses of 80 of the FTSE 100 firms would sign the pro-Brussels letter, but in fact only 36 have done so. One would have thought big business leaders to be largely in favour of staying, since membership suits big best; it is not just that they are most likely to be involved in exports,

Tom Goodenough Tom Goodenough

Bromley has spoken: South London council backs Brexit – but why?

First, it was Michael Gove. Next, it was Boris Johnson. Now, a slightly smaller political beast in the form of Bromley council has come out and backed Brexit. The South London council voted last night to say it believed Britain was better off out of Europe. It passed a motion saying: This council agrees that the negative impacts that the European Union has upon the efficiency and costs of Bromley Council activities mean Bromley Council would be better off if Britain was out of the European Union Bromley isn’t the first council to back Brexit, with Havering having done the same at the end of January. But what’s different about Bromley

Monday

Steerpike

Watch: George Galloway clashes with Jo Coburn on Daily Politics

Over the weekend a number of Brexit activists walked out of an anti-EU Grassroots Out rally after George Galloway was revealed as the guest speaker. Although the Respect party leader was introduced by his new chum Nigel Farage at the event, even Ukip supporters voiced opposition to his involvement. So when Galloway appeared on today’s Daily Politics, it wasn’t out of the question that the presenter Jo Coburn might bring up the incident. Alas her attempt to ask him about whether his involvement could prove to a divisive issue fell flat, as Galloway took issue with her line of questioning. An excruciating exchange between the two followed: JC: But are you worried that you

Sunday

James Forsyth

This referendum is now a battle between two visions of the future

George Osborne’s plan for this referendum was to turn it into a question of the future versus the past, for both the country and the Tory party. He wanted the voters to see the Out campaign as a bunch of people who wanted to take Britain back to a bygone era. Inside the Tory party, his aim was to have the talent and the ambition on the IN side with only old war horses and the passed over and bitter on the other side. But the events of the past 36 hours have blown this plan off course. Out now has one of the most popular politicians in the country

Dan Hannan

What Brexit would look like for Britain

‘So what’s your alternative?’ demand Euro-enthusiasts. ‘D’you want Britain to be like Norway? Or like Switzerland? Making cuckoo clocks? Is that what you want? Is it? Eh?’ The alternative to remaining in a structurally unsafe building is, of course, walking out; but I accept that this won’t quite do as an answer. Although staying in the EU is a greater risk than leaving — the migration and euro crises are deepening, and Britain is being dragged into them — change-aversion is deep in our genome, and we vote accordingly. Europhiles know that most referendums go the way of the status quo, which is why their campaign is based around conjuring

Steerpike Steerpike

Boris Johnson receives a special delivery

With Boris Johnson set to back Brexit, the Mayor of London has received a special delivery from Vote Leave ahead of his announcement. Vote Leave’s Cleo Watson arrived at his address this afternoon to drop off some Brexit merchandise: A Vote Leave hat and brolly outside Boris's front door – he can't back out now. pic.twitter.com/qTb7FkxGpl — Theo Usherwood (@theousherwood) February 21, 2016 Watson says she ‘hopes it’s something he’ll find useful in the next couple of months’: Boris just got a delivery of #VoteLeave merhandise pic.twitter.com/rheiPmkGla — Ciaran Jenkins (@C4Ciaran) February 21, 2016 Meanwhile not everyone is so excited by Johnson’s support. Labour’s Jess Phillips has suggested that BoJo’s

James Forsyth James Forsyth

Blow to Cameron as Boris backs Brexit

David Cameron used to always remind people who asked him about what Boris would do in the referendum that the London Mayor had never advocated Britain leaving the European Union. But tonight, Boris will do exactly that. He will become the highest profile politician to back Brexit. Boris’s decision shakes up this referendum campaign. The IN campaign have long seen a swing to IN among Tory voters as the key to them securing a decisive victory. They believed that Cameron and pretty much all the Tory party endorsing the deal would provide that. But they cautioned that if Boris went the other way, the Cameron effect would be pretty much

James Forsyth James Forsyth

Contrary to what Cameron and Osborne say, Gove hasn’t been an Outer for 30 years

David Cameron and George Osborne have responded to Michael Gove’s decision to campaign for Out by saying that he has wanted to leave the EU for thirty years. But as Vote Leave are pointing out, Gove has not been an Outer for that long. When he was a journalist, Gove was actually arguing that Britain should, ultimately, stay in the EU. In 1996, he wrote in The Times that ‘It is still in Britain’s interest to stay in the EU.’ So, why are Cameron and Osborne saying that Gove has been an Outer for thirty years? I suspect it is because they want to paint Gove’s belief that Britain should

Saturday

James Forsyth

What was said at the EU referendum Cabinet

At Cabinet this morning, every minister spoke in strict order of Cabinet seniority. This meant that Michael Gove was the first person to make the case for Out. I’m told that his argument to Cabinet was essentially the same as the hugely powerful statement he put out afterwards, which you can read in full here. The theme of the Cabinet discussion was, broadly, the trade-off between sovereignty and access to the free market. According to one of those present, where you fell on that question determined your position in the debate. One IN supporting Cabinet minister tells me that Oliver Letwin was the most persuasive speaker for that side of

Katy Balls Katy Balls

Members of Cameron’s Cabinet are now free to speak their mind on the EU. Here’s what they’re saying

David Cameron’s two hour Cabinet meeting is now over, and the campaign has now started. His Cabinet members are now free to back (or oppose) Brexit, here is a list of who’s saying what. Out camp Michael Gove: The Justice Secretary is to back Out. Entering No.10 he informed reporters that he would be making a statement after Cabinet — only to head straight from Downing Street to Vote Leave’s HQ –where the Cabinet members who are backing Brexit have gathered. Gove has issued a statement — via Vote Leave — describing the decision as the ‘most difficult’ of his political life: ‘I don’t want to take anything away from

James Forsyth James Forsyth

Exclusive: Sajid Javid to back staying in the EU

Sajid Javid will campaign for Britain to stay in the EU. The Business Secretary’s decision is a blow to the Leave camp which had been hopefully of recruiting him; Javid had spoken in the past of how he was ‘not afraid’ of Britain leaving the EU as it ‘would open up opportunities’. Senior figures on the Leave side had hoped that Javid would help them persuade voters that quitting the EU would not be bad for business. Those familiar with the Business Secretary’s thinking say that what has swung Javid to IN is his sense that it is just too risky for Britain to leave right now given the parlous

Tom Goodenough Tom Goodenough

Newspaper front pages dump on Cameron’s deal – again

For David Cameron, the only upside to such a late agreement on his deal is that news didn’t break in time for most of the first editions of the newspapers – do they cannot dump on him from quite such a height as they did last time (see picture at the bottom). But still, they’re pretty discouraging. The Daily Mail is as unimpressed as ever. Its first edition led on 5,000 jihadis amongst EU immigrants: its later editions heaped further derision on Cameron’s deal. Inside, its editorial is blistering. “All that lost sleep, and for what?… Gone are his commitments to ‘full-on treaty change’, war on bureaucracy, sovereignty for Westminster… Mr Cameron and George Osborne

James Forsyth James Forsyth

Will more than half a dozen Cabinet Ministers back Brexit?

The Cabinet convenes this morning at 10am with, at least, six of those present set to back Out. The most intriguing of these Outers is Michael Gove. Gove is exceptionally close to Cameron and Osborne both politically and personally. He is one of the intellectual driving forces behind the Tory modernising project. But he is unable to back staying in the EU on these terms. Cameron claimed in his press conference last night that Gove had been an Outer for 30 years. I’m not sure that’s right. Friends say it was the experience of being a minister and finding out how much of government was just following what Brussels wanted

Tom Goodenough Tom Goodenough

Spectator podcast special: David Cameron’s EU deal

[audioplayer src=”http://rss.acast.com/viewfrom22/spectatorpodcastspecial-davidcameronseudeal/media.mp3″ title=”David Cameron seals the EU deal – but is it any good? Isabel Hardman, James Forsyth and Fraser Nelson discuss” startat=18] Listen [/audioplayer] David Cameron has sealed an EU deal in Brussels – but is it any good? The Prime Minister said the renegotiation gives Britain ‘special status’ in the EU. Donald Tusk said there was unanimous support for the new settlement. But is the deal really as pivotal as the Prime Minister is suggesting? And what’s next for David Cameron as he flies back to London for a special Cabinet meeting in the morning? In this Spectator podcast special, Isabel Hardman in Brussels and James Forsyth in London join Spectator