Isabel Hardman is assistant editor of The Spectator and author of Why We Get the Wrong Politicians. She also presents Radio 4’s Week in Westminster.
11 min listen
David Cameron finally issued a statement over the weekend on the ongoing Greensill scandal. Gordon Brown also waded in this morning, telling the Today programme that there should be a five-year cooling-off period before former PMs can lobby. Will this but the issue to bed? Katy Balls speaks to Isabel Hardman.
Keir Starmer obviously regrets visiting Jesus House last week because of the furore it has caused in his own party. But he will likely come to regret his reaction even more. The Labour leader posted a full apology for the Pentecostal church visit, saying: ‘I completely disagree with Jesus House’s beliefs on LGBT+ rights, which
Has the pandemic really been good for the way the NHS treats mental health? That’s the rather startling claim I report on today in my i paper column. Ministers have started to talk — equally surprisingly, it has to be said — about the possibility that they are close to reaching parity of esteem between the
11 min listen
A report on the Met Police’s handling of Sarah Everard’s vigil has concluded that the force ‘acted appropriately’. Was the conclusion a surprise, and has the new Policing Bill given them too much power? Isabel Hardman speaks to James Forsyth and Katy Balls.
There is little to celebrate in today’s first anniversary since Britain went into lockdown, but Boris Johnson did try his best to mark it with a positive message about what was to come. The Prime Minister held a press conference in Downing Street this evening where he told the public that he wanted to ‘to
Is ‘levelling up’ actually going to amount to anything? It’s been well over a year since Boris Johnson talked about it on the steps of Downing Street following his election victory, but of course quite a lot has happened in the intervening few months. It would be perfectly easy for this agenda to end up
The Fire Safety Bill comes back to the Commons this afternoon for MPs to consider the changes made by peers — and there’s an amendment in there that Labour hopes is going to cause a bit of a fuss. It’s the reiteration of what’s become known as the ‘McPartland-Smith amendment’ after the two Conservative MPs —
There is no finer sight in spring than a blossom tree. Planting one is, to my mind, a public service, as it will cheer generations of people plodding down your street, both with the blooms that appear on its branches, and with the confetti of petals thrown along the pavement. In the next few weeks,
Matt Hancock was tremendously smiley when he led Wednesday’s coronavirus press briefing. In between beaming, he managed to tell us about the ‘fantastic news’ that the vaccination programme has now reached more than 25 million people having had their first dose. He was very keen to sing the praises of this programme — and indeed
Prime Minister’s Questions is usually a session where the PM defends his handling of one issue or another, under attack from the leader of the Opposition. But today’s session involved an attempt by Sir Keir Starmer to defend his approach to the Police, Crime, Sentencing and Courts Bill. Labour knows it has an exposed flank
11 min listen
Starting ‘a new Cold War on China’ would be ‘a mistake’, Boris Johnson said today as he set out the government’s integrated defence review. The military reassessment – the biggest in decades – also outlined plans to lift the UK’s cap on the number of nuclear warheads from 180 to 260. Why does the review
The row over the NHS pay rise is taking up most of the political attention when it comes to the health service at the moment. But it’s not the only – or indeed the biggest – problem facing the politicians and officials involved. This morning Matt Hancock appeared before the Health Select Committee, and after
MPs will continue debating the second reading of the Police, Crime, Sentencing and Courts Bill today, with a vote later. Last night’s debate gave us a pretty good idea of what the legislation’s progress through the Commons is going to look like: it is going to be far more partisan and noisy than anything Parliament
12 min listen
Metropolitan Police commissioner Cressida Dick is facing calls to resign after women were forcibly removed from Saturday’s vigil for Sarah Everard. It comes as a bill that gives police more powers to crack down on protests will soon come before Parliament. How big will the backbench rebellion be? Katy Balls speaks to James Forsyth and
Labour has decided today that it will be opposing the Police, Crime, Sentencing and Courts Bill when it has its second reading in the Commons tomorrow. Some of the party’s MPs say they had been told they would be whipped to abstain on this stage of the Bill, but following the scenes on Clapham Common
Late last night, politicians started scrambling to express their concern about the policing of a vigil held on Clapham Common in the memory of Sarah Everard. After images of police officers arresting women on the ground emerged, Home Secretary Priti Patel said she found some of the footage ‘upsetting’ and would be asking the Metropolitan
Forget statues: the latest victims of the colonialism culture war are racist plants. Ah yes, those menacing snowdrops with their overly white petals and dangerous daffodils. As Mr Steerpike reports, Kew Gardens has entered the fray with a promise to ‘decolonise’ its collections. Presumably the next step is for its sister site in Sussex to
Sir Keir Starmer has launched Labour’s local elections campaign today, focusing on the need for a ‘proper pay rise’ for NHS staff. Of course, local government has nothing to do with the way NHS pay is set in England, but that’s by the by if you’re an opposition trying to turn every poll into a
10 min listen
Keir Starmer pushed the PM on the 1 per cent pay rise for nurses at PMQS today. Did shorter, snappier questions bring results for the Labour leader? Isabel Hardman speaks to James Forsyth and Katy Balls.
14 min listen
NHS chief Simon Stevens today confirmed that the health service budgeted for a 2.1 per cent pay rise this year (rather than the 1 per cent being recommended by the government), putting pressure on the Treasury to stump up more cash. What are their options, how are Tory backbenchers reacting, and can Starmer turn the
