The Jess Phillips Edition
29 min listen
Join Katy Balls as she talks to MP Jess Phillips about growing in an activist home, her life path before becoming an MP and her newfound Twitter fame. Hosted by Katy Balls.
Katy Balls
Katy Balls is The Spectator’s former political editor.
Thursday
Corbyn gives his price for Labour backing May’s deal
Yesterday, Donald Tusk used a hellish press conference to say that Remain had no effective representation in the UK owing to the fact that both the Prime Minister and the Leader of the Opposition support Brexit. Tusk said that as a result it was time to face up to the fact that the UK really
Wednesday
The most revealing part of Tusk’s press conference wasn’t about Brexiteers going to hell
Westminster is in a flurry this afternoon over Donald Tusk’s comments at a press conference this morning with Leo Varadkar. The European Council president used the platform to declare that he had been pondering of late what that ‘special place in hell’ for ‘those who promoted Brexit without even a sketch of a plan of
Tuesday
Theresa May’s expectation management falls flat with the ERG
Theresa May has been in Northern Ireland today attempting to ease concerns over her commitment to avoiding a hard border. The Prime Minister told business leaders in Belfast that while Parliament wanted ‘changes to the backstop as it currently exists’, her commitment to no hard border in Northern Ireland was ‘unshakeable’. However, May’s words also went
Will the public mood on no deal sway the Commons?
As Theresa May attempts to reopen negotiations on the terms of the backstop, there is a view in Downing Street that May won’t be able to win any substantial changes until Yvette Cooper’s no deal amendment has been defeated for a second time. The Prime Minister will put down a neutral motion next Wednesday and
Monday
There’s more than meets the eye to Selmayr’s backstop slapdown
Oh dear. It’s only Monday and already Theresa May’s week appears to have taken a turn for the worse. The Prime Minister’s plan to renegotiate the terms of the backstop has received a strongly-worded rebuke from the European Commission. MPs from the Commons Brexit committee were in Brussels this morning meeting with Martin Selmayr, the commission’s
How long will the Tory truce hold?
Nearly one week on from Tory MPs uniting around a Brexit position and the cracks are starting to show. After Brexiteers and Remainers alike came together to vote for the Brady amendment on Tuesday calling for the backstop to be replaced with alternative arrangements, Theresa May was triumphant that she could now tell Brussels there
Thursday
MPs have their holidays cancelled – but will they have anything to do?
After much speculation, Andrea Leadsom has confirmed that the February recess will be cancelled. This means that – in theory – MPs will be deprived of any ski holidays scheduled for the week of 18 February. It’s still up in the air what Commons business – if any – will take place that week given
Wednesday
Eurosceptic fears grow over a potential customs union pivot
After refusing to meet with Theresa May until she ruled out a no deal Brexit, Jeremy Corbyn finally held talks with the Prime Minister this afternoon. Accompanied by members of his inner circle – Seumas Milne and Karie Murphy – the Labour leader used the meeting to put May under pressure on the customs union.
Tuesday
The Cooper amendment’s failure is a setback for the MPs pushing for a softer Brexit
It’s been a disappointing night for the Remain and soft Brexit factions of parliament. Ahead of the votes on amendments to Theresa May’s Brexit plan, there had been a hope among some that the votes would serve as an opportunity to soften the government’s Brexit position. After the Prime Minister’s deal was voted down by
Theresa May entertains the idea of backing the Malthouse Compromise
Is the Conservative party finally uniting around a Brexit plan? This afternoon, the Prime Minister had a surprisingly good turn at the despatch box. Opening the debate for tonight’s amendment votes, May explained why she was supporting the Brady amendment calling for an alternative to the backstop – and why she rejected all other amendments.
Can the Malthouse Compromise break the Brexit deadlock?
After the European Research Group announced on Monday night that they would not get behind the Brady amendment to replace the backstop with alternative arrangements, it looked as though the grand plan to salvage Theresa May’s deal was on the rocks. Now there is a new proposal doing the rounds which has the backing of
Monday
May’s deal on rocks as ERG reject backstop plan
When Sir Graham Brady tabled his Brexit amendment asserting that Theresa May’s deal would be palatable if the backstop is replaced with an alternative arrangement, the hope was that enough Conservative MPs would align behind it to show Brussels that – so long as they were prepared to compromise – a deal could pass the
Why this week could end in more Brexit deadlock
On paper, this week ought to be a decisive one for the government’s Brexit position. After Theresa May’s Brexit deal was voted down by 230 votes, MPs now have the chance to vote on their own amendments to that deal. The majority are non-binding – but they do carry political weight – while a handful
Thursday
The Sarah Baxter
28 min listen
Sarah Baxter is Deputy Editor of the Sunday Times. Katy talks to Sarah about what it was like to be a woman in the lobby before ‘Blair’s Babes’, the best way to tackle sexism (she says, ignore it and go ‘full speed ahead’), and whether Jeremy Corbyn is quite the Labour leader she hopes for.
MPs get cold feet about the Cooper no deal amendment
Is a no-deal Brexit about to be taken off the table? This is the expectation in Westminster after Yvette Cooper tabled an amendment to prevent the UK leaving the EU without a deal. The amendment paves the way for legislation that would mean ministers had to extend Article 50 if a no-deal Brexit looked likely.
The People’s Vote campaign isn’t dead yet
It’s not been a great week for the People’s Vote campaign with several reports of internal rows and splits within the group. Today their attempts to bring about a second referendum hit another stumbling block. A faction of ‘People’s Vote’ backing MPs – including Conservative MP Sarah Wollaston and Labour’s Chuka Umunna – announced they
Wednesday
Michel Barnier confirms Brexiteer fears
When Eurosceptic MPs voted down Theresa May’s Brexit deal last week, the hope was that this would send a strong signal both to the Prime Minister and Brussels that strong changes were needed if it were to have any hope of passing. The problem is that the scale of the defeat – by 230 votes
Monday
Did Corbyn really just move closer to backing a second referendum?
After Theresa May appeared before the Commons to reveal that her Brexit Plan B looks an awful lot like her Brexit Plan A, MPs now have a chance to try and force the Prime Minister to change path. Next week, MPs will vote on May’s Brexit motion – along with a series of amendments submitted
The message behind Labour’s latest party broadcast
When Labour released the party political broadcast Our Town, it was enough to worry aides in No.10. The slick video saw the party zone in on voters in towns that had voted heavily to Leave. Filmed in areas including Mansfield, the video sent a clear message: Jeremy Corbyn is on a mission to appeal to