That the DUP was going to prove pivotal in Brexit negotiations was inevitable from the early hours of 9 June 2017, when it became clear that Theresa May had failed to secure an overall majority and that no other opposition party would countenance an electoral pact with the Conservatives. In many ways, the DUP’s powerful
Parliamentary days Could one of parliament’s longest sessions be followed by one of its shortest? — The shortest was between 14 September and 25 October 1948, when Clement Attlee’s government prorogued parliament in order to forestall efforts by the House of Lords to frustrate the Parliament Bill. The ruse was successful and the bill, which
Bad sport Sir: At last a respected member of the shooting community has popped his head above the parapet. Patrick Galbraith has had the courage to express the view that many of us from the ‘bygone sporting era’ hold, but have either been too afraid of the commercial consequences, or too idle, to go public
The Brexit deal agreed with the EU is a spectacular vindication of the Prime Minister’s approach: to go back to Brussels with the genuine prospect that Britain would leave with no deal on 31 October. The EU started off by saying it would never reopen the withdrawal agreement, but with a no-deal Brexit back in prospect,
Home Brexit teetered from uncertainty to uncertainty. Parliament had been summoned to sit on Saturday 19 October to debate what Boris Johnson, the Prime Minister, had brought back from a European Union summit. He had held talks before the week began with Leo Varadkar, the Taoiseach of Ireland, at Thornton Manor in the Wirral, from
The unclued lights are all constructed (as opposed to natural) languages, also known as conlangs. First prize Magdalena Deptula, Eton, Berks Runners-up Trevor Burford-Reade, Harrow Mrs Ashley, Shoreham-by-Sea, West Sussex
From The Spectator, 15 July 1922: It is true that things so small as postcards cannot give one the splendour and glory of a great statue or a great canvas; but, all the same, their smallness is one of their virtues. A man fond of such things, riding across the Syrian Desert, on the camel
Deny Remainers oxygen Sir: Your correspondent Richard Dawkins seems to have a very tenuous grasp of logic for an academic (Diary, 5 October). He excoriates a referendum on the grounds that in the run-up the voters may have been misled. There is one choice between two alternatives, and the supporters of each outcome will do
Home After a telephone conversation between Boris Johnson, the Prime Minister, and Chancellor Angela Merkel of Germany, a Downing Street spokesman said she had made clear that a withdrawal agreement with the EU was ‘overwhelmingly unlikely’; Mrs Merkel had insisted on Northern Ireland staying in the Customs Union, which the Democratic Unionist party called ‘beyond
A slice of history Pizza Express is to undergo financial restructuring, leading to fears that it could go under. How did the pizza industry in Britain begin? — The first record of an Italian restaurant was the Italian Eating House off Leicester Square, opened in 1803, though it is not known whether or not it
The past few months have been characterised by high drama which, for all the excitement, has resolved nothing. We are back in a familiar cycle: posturing, bluster and a last-minute burst of Brexit talks. It’s possible that Boris Johnson will emerge with a deal and declare triumph by 31 October: he has always regarded this
The unclued lights relate to SUPERMAN (6D), his alter ego CLARK KENT (26A), nickname (the) MAN OF STEEL (8), planet KRYPTON (27), city METROPOLIS (18), employer (the) DAILY PLANET (35/16) and arch-enemy LEX LUTHOR (22). The title, as well as giving wordplay for HERO, suggests LOIS LANE, who appears hidden in row 4. First
‘I’m intolerant of food that doesn’t photograph well.’
Judges of experience Sir: In the midst of the furore about the Supreme Court judgment, many people are now questioning how the senior judiciary are appointed (‘Imbalance of power’, 28 September). Lady Hale is undoubtedly extremely clever. But perhaps that is at the heart of the problem. It is well established that the ranks of
Who speaks what The Chancellor, Sajid Javid, included a little Punjabi in his speech to the Tory conference. How many people in Britain would have understood him? In the 2011 census the ONS counted 273,000 Punjabi speakers in Britain. The other most common languages, besides English and Welsh, were: Polish 546,000 Urdu 269,000 Bengali 221,000
Home Boris Johnson, the Prime Minister, presented the EU with a proposed withdrawal agreement. It entailed Northern Ireland remaining for a large part in the EU single market, along with Ireland, until January 2025, with the European Court retaining jurisdiction during that time. After that, the Northern Ireland Assembly would be able to choose whether