Politics

Read about the latest political news, views and analysis

Wednesday

Steerpike

Cleverly slams Home Secretary over Taylor Swift’s special escort

Well, well well. The Labour lot are under the spotlight once again. It transpires, after the Sun newspaper’s splash this morning, that Home Secretary Yvette Cooper personally intervened to ensure that Taylor Swift received a police convoy to her Wembley shows. Priorities, priorities… Cooper has come under fire after reporting revealed that London’s Metropolitan police were pressed by politicians over Swift’s security measures. Three of the US singer-songwriter’s Vienna shows were cancelled this year after a suicide bomb attempt was foiled by forces – and it has been claimed that the American pop icon’s mother and manager was threatening to cut the singer’s London shows unless top level police support

Matthew Parris

The sugared-almond theory of economic consequence

Let me ease you gently into a big and boring-sounding word for a small dishonesty that today corrupts the language of politics. Doubtless we shall be encountering it (though never by name) in Rachel Reeves’s looming Budget. If you step away from levying the new taxes you must then cut the goodies they were to pay for But we’ll start at my mother’s knee. I was five, and she was teaching me reading: an activity I viewed with displeasure. I did, however, like sugar-coated almonds – very much. So Mum undertook to give me one sugar-coated almond for every chapter I read aloud to her from my First Reading Book.

Katy Balls

The battle between Badenoch and Jenrick

It’s crunch day in the Tory leadership contest. This afternoon, Tory MPs will vote in the final knock-out round of the contest. It means one of James Cleverly, Kemi Badenoch and Robert Jenrick will be eliminated and the final two will be voted on by the Conservative membership, with a result announced in early November. The result is due at 3.30 p.m. and it’s fair to say that few in the party are certain who will make the final two. After James Cleverly stormed ahead with 39 votes on Tuesday, his place looks likely, barring a big upset. Cleverly – who is viewed as being in the centre of the

Mark Galeotti

Why MI5 is so worried about Russia’s GRU

Ken McCallum, head of the Security Service (MI5), has warned of the serious threat to Britain posed by the Russian and Iranian intelligence agencies. McCallum said in a speech yesterday that the Russian GRU was on a mission to generate ‘sustained mayhem on British and European streets’, deploying ‘arson, sabotage and more dangerous actions conducted with increasing recklessness’. That the GRU is being highlighted demonstrates both how the threat to the UK is evolving, but also the changes underway in Russia’s intelligence agencies. Officially, since 2010 the GRU has been known as the ‘GU’, but everyone from Putin down still uses the old name. The GU, or Main Directorate of

Ross Clark

Does Britain really want less immigration?

The economy shrinks quarter by quarter; whole streets of houses in northern towns are abandoned, schools start closing for want of pupils – but there is no shortage of jobs for those who want to work, and traffic on the M25 seems a bit easier. That is a vision of Britain without migration. The headline to the latest population estimates from the Office of National Statistics – which cover the year to the middle of 2023 – is that the number of people living in the United Kingdom swelled by what is a record for modern times. The population grew by 1 per cent, adding an extra 662,400 people –

Steerpike

Farage predicts Tory leadership finalists

Today’s the day that the nation finds out who the final two Conservative leadership candidates will be – after a vote by MPs this afternoon. On Tuesday, former security minister Tom Tugendhat was knocked out after receiving the backing of just 20 MPs, coming fourth place to Kemi Badenoch on 30 votes, Robert Jenrick on 31 and James Cleverly on a whopping 39. And finally the question on everyone’s lips has been answered: who does Nigel Farage reckon will be eliminated today? Speaking on GB News, the Reform UK leader set out his predictions for today’s highly-anticipated result – and couldn’t resist blasting the Tory ‘establishment’ in the process. ‘Who

Lloyd Evans

Reform’s new AI ad is dispiriting and strange

Digital modernity has reached the world of political campaigning. Reform’s new video is the first party political broadcast to use AI imagery and it opens as a movie trailer for a film entitled ‘Labour’s Britain.’ Swelling orchestral music and a growling voiceover introduce us to an X-rated horror show. The opening image depicts Gordon Brown flogging ingots to international traders at knockdown prices.  ‘From the people that sold the gold,’ intones the voiceover, ‘we bring you Labour’s Britain.’ The trailer leads us through the three worst blunders of the new government. Robbing the elderly, surrendering to the unions and failing to stop the boats. The removal of the winter fuel

Steerpike

Boris: I could have saved Britain from ‘insane Marxist Labour party’

Last night former prime minister Boris Johnson hosted his official book launch for new memoir ‘Unleashed’. The ex-Tory leader welcomed former colleagues and allies to the London launch on Tuesday evening, which was complete with a book signing ahead of the tome’s publication date this week. Never one to resist a dig at his political opponents, Johnson opened with a quick quip at the current Prime Minister: [My publisher] Arabella here has commissioned, for a princely sum of £18,000 in advance, [Keir Starmer] to write his vision for Britain. And, of course, he strained and strained – to be completely unable to come up with anything. And so, my friends,

Iain Macwhirter

The SNP fraud probe has gone on far too long

So here’s a thing. Last week a prominent defence lawyer broke ranks and declared that the police investigation into alleged misuse of SNP party funds – Operation Branchform – had been going on too long and should be wound up pronto. Scottish criminal defence lawyer Thomas Leonard Ross KC told Sky News the probe ‘cannot go on indefinitely’. ‘Once somebody is charged then they have the right to a trial within a reasonable time,’ he said. Many Scottish politicians have been saying this privately too – not all of them nationalists. Then, by a remarkable coincidence, the Sunday Mail revealed exclusively this weekend that ‘prosecutors investigating SNP fraud allegations are examining evidence

David Abulafia

Why is Labour ignoring Jewish academics over the Free Speech Act?

It is difficult to complain about the sentiments expressed by Bridget Phillipson, the Secretary of State for Education, in her article entitled ‘We will give teachers the resources to root out anti-Semitism for good’, published in the Telegraph on the anniversary of the Hamas pogrom in southern Israel. Universities have turned a blind eye to some atrocious behaviour by students who vocally support the call of Hamas for a ‘free Palestine’ stretching across the entire length and breadth of Israel. ‘Free’, if you look at Hamas propaganda, means free of Jews, though some Hamas leaders think it would be a good idea to keep science professors alive if Israel is destroyed, as

Matthew Lynn

Are bankers still welcome in Paris?

In the wake of the UK’s departure from the European Union, French president Emmanuel Macron made a big effort to woo London’s bankers and hedge fund managers across the Channel. Macron wanted to use Brexit as an opportunity to turn Paris into the key hub for European finance. Trust me, he told Britain’s bankers: I’m one of you and will look after you. Those who did make the move may now be regretting their decision. France’s credibility as a welcoming place for top earners is on the line France’s prime minister Michel Barnier is pushing through a tough budget after discovering a ‘black hole’ in the finances that might even

Theo Hobson

The unlikely Christian conversion of Russell Brand

Questioning the sincerity of a fellow Christian’s faith is a big no-no. It would be wrong, then, to doubt the sincerity of Russell Brand’s Christianity, just as it would be wrong to pour scorn on the boy who broke out of Sunday school into the main church during the sermon, shouting of his joyful discovery that Jesus was his best friend. Young Christians like that need some helpful shepherding in the virtues of silence, not condemnation. The YouTube-star-turned-evangelist has been increasingly vocal about his recently-acquired faith Brand, who last year faced a string of allegations over his treatment of women (which he denies), revealed in April that he had been

Stephen Daisley

What the West could learn from Israel

A brief update from Agence France Presse underscores the shift in power in the Middle East. The report, citing a German source, tells us that Joe Biden ‘plans to meet the leaders of Germany, France and Britain in Berlin on Saturday to discuss the Middle East and Ukraine conflicts’. On Saturday. It doesn’t exactly scream urgency, does it? It’s not that the desire to save Hamas, Hezbollah and ultimately Iran has waned among the US State Department, the European Commission and the UK Foreign Office, but that the unholy trinity of Middle East appeasers realise their hand is significantly weakened. Israel’s killing of Hassan Nasrallah and other senior Hezbollah commanders

Tuesday

Cindy Yu

The final three: Cleverly storms ahead

12 min listen

The Conservative party has narrowed down the leadership candidates to the final three, with James Cleverly taking a surprise lead over both of his more right wing rivals. With Cleverly all but confirmed to get into the members’ round, which of Kemi Badenoch and Robert Jenrick will join him? Cindy Yu talks to James Heale and Paul Goodman. Produced by Cindy Yu.

Steerpike

Sarwar faces mini-rebellion over winter fuel payment cuts

To Holyrood, where Scotland’s politicians have overwhelmingly voted to oppose the Labour government’s winter fuel payment cuts. 99 MSPs voted in favour of the motion tabled by SNP First Minister John Swinney, which called on the UK government to ‘reverse the introduction of means testing for the winter fuel payment’ – and in a sign of cracks emerging in the party, it transpires that Scottish Labour leader Anas Sarwar has faced a mini-rebellion over the matter. Oh dear. Of Scottish Labour’s 22 MSPs, only 16 voted on today’s motion. Earlier today, rumours began to circulate that several of Sarwar’s MSPs were expected to break the whip and back the SNP

Patrick O’Flynn

How James Cleverly can stitch up the Tory leadership race 

Today’s third round of MP voting in the Tory leadership race has given James Cleverly an almost perfect result. Not only did he have a massive uplift of 18 MPs to 39, but with the 20 votes of the eliminated Tom Tugendhat now in play, it looks like he can afford to ‘choose’ the opponent he will face in the final two. Robert Jenrick has lost ground, sliding two votes to 31, while Kemi Badenoch has added two to reach 30. It does not take a genius to work out what Cleverly’s team is likely to do next. It looks like he can afford to ‘choose’ the opponent he will

James Heale

James Cleverly storms into the lead

It’s official: the Tories believe in JC. Following last week’s party conference in Birmingham, James Cleverly has this afternoon topped the penultimate ballot of Tory MPs. The Shadow Home Secretary stormed into the lead with 39 MPs, overtaking both Robert Jenrick on 31 and Kemi Badenoch on 30 to officially confirm his status as the new frontrunner for Tory leader. After a disappointing showing in the previous ballot – in which Cleverly tied Tom Tugendhat with 21 MPs – the momentum shift puts him in prime position for the final round of voting tomorrow. Cleverly picked up an extra 18 votes – some 15 per cent of the entire parliamentary

Steerpike

Channel 4 books Stormy Daniels for US election night coverage

Well, well, well. Channel 4 has announced that it has booked none other than Donald Trump-nemesis Stormy Daniels as a guest on its US election night show. The adult film actor at the centre of Trump’s hush-money scandal will commentate on the events of the evening live from Washington – after spending much of the year recounting some rather lurid details about her previous run-ins with the ex-president, all of which Trump has denied. Fetch the popcorn.. Alongside the woman who alleges the former US president slept with her before paying out a six-figure sum for her silence, Channel 4 producers have lined up some more curious choices for the

Ross Clark

Ordering water firms to cut bills is a mistake

Water companies have sweated the assets they were handed upon privatisation in the late 1980s. They have failed to invest properly, and have regarded fines for sewage spills as a business cost, to be balanced against the price of investment, rather than as a deterrent. They have, as Ofwat chief executive David Black told the Today programme this morning, blamed the weather rather than their own failures. Sewage spills more than doubled last year All this is true. Even so, is what the water industry really needs at the moment an order to return £158 million to customers through lower bills in 2025/26? That is what Ofwat has just ordered the

Freddy Gray

Should a true populist not support Trump?

49 min listen

Journalist, historian and friend of Americano Thomas Frank joins Freddy Gray to dissect the state of American politics. Author of books, including the famed What’s the matter with Kansas? How conservatives won the heart of America and, most recently, The People, No: A Brief History of Anti-Populism, Frank talks about his research into the origins of populism, the strange nature of American conventions, and the fundamental flaws he sees in the candidates ahead of the November election. Produced by Patrick Gibbons and Natasha Feroze.