Labour party

Sunday

Steerpike

Press barred from grilling Starmer’s Chagos chum

From our UK edition

There are just eight days to go until Donald Trump takes office. So the question much of Whitehall is asking is: will David Lammy’s Chagos deal get over the line in time? The agreement to hand the valuable cluster of islands to Mauritius has been attacked by China hawks in the U.S – including Marco Rubio, Trump’s pick for Secretary of State. He has decried the deal as ‘a serious threat to our national security interests in the Indian Ocean.’ Given those risks, why is the Labour government so intent on pressing ahead? After all, handing over British territory isn’t cheap: the current bill stands at £9 billion for UK taxpayers. One reason why the Labour government might be keen on settling the issue is direction from the top.

Steerpike

How green is the government’s car service?

From our UK edition

The government’s green credentials are in the firing line – and not for the first time. In office, Keir Starmer has sparked headlines with seemingly endless plane trips abroad. And now Mr S has done some digging to find out what ministerial cars are being used to ferry our leaders around. A Freedom of Information request on the Government Car Service reveals that the Department for Transport invoiced more than £1.3 million to government departments making use of ministerial motors over Labour’s first three months in power.

Friday

Cindy Yu

Can Musk oust Starmer?

From our UK edition

11 min listen

The war between Labour and Elon Musk continues to rage. Today the Financial Times reports that the tech tycoon has had discussions about ousting Keir Starmer before the next election, while the Mirror holds a report that the Home Office has been assessing Elon Musk's tweets as a part of their efforts to tackle online extremism. Cindy Yu talks to Katy Balls and James Heale about whether Musk can really threaten Starmer's position. Produced by Cindy Yu.

Thursday

Kate Andrews

Borrowing costs soar – will Rachel Reeves have to go back on her word?

From our UK edition

12 min listen

Long term borrowing costs for the government have reached levels not seen since 1998, and 10 year UK gilts are now at their highest point since the 2008 financial crash. Both surpass the levels seen during the Liz Truss premiership - and this hasn't gone unnoticed by the former PM. A set of similar circumstances, but could the consequences be the same? What are the economic - and political - challenges facing Keir Starmer and Rachel Reeves? James Heales speaks to Kate Andrews and Katy Balls to unpack the latest tranche of economic data. Produced by Patrick Gibbons.

Katy Balls

‘There’s been a vibe shift’: welcome to the new political disorder

From our UK edition

Donald Trump isn’t back in the White House yet, but already his victory is being felt across the world. Greenland is pondering the prospect of an invasion after the President-elect refused to rule it out during a Mar-a-Lago press conference. In Canada, the last western leader from the days before Trump has just exited the stage. Justin Trudeau, the one-time liberal hero, quit earlier this week in the face of tanking ratings. Nick Clegg, the former Liberal Democrat leader, is out at Meta and the billionaires of Silicon Valley are bracing themselves for what comes next. Mark Zuckerberg has announced sweeping changes (including an end to fact-checkers) in response to what he called ‘a cultural tipping point’.

Monday

James Kanagasooriam and Patrick Flynn

Right move: will Britain benefit from the global conservative turn?

From our UK edition

The world appears to be turning on its axis – and moving hard to the right. The New World is tilting hardest. In Argentina, Javier Milei is taking a chainsaw to bureaucracy. In the US, Donald Trump is poised to deport migrants, deregulate the economy and drill, baby, drill. Canada’s tendresse for the maple-syrupy liberal Justin Trudeau has chilled into a bitter determination to oust him in favour of the anti-woke, pro-growth ‘true conservative’ Pierre Poilievre.  And where the New World has led, the Old is following. Giorgia Meloni is now Europe’s most consequential leader – upholder of some pretty traditional values with a strikingly hard policy on migration.

James Heale

Rachel Reeves’s new year’s resolution

From our UK edition

On Christmas Day, 12 million people watched the will-they-won’t-they couple Smithy and Nessa finally marry after 17 years in the finale of the hit BBC comedy series Gavin and Stacey. Yet for all the cheery sentiment, it’s a depressing thought that – statistically – in the real world the characters would be earning roughly the same amount at the series’ end in 2024 as they were at its beginning in 2007. Rachel Reeves’s task this year is to spring Britain from its low-growth trap. The early signs are not encouraging. Those captains of industry whom she once so assiduously courted are turning hostile. The Confederation of British Industry says private sector expectations are at their lowest since Liz Truss’s ‘mini-Budget’ fiasco.

Martin Vander Weyer

My business predictions for 2025

From our UK edition

Headed for ‘the worst of all worlds’ is not where any of us would wish to find ourselves at the start of the new year. But that was the phrase used by the CBI economist Alpesh Paleja to sum up the predictions of member businesses – of reduced hiring and output, rising prices and weak growth. Since that survey, a revision to zero of the official growth figure for the third quarter of 2024 and reports of depressed pre- and post-Christmas consumer spending have provoked even darker whispers of a return to recession. Whence cometh such pessimism? Has it bubbled out of the Tories’ black hole of fiscal shame? Can we blame the Bank of England and the Treasury ‘blob’? Or the rare alignment of planets that’s expected in three weeks’ time?

Thursday

Kate Andrews

UK interest rates held, plus could Musk fund Reform?

From our UK edition

10 min listen

The Bank of England has voted to hold interest rates at 4.75%. The Spectator’s economics editor Kate Andrews joins Katy Balls and Freddy Gray to discuss the decision and what this means for the economy.  Also on the podcast they discuss how a potential donation from Elon Musk to Reform UK has rattled politicians across the political spectrum. Could Labour seek to reform political donation rules to limit donations from foreign owned companies? And is this a sensible move, or could those in favour of changing the rules face a charge of hypocrisy? Produced by Patrick Gibbons and Oscar Edmondson.

Wednesday

Katy Balls

Rising inflation will make Rachel Reeves’s job harder

From our UK edition

12 min listen

New figures have shown that, for the year to November, inflation rose by 2.6%. While unsurprising, how much will this impact the Chancellor's plans going into the new year? Katy Balls speaks to Kate Andrews and Isabel Hardman about the impact on Labour, especially given their October budget. Also on the podcast: do the WASPI women deserve compensation? The team discuss Liz Kendall's announcement that Labour will not recompense women who faced pension changes; they also discuss the last PMQs of 2024. Produced by Patrick Gibbons and Oscar Edmondson.

Monday

James Heale

Could the local elections be cancelled?

From our UK edition

14 min listen

Labour will reveal plans today to re-design local government, with district councils set to be abolished, and more elected mayors introduced across England. The plans could be the biggest reforms of their type since the 1970s, but with the May 2025 local elections set to be Labour’s first big electoral test since the general election, how will they be impacted? Local government minister Jim McMahon didn’t deny that the elections could be affected, or some even cancelled. Reform UK have called foul – what’s going on? James Heale speaks to Isabel Hardman and Katy Balls. Also on the podcast: rumours abound that a Chinese spy could be named in Parliament today – what does this story tell us about the UK’s complicated relationship with China?

Saturday

James Heale

Would Brexit voters really accept the return of freedom of movement?

From our UK edition

19 min listen

New research this week suggested that a majority of Brexit voters would accept the return of freedom of movement in exchange for access to the EU single market. The poll, conducted by the European Council on Foreign Relations (ECFR), found that 54% of Brexit voters – and 68% of all respondents – would accept this. Facing their own changing domestic concerns, how close can the UK and EU governments really get? Could Defence hold the key for collaboration? And how much is this driven by a more volatile geopolitical landscape ahead of Trump’s return as US president? James Heale speaks to Anand Menon, director of the think-tank UK in a Changing Europe, and Mark Leonard, director at the ECFR. Produced by Patrick Gibbons.

Katy Balls

Christmas I: Katy Balls, Craig Brown, Kate Weinberg, Craig Raine, Lisa Haseldine and Melissa Kite

From our UK edition

37 min listen

On this week’s Christmas Out Loud - part one: Katy Balls runs through the Westminster wishlists for 2025 (1:26); Craig Brown reads his satirist’s notebook (7:06); Kate Weinberg explains the healing power of a father’s bedtime reading (13:47); Craig Raine reviews a new four volume edition of the prose of T.S. Eliot (19:10); Lisa Haseldine provides her notes on hymnals (28:15); and Melissa Kite explains why she shouldn’t be allowed to go to church (31:19).  Produced and presented by Patrick Gibbons.

Thursday

Oscar Edmondson

Labour vs the NIMBYs, plus are sandwiches ‘for wimps’?

From our UK edition

16 min listen

Today Downing Street has continued its reset – that is definitely not a reset – by providing more details on Labour’s plan to cut the planning red tape and deliver a housing revolution. Their target is to build one and a half million new homes over the next five years by building on green belt land and giving councils mandatory targets. This has predictably been met with robust opposition from several groups who are concerned about the plan, which involves building on a green belt area the size of Surrey. Can Labour win its battle against the so-called NIMBYs (not in my backyard)? In other news, it is publication day here at The Spectator! Our special Christmas triple issue is now available online and on newsstands.

William Moore

Christmas Special 2024 with Rod Liddle, Lionel Shriver, Matthew Parris and Mary Wakefield

From our UK edition

71 min listen

Welcome to a special festive episode of The Edition podcast, where we will be taking you through the pages of The Spectator’s Christmas triple issue. Up first: our review of the year – and what a year it has been. At the start of 2024, the outcome of the US election looked very different, the UK had a different Prime Minister, and The Spectator had a different editor! Luckily, The Spectator’s regular columnists are on hand to declare what they got right – and wrong – throughout the year, and whether they’re optimistic for 2025. Rod Liddle, Matthew Parris, Mary Wakefield and Lionel Shriver take us through everything from Trump to trans (03:24).

Katy Balls

Why 2025 could redefine politics

From our UK edition

Santa will have a tricky time this year fulfilling all the Christmas wish lists in Westminster. Keir Starmer is desperately hoping for a change in the political weather and Kemi Badenoch would like an in with Donald Trump. Ed Davey dreams that Labour’s electoral troubles will get so bad that proportional representation starts to look appealing. Nigel Farage, meanwhile, wants to avoid what usually happens with him and keep his party from falling out. Come the new year, all four leaders will have their eyes on May’s local elections. The 21 county councils, ten unitary authorities and one metropolitan district are up for grabs for the first time since 2021. Back then Boris Johnson was riding a wave of popularity after the vaccine rollout and the Tories won Hartlepool from Labour.

The Spectator

Portrait of the year: Subpostmasters scandal, Rishi in the rain and Syrian rebels topple regime

From our UK edition

January After an ITV drama, the government suddenly proposed to do something about the unjust prosecution of sub-postmasters. Junior doctors went on strike. There was a surge in scabies. The King went to hospital and was later found to have cancer. The Princess of Wales was in hospital with what turned out to be cancer. Five migrants died boarding a boat for England off Wimereux. In Beirut, Israel killed the deputy head of Hamas. Israel said that it expected war in Gaza to continue throughout the year. The United States, with token British support, struck sites in Yemen to deter Houthi attacks on shipping. Russia mounted the biggest missile bombardment of its war against Ukraine. China’s population fell by 2.08 million to 1.41 billion.

Tuesday

James Heale

Spending review: a return to austerity?

From our UK edition

13 min listen

Preparations are stepping up for the government’s spending review, due in June. The Chancellor has taken a more personable approach to communicating with ministers, writing to them to outline how they plan to implement the Budget – with a crackdown on government waste and prioritising key public services. So, expect money for clean energy, the NHS, and more ‘difficult decisions’. Will Rachel Reeves’s war on waste work? How will this all go down within the Labour Party and the Cabinet? James Heale speaks to Katy Balls and Kate Andrews. Produced by Oscar Edmondson.

Monday

James Heale

How does the Syrian conflict affect Britain?

From our UK edition

12 min listen

Following news that President Bashar Al-Assad's regime in Syria has fallen, Natasha Feroze discusses what comes next with James Heale and Michael Stephens, senior associate fellow at RUSI. What does the Syrian conflict mean for Britain? Do we need to reconsider our counter-terrorism policy? And how will Britain's historic relationship with Syria shape our path going forward?

Saturday

Iain Macwhirter

Are the SNP exploiting Labour woes?

From our UK edition

13 min listen

The SNP presented their budget this week in Holyrood with the news that all pensioners would receive a winter fuel allowance and a pledge to scrap the two-child benefit cap. Questions remain about how they will make this budget work financially, but it is clear that they have one eye on the 2026 Scottish Parliament elections. How could this impact Labour north, and south, of the border? And, after a torrid year for the SNP, can First Minister John Swinney turn things around?  Iain MacWhirter and Lucy Dunn join James Heale to discuss.  Produced by Patrick Gibbons.