Uk politics

Monday

Rod Liddle

How much longer can David Lammy hold on?

From our UK edition

It’s all looking very grim for Lammy. My petition to have him removed as MP for Tottenham has now soared past the 3,000 mark. He surely cannot hang on much longer. Another 2,000 signatories and we will have proved, beyond all doubt, that he is not fit to sit as an MP, because he does not understand democracy. Either that or he – and all those other caterwauling and whining ponces (as Julie Burchill wonderfully put it) – on the Remain side will understand that a petition is basically the charter of an idiot and has no force.

Alex Massie

Is Brexit the beginning of the End of Britain?

From our UK edition

So where are we now? Pretty much in the same position as the traveller who asks for directions to Limerick and is told, 'Well, I wouldn't start from here.' But we are where we are, for better or, more probably, for worse. Not before time it is slowly dawning on people in England that while this was very much their referendum it has consequences for the whole of the United Kingdom. They were warned this would be the case and, if it was not something that was ever uppermost in their thoughts, they cannot claim they were not told. Because they were. I don't dispute English voters' right to privilege their disgruntlement with the EU over their weakened preference for the United Kingdom to remain, well, just that. That's a choice but choices have consequences.

Isabel Hardman

Jeremy Corbyn is going to fight to the bitter end

From our UK edition

Despite the rolling programme of frontbench resignations in the Labour Party, Jeremy Corbyn is clearly planning to fight to the bitter end. Labour sources are repeatedly insisting that he will definitely be on the ballot paper in a new contest, and referring to the mandate he has already been handed by members. A Corbynite source said: 'We are not going to betray that trust by dumping the democracy of the Labour party if there is a leadership challenge. 'The only way that the leadership of the party will change will be if the members decide that.' The reason Corbyn is staying put is because he still believes that the membership is behind him and that a coup by MPs will enrage those members.

Isabel Hardman

New Tory leader in place by 2 September

From our UK edition

Senior Tories have decided that their new party leader will be confirmed by 2 September, which means that the timetable for the leadership contest will be very short indeed. The decision was taken for a short, sharp battle so that there was as little uncertainty about the government as possible. This means that nominations for the race will close at noon on Thursday, which gives the candidates very little time to get their bids together. Votes will take place every Tuesday and Thursday until the party produces the two candidates that will be taken to the party membership, which means that Conservatives will be voting on who their new Prime Minister is from their yachts in the Mediterranean.

Isabel Hardman

Oliver Letwin to lead government Brexit unit

From our UK edition

Funnily enough, today’s Cabinet meeting was rather dominated by a discussion on the result of the EU referendum. The majority of the ‘serious’ 90 minute meeting was taken up by that small matter, though ministers were also briefed by the head of MI5 and by Oliver Letwin on implementing other manifesto promises, such as the seven-day NHS and building more homes. The main announcement from the meeting is the creation of a new unit in the Cabinet Office that will work on the ground work for Brexit.

Theo Hobson

No, Brexit wasn’t a defeat for humanist values – or for love

From our UK edition

Perhaps the most important pundit to have emerged from the earthquake is Giles Fraser. As a left-wing vicar and longstanding anti-racism campaigner, he makes it harder for people to depict the Brexiters as closet racists. He disrupts the defeated Remainers’ assumption that they represent progressive values, humanism. The same applies to the handful of pro-Brexit Labour MPs, but MPs can be assumed to have murky motivations. On last night’s Question Time, Fraser quoted Galatians (one of the readings in churches yesterday): Love your neighbour as yourself. We need to get beyond our current divisions, and trust in this supra-political principle, he said. Contrast this with today’s offering from Zoe Willams, his fellow Guardian columnist.

Rod Liddle

At least the howls of Remain cry-babies give us something to snigger at

From our UK edition

A very good piece by Libby Purves on the petulance, whining and spite of our liberal elite. Libby got there before I did, annoyingly – and has some terrific examples in her column. I bought Saturday’s Guardian for the sole purpose of harvesting a bunch of tantrums from the letters page – and it did not disappoint. 'Utterly ashamed to be English' and 'I’m moving to Scotland' (good) and a hugely pompous encomium from an idiot called Michael Rundell, of Canterbury, about the 'stupidity, mendacity and xenophobia' of the Leave campaign. Long may they howl – these are somewhat fraught times and it’s nice to have something to snigger at.

Isabel Hardman

Jexit: running tally of Labour frontbench resignations

From our UK edition

Jeremy Corbyn has insisted he is staying put, despite a vote of no confidence from Labour MPs passing by a big majority. Frontbenchers have now been resigning one after since Sunday 26th June to show that they want Corbyn out. And moments after the party leader issued a statement to say he was staying put, the latest round of resignations were announced. Here's our full tally of who has stepped down from the shadow cabinet: Monday 4th July: Fabian Hamilton, the shadow Europe minister has stepped down from the Labour frontbench. Thursday 30th June: 3.30pm Rob Marris quits during a bill committee. The shadow Treasury secretary said he wanted to raise a point of order during which he announced his decision to quit.

Sunday

Fraser Nelson

George Osborne as Foreign Secretary? A bad idea

From our UK edition

We haven’t heard much from George Osborne since the referendum, but that will change tomorrow morning. He’s due to make a statement, according to the Times, which also says that the Chancellor he is considering giving his backing to Boris Johnson’s leadership ambitions in exchange for being made Foreign Secretary. I’m not so sure that this would be a good idea. In Brexit Britain, being Foreign Secretary will be perhaps the most important job in the Cabinet (other than the Prime Minister). It will involve renegotiating our relationship with Europe - not just the EU itself, but making immediate and strenuous efforts to strike a whole new series of bilateral deals.

Isabel Hardman

Jeremy Corbyn vows to fight on after day of resignations

From our UK edition

Jeremy Corbyn's enemies in the Labour party had hoped that the leader would do the 'decent thing' and stand down after the day-long programme of frontbench resignations had made it clear that he will not be able to run an effective opposition. But this evening he has made it clear that he doesn't agree with this assessment of the state of his frontbench, releasing a statement that says he will carry out a reshuffle tomorrow, and fight on. You can read the full statement below. What it means is that the coup against the Labour leader will have to be brutal and will likely involve a motion of no confidence being passed by the Parliamentary Labour Party. What happens next depends on who you listen to.

Isabel Hardman

Tom Watson breaks silence over Labour turmoil 

From our UK edition

Freshly returned from Glastonbury, Tom Watson has spoken out about today's turmoil in the Labour Party. The Deputy Leader has said he was 'extremely disappointed' to see Hilary Benn sacked and 'equally saddened' by the departure of so many colleagues from the Shadow Cabinet. He added, ominously, that tomorrow he will meet Jeremy Corbyn to discuss the 'way forward'. Watson does not give any indication of whether he believes that the way forward involves Corbyn as leader, though his sentiments about his colleagues leaving the front bench suggest that he isn't going to join the Corbyn camp in vowing to fight on as things are.

Brendan O’Neill

The howl against democracy

From our UK edition

There’s a delicious irony to Remainers’ branding of Leave voters as confused individuals who have simply made a desperate howling noise, whose anti-EU vote was a ‘howl of anger’ (Tim Farron) or a ‘howl of frustration’ (JK Rowling). Which is that if anyone’s been howling in recent days, it’s them, the top dogs of the Remain campaign. They are howling against the demos; raging against the people; fuming about a system that allows even that portly bloke at the end of your street who never darkened the door of a university to have a say on important political matters. That system we call democracy.

Fraser Nelson

Brexit won’t hand victory to the SNP. A unionists’ breakdown just might.

From our UK edition

Over the last few years, Scots have had to get used to Nicola Sturgeon telling them what they think. When the SNP had its majority (one the voters stripped away in the recent Holyrood election) she was keen to present herself as the voice of the country: l’Ecosse, c’est moi. If the SNP wants X, then Scotland wants X. She’s at it again, saying that the UK has voted out of the European Union and Scotland has voted in – so the UK was voting ‘against the interests of the Scottish people’ and finally provided the provocation needed to launch a new referendum. In fact, two-in-five Scots – and even a third of SNP voters – supported Brexit.

Isabel Hardman

Senior Tories push for longer leadership contest

From our UK edition

The Tory leadership contest is looking decidedly sedate compared with the ructions in the Labour party this morning. But tomorrow the 1922 Committee Executive will meet to discuss the timetable and rules for the battle to replace David Cameron as Tory leader and Prime Minister. As I report in the Observer today, senior Tories are concerned that the timetable that Cameron sketched out in his resignation statement on Friday morning is actually rather tight, and are pushing for the contest to take longer. Liam Fox echoed this on the Sunday Politics, telling Andrew Neil that he favoured the contest going on until November.

Rod Liddle

Lammy Out! Sign my petition to oust David Lammy

From our UK edition

The petition to demand a second a referendum has now reached 2.8 million signatories. There’s an awful lot of people in this country who do not understand democracy; they can scream abuse at Boris and demonstrate in central London, write long anguished letters to the Grauniad and act like petulant children, but they still will not get their way. Twinkly, smiley Physics professor Brian Cox has asked (‘mischeviously’) what would happen if the petition reached 17 million. Well, Bri. Do the math. You’re supposed to be good at that. It still wouldn’t be enough, would it? Meanwhile David Lammy MP, who should know better, has insisted that Parliament take the fatuous petition seriously and debate the need for a second referendum. Ok, David.

Saturday

James Forsyth

Jonathan Hill’s resignation is an act of gross irresponsibility

From our UK edition

The UK’s EU Commissioner, Jonathan Hill, has resigned today saying that he couldn’t carry on as ‘though nothing had happened.’ This strikes me as an act of gross irresponsibility. Britain has not yet invoked Article 50, the two-year process for leaving the EU, and Hill staying on would have provided some continuity at a time of uncertainty. Supporters of his argue that his resignation was the honourable thing to do as Britain is no longer part of the team in Europe. It might have been right that Hill should have volunteered to move to another portfolio. But an outright resignation seems excessive and an over-reaction. Even Jean-Claude Juncker tried to persuade Hill to stay on.

James Forsyth

Will Boris, Gove and the Brexit band of brothers run for No 10 together?

From our UK edition

Westminster is still digesting what happened on Thursday night. But before Britain can turn itself to the big question of how to leave the EU, a new Prime Minister has to be chosen by the Tory party. Nearly every Tory MP I’ve spoken to since Friday morning is of the view that the new PM will have to be an Outer. They argue that the public would find it find odd to vote for Britain to leave, and then have a new PM chosen who was on the losing side in the referendum. There are, as I report in The Sun this morning, Cabinet Ministers who want Michael Gove to run. They think he would be the best PM of the Outers and that he would find it easier to reunite the party than Boris. But, I understand, Gove is not planning to put himself forward.

Fraser Nelson

Did referendum rage get the better of David Cameron?

From our UK edition

I suspect a lot of people who voted out have mixed emotions this weekend, especially given how emotional the debate became. People on both sides did go a little bit mad. My Twitter feed reminded me of that Danny Boyle film 28 Days Later: you watch with horror as friend after friend (on either side of the debate) is infected with the Human Rage Virus. All of a sudden, it’s not possible to have friendly disagreements: you turn into The Enemy for them. And it’s not just a social media thing: there are still people, this weekend, afraid to tell their friends and family how they voted. Alex Massie’s piece warning England about referendum rage turned out to be prophetic. And I suspect that Cameron, himself, suffered a bit of referendum rage.

Lara Prendergast

Brexit was a harsh political awakening for young people

From our UK edition

Since Brexit became a reality early on Friday morning, my Facebook feed has been filled with mournful posts written by friends who voted Remain. Those who voted Leave seem to be staying quiet. This is understandable. Most of my friends are in their twenties. They tend to be educated and globalist in their outlook. They have enjoyed the freedom of movement that the EU offered them, and feel they have benefitted overall from Britain being a member. It is painful to see the comity of the EU suddenly stripped away, and I sympathise on many counts. The vote for Brexit will no doubt be a defining political moment for my age group. I sense that more people now feel politically engaged than ever before.

Isabel Hardman

Will Jeremy Corbyn step down as Labour leader?

From our UK edition

Jeremy Corbyn is giving a speech this morning about Labour’s response to the EU referendum. Rumours have been sweeping the party overnight that the Labour leader will use the event to step down and hand over the reins to John McDonnell, who has been on manoeuvres for months. But aides deny that this will happen today. Nevertheless, there must be recognition in the Corbyn team that the situation is pretty precarious. The lengthy Shadow Cabinet meeting yesterday wasn’t as furious as some other parts of the parliamentary Labour party might have hoped, but some members are discussing resigning en masse to trigger a change at the top of the party.