Uk politics

Sajid Javid will campaign for Britain to stay in the EU. The Business Secretary’s decision is a blow to the Leave camp which had been hopefully of recruiting him; Javid had spoken in the past of how he was ‘not afraid’ of Britain leaving the EU as it ‘would open up opportunities’. Senior figures on the Leave side had hoped that Javid would help them persuade voters that quitting the EU would not be bad for business. Those familiar with the Business Secretary’s thinking say that what has swung Javid to IN is his sense that it is just too risky for Britain to leave right now given the parlous

[audioplayer src=”http://rss.acast.com/viewfrom22/spectatorpodcastspecial-davidcameronseudeal/media.mp3″ title=”Isabel Hardman, James Forsyth and Fraser Nelson discuss the EU deal” startat=18] Listen [/audioplayer] Finally. In the past few minutes, EU leaders have reached a deal on David Cameron’s renegotiation of Britain’s relationship with Europe which gives the UK ‘special status’ in the EU. As is now traditional, Donald Tusk’s Twitter feed is first with the news. Details of the deal are starting to leak, including a seven-year limit to Cameron’s so-called “emergency brake” on migrant benefits and an addition to the text that makes it clear that references to “ever-closer union” do not apply to the United Kingdom. The leaders have also agreed to a non-euro emergency brake which

As the night gets going in Brussels, there is some pretty heavy briefing about the progress being made in the talks. British officials say leaders are still stuck on the major issues, including benefits, and that Cameron could walk away from the summit with no deal. There are some major issues to resolve, sources said, adding that while many countries were showing a desire to help, the European Council president Donald Tusk ‘shares the assessment that there are some serious differences’. It is, we have been briefed, going to be a long night as leaders try to hammer out those differences, before the breakfast session tomorrow where it had been

The Chancellor certainly will have plenty to boast about in his next Budget. Today’s figures show an employment rate of 74.1pc, the highest ever recorded in Britain – better than Nigel Lawson’s record, better than anyone’s. Tax cuts and welfare reform have proved a potent combination. This makes it harder for Osborne to sustain his narrative about a scary “cocktail of risk”, part of the general strategy of keeping voters fearful ahead of the EU referendum. With record employment and zero inflation – a striking contrast with the Eurozone – things really could be a lot worse. Against such a backdrop, voters might well wonder what else Britain could achieve by striking out on its

Despite what Emma Thompson may say, this ‘cake-filled, misery-laden, grey old island’ is actually a more than half-decent place to live. Most of the time, anyway. That it remains so is remarkable, given the provocations inflicted upon us by our political overlords. Here are three stories to make you weep. (And as you know, three stories constitute a sodding trend.) First, the Independent reports that the government (in England and Wales) plans to make it illegal for publicly-funded bodies – including councils – to boycott goods produced in areas of the world, or by industries, they deplore. According to a ‘senior’ government source quoted by the paper, a crackdown on town-hall boycotts is overdue because

All Westminster might be agog with the latest shenanigans vis-a-vis the got-to-happen-at-some-point EU referendum but most sentient folk in this blessed land are magnificently uninterested in the matter. Not even this morning’s Telegraph splash – ‘Attorney General may back Brexit’  – can stir them from their slumber. At best the majors will have asked, over their E&B this morning, ‘Who is the Attorney General these days?’ North of the border, matters are just as quiet even though another great question remains unsettled. As yet, you see, there is no agreement on the terms of a ‘fiscal framework’ which will underpin the relationship between the finances of the devolved parliament in Edinburgh and the

If all goes according to David Cameron’s plan, he’ll have his EU deal by this time next week. But Downing Street still can’t be sure of which Tory heavyweights will be with Cameron come the referendum campaign, and which won’t. Even more than Boris Johnson, Michael Gove is causing Downing Street angst. As I report in The Sun today, Gove is ‘definitely wobbling’ according to one Downing Street source. Downing Street think the chances of him backing Out have increased significantly in the last 10 days or so. Gove himself has been telling people that he won’t make a decision until the deal is done. But those around him are

Eurosceptics may have only a few days before their ministerial colleagues can join them in campaigning for Britain to leave the European Union. But they’re currently very unhappy at the sort of briefing they’ve been hearing about what might happen to those ministers after the referendum. The official line is that the Prime Minister will not sack anyone because of the position they take on Europe. But noises off suggest that this isn’t quite true: James reported in his Sun column last week that the Prime Minister has taken to telling colleagues ‘I’ve said I would have Outers in my Cabinet after the referendum. But I haven’t said they’ll be the