James Heale

James Heale

James Heale is The Spectator’s deputy political editor.

Sunday

James Heale

Milwaukee reluctantly prepares for Trumpmania

From our UK edition

Milwaukee, Wisconsin Milwaukee will host America’s conservative elite for the next five days – including Donald Trump, who has just survived an assassination attempt. This true-blue city has been chosen to host the Republican National Convention, primarily because of it’s the largest city in swing state Wisconsin. Around 50,000 delegates, politicians, apparatchiks and journalists are arriving here for the formal coronation of Trump – much to the chagrin of many locals. The city voted 79 per cent for Biden in 2020, with Trump subsequently seeking to overturn thousands of votes.

James Heale

James Heale, Svitlana Morenets, Philip Hensher, Francis Beckett and Rupert Christiansen

From our UK edition

38 min listen

On this week’s Spectator Out Loud: James Heale analyses the state of the Conservative leadership race (1:09); Svitlana Morenets reports from the site of the Kyiv children’s hospital bombed this week (5:56); Philip Hensher examines the ‘Cool Queer Life’ of Thom Gunn (12:13); Francis Beckett reviews ‘The Assault on the State’ arguing in favour of bureaucracy (21:20); and, Rupert Christiansen reveals why he has fallen out of love with Wagner (27:05).  Presented by Patrick Gibbons.

James Heale

Two killed in Trump assassination attempt

From our UK edition

Donald Trump was rushed off stage by Secret Service agents on Saturday afternoon after shots rang out at his rally in Pennsylvania. A male attacker was shot and killed by a federal agent after the assassination attempt. The attacker killed one spectator at the rally, and two others are critically injured, according to the secret service. Trump has now left a local hospital and says he was ‘shot with a bullet that pierced the upper part of my right ear’. ‘I knew immediately that something was wrong in that I heard a whizzing sound, shots, and immediately felt the bullet ripping through the skin’, the former president posted on his Truth Social account. ‘Much bleeding took place, so I realised then what was happening.

Thursday

James Heale

Has Nato been a success for Starmer?

From our UK edition

18 min listen

Keir Starmer is on his first big diplomatic trip to Washington, attending the Nato summit. He has called on member countries to increase defence spending, had a meeting with Volodymyr Zelensky, and enjoyed a dinner with Joe Biden - all in his first week of the job. How is the trip going, are there any tensions arising, and has it been a success for the new PM?  Oscar Edmondson discusses with James Heale and Sophia Gaston, head of foreign policy at Policy Exchange.

James Heale

Farage reshuffles Reform’s top team

From our UK edition

It's been a busy week for Nigel Farage. After six days of being bombarded with parties, press requests and parliamentary rigmarole, he was this morning sworn in as the Honourable Member for Clacton. Such is the level of attention foisted on the Reform UK leader that even House of Commons staff have reportedly now been told to stop requesting selfies with him. With so much focus on Farage, the inevitable question is: what comes next? This morning, we got our answer. Reform UK has rejigged its top team, in the wake of the election of five MPs last Friday. Farage, unsurprisingly, retains his spot as leader, with Lee Anderson now billed as the party's 'chief whip.

James Heale

Sunak apologises to Tory MPs for election mess

From our UK edition

Before the joy of last night's football, came the sorrow of Rishi Sunak's address to Tory MPs. The Conservative leader addressed the 1922 committee for the first time since calling the election which reduced his colleagues' numbers by almost two-thirds. Instead of the usual oak-panelled confines of the committee's favoured committee room 14, the night's meeting was held in Portcullis House. Accompanied by interim party chairman Richard Fuller, the ex-premier appeared to pause and take a deep breath before heading in. Stony faces, muted cheers and the ritual banging of tables met him there, as Sunak prepared to take responsibility for his party's worse election result in history.

James Heale

Who will lead the Tories next?

From our UK edition

Rishi Sunak performed a mea culpa when his shadow cabinet convened on Monday, taking full responsibility for the election loss. There were, he said, lots of lessons to be learned. He tried rallying his team, reminding them it was time to knuckle down and prepare for the King’s Speech. When those around the table began agreeing, with some saluting Sunak’s performance during the campaign, Kemi Badenoch decided she couldn’t take it any longer. Isn’t it necessary, she asked, to say that the snap election had been a calamity, the Tory campaign had been even worse – and that it was about time to examine why?

Wednesday

James Heale

Who will lead the Tories in opposition?

From our UK edition

13 min listen

It's been a big 24 hours in Tory-world as the party tries to pick itself up after last week's defeat. We have had the first shadow cabinet meeting and the 1922 committee chairman election. Where do they go from here? And who could lead them?  James Heale speaks to Katy Balls and Fraser Nelson.  Produced by Oscar Edmondson.

Tuesday

James Heale

Can Wes Streeting end the NHS strikes?

From our UK edition

14 min listen

Health Secretary Wes Streeting declared the NHS 'broken' over the weekend. With a creaking in-tray of issues, he opened up negotiations with the BMA today to try and solve one: the pay dispute with junior doctors. With ambitious reforms planned, and a workforce with low morale, how successful will Labour be?  Isabel Hardman and James Heale join Cindy Yu to discuss.  Produced by Patrick Gibbons and Cindy Yu.

Monday

James Heale

Can Labour deliver economic growth?

From our UK edition

13 min listen

This morning, Rachel Reeves made her first speech as chancellor. She announced mandatory housing targets, promising 1.5 million homes over the next five years, as well as an end to the onshore wind ban. What else does she have in store, and can Labour deliver the growth the country needs? James Heale discusses with Katy Balls and Kate Andrews.

Friday

James Heale

Labour wins by a landslide

From our UK edition

15 min listen

Where to start with an historic election night. Keir Starmer has got his 1997 moment, winning an enormous majority. Elsewhere, eleven cabinet ministers have lost their seats, including: Grant Shapps, Gillian Keegan and Penny Mordaunt. Former prime minister Liz Truss has lost her seat, as have senior Tories Jacob Rees-Mogg and Miriam Cates. The Lib Dems have made massive gains, the SNP were decimated in Scotland and Nigel Farage is the MP for Clacton.  But it's not a clean sweep for Labour. Two Labour frontbenchers have lost their seats and Starmer will enter government on a vote share of 35 per cent, the lowest of any postwar governing party. Will this hinder him in government? And is this landslide down to the Farage effect?

Thursday

James Heale

Your guide for general election night 2024

From our UK edition

After six weeks of campaigning, we are finally here. The bongs of Big Ben at 10 p.m. mark the end of voting across the UK and the start of an election night full of drama. Labour are set to make huge gains at the respective expense of the Tories in England and the SNP in Scotland. The Liberal Democrats will try to topple as much of the ‘blue wall’ across the south as possible, while Reform will hope Nigel Farage, Richard Tice and Lee Anderson enter the new Commons too. Following the publication of the exit poll, there is then a lull until shortly before midnight when the first seats in the north-east of England come in. Around 1 a.m. we get East Kilbride & Strathaven, Hamilton & Clyde Valley and Rutherglen to provide a first indication of patterns of voting in Scotland.

Wednesday

James Heale

Labour heading for landslide, say Tories

From our UK edition

Labour is ‘highly likely’ to win a landslide majority tomorrow of historic proportions, according to Rishi Sunak’s own candidates. During this morning’s media round, Mel Stride was asked by the BBC if he agreed with Suella Braverman, who wrote in the Telegraph that a near wipe-out looks to be on the cards. ‘I have accepted where the polls are at the moment,’ replied the Work and Pensions Secretary. ‘That we are therefore tomorrow highly likely to be in a situation where [Labour has] the largest majority that any party has ever achieved,’ adding that he thinks it will be ‘much bigger than 1997’. But just a few hours later Sunak backtracked slightly when asked on ITV if he had given up.

James Heale

Will there be an election upset on Thursday?

From our UK edition

12 min listen

Tomorrow, voters will head to the polling booth to cast their vote in the 2024 general election. Will there be any surprises in store? So far, there has been little movement when it comes to the gap in vote share between Labour and the Tories. However, there's still plenty of uncertainty across the parties as to what the exit poll will say at 10 p.m. on Thursday night. James Heale speaks to Katy Balls and James Kanagasooriam, chief research officer at Focaldata.

Tuesday

James Heale

Has Reform peaked too soon?

From our UK edition

14 min listen

The election campaign was going well for Nigel Farage's Reform... until it wasn't. A series of controversies have been difficult for the party to shake off. Will the distractions cost them votes and MPs? How will it affect their momentum - and who's to blame? Katy Balls speaks to Fraser Nelson and James Heale.

James Heale

Is it going wrong for Reform?

From our UK edition

Has Reform peaked too soon? In the wake of Rishi Sunak’s D-Day debacle, the party was riding high in the polls. Successive surveys suggested that they were neck-and-neck with the Tories. After one poll even showed Reform ahead, Nigel Farage hailed it as a ‘crossover moment’. He jokingly referred to himself as the ‘Leader of the Opposition’, declaring he ‘absolutely’ believed Reform would win more votes than the Conservatives. A fortnight on, things now look a little less rosy for Reform. Following Farage’s interview with Nick Robinson – in which he suggested the West helped provoke Russia’s invasion of Ukraine – the party faced an onslaught of cross-party criticism. Reform’s response was to go on the attack.

Wednesday

James Heale

Labour member arrested in connection with Westminster ‘honeytrap’ affair

From our UK edition

Bet-gate is dominating the headlines – but an old scandal has now reared its head again. The Metropolitan Police this morning arrested a man in his mid-20s in connection with the Westminster ‘honeytrap’ affair. He was taken into custody in Islington, London on suspicion of harassment and committing offences under the Online Safety Act. The man has been identified as a Labour party member, and has been suspended by the party. Labour has said it cannot comment due to the police investigation. The arrest comes three months after nearly two dozen men, mostly working in politics or journalism, revealed in April that they had received unsolicited, flirtatious WhatsApp messages from people calling themselves ‘Charlie’ or ‘Abi’.  Explicit images were exchanged in some cases.

Tuesday

James Heale

Who will survive?

From our UK edition

14 min listen

It's another bad day for the Conservatives. Rishi Sunak has withdrawn support for the Tory candidates involved in the general election betting scandal. What has led to the timing of this decision? Also on the podcast, James Kanagasooriam, Chief Research Officer of Focaldata, explains their latest poll that suggests a 250-seat Labour majority. He joins Katy Balls and James Heale.

Monday

James Heale

Sunak and Starmer slug out a stalemate

From our UK edition

Tonight saw the penultimate TV exchange involving Rishi Sunak and Keir Starmer. Both men took part in live-streamed interviews with the Sun’s political editor Harry Cole and a live studio audience, ten days prior to polling day. Sunak was up first and had a difficult balancing act in the 30-minute exchange, seeking to embrace the Tory successes of the past 14 years while distancing himself from its failures. ‘This election is about the future,’ he insisted at one point – moments after praising the coalition’s education reforms. Three times he repeated his seven-word defence that: ‘I’ve been Prime Minister for 18 months.’ It was a line which sounded plausible on migration, when he could claim to have cut legal numbers since coming to office.

James Heale

Farage goes on the attack after Ukraine criticism

From our UK edition

Foreign policy hasn’t featured much in this election – until now. Over the weekend, Nigel Farage’s suggestion that the West was partially to blame for Russia’s invasion of Ukraine produced an avalanche of cross-party criticism. Both Keir Starmer and Rishi Sunak labelled his comments ‘disgraceful’, while the Mail on Sunday claimed a member of president Zelensky’s staff had suggested Farage was infected with the ‘virus of Putinism’. Rather than back down, the Reform leader has opted to reprise the pugilists’ playbook and counterpunch with fire.