James Heale

James Heale

James Heale is The Spectator’s deputy political editor.

Tuesday

James Heale

MPs demand veto on foreign state press ownership

More than 100 MPs have tonight backed an amendment in the House of Lords which would give parliament a veto on foreign states owning UK media outlets. Robert Jenrick, the former Housing Secretary, has organised an open letter among colleagues, following the attempt by the UAE-owned RedBird IMI to take over the Telegraph and Spectator titles. Signatories include  a string of former Cabinet ministers including Sir John Redwood, Therese Coffey, Sir Simon Clarke, Robert Buckland, Stephen Crabb, Sir Iain Duncan Smith, Theresa Villiers and Sir Geoffrey Cox. Jenrick’s letter to Lucy Frazer, the Culture Secretary, says that: ‘If major newspaper and media organisations can be purchased by foreign governments, the freedom of the press has the potential to be seriously undermined.

James Heale

What tax cut will Hunt deliver tomorrow?

13 min listen

Kate Andrews speaks to James Heale and Isabel Hardman as the speculation grows over what taxes Jeremy Hunt will cut in tomorrow's budget. National Insurance is looking most likely – it's a giveaway but does it go far enough?

Monday

James Heale

Sunak and Hunt face a Budget dilemma

14 min listen

Budget day is approaching and the government has hinted that their plans for tax cutting 'giveaways' are now less likely. James Heale speaks to Katy Balls and Kate Andrews about what to and what not to expect for Wednesday's Spring Budget.

Saturday

James Heale

Is the Home Office broken?

17 min listen

In this special Saturday edition of Coffee House Shots, Cindy Yu is joined by The Spectator's political correspondent, James Heale, and Director of Kraken Strategy Ltd, and former Special Adviser, Salma Shah, to discuss the state of the Home Office.  At the end of a tricky week of headlines for the department we ask: is the Home Office broken?  Produced by Patrick Gibbons and Cindy Yu.

Friday

James Heale

Labour nightmare as George Galloway wins Rochdale by-election

15 min listen

George Galloway has won a resounding victory in Rochdale, after a chaotic and messy by-election in which Labour was forced to disown its own candidate after he claimed Israel had allowed Hamas to attack on October 7th. Former Labour MP Galloway – standing for the Workers Party of Britain – won on a single issue campaign, criticising the Israel-Gaza war and in particular the response of Keir Starmer and Rishi Sunak to the conflict. How bad is the result for Labour? Oscar Edmondson speaks to Katy Balls and James Heale.  Produced by Oscar Edmondson.

Thursday

James Heale

Why wasn’t Wayne Couzens stopped?

10 min listen

Today, the long-awaited Home Office-commissioned Angiolini Inquiry into Wayne Couzens has been published. Couzens had kidnapped, raped and murdered 33-year-old Sarah Everard three years ago. The findings were chilling, revealing that numerous opportunities to stop Couzens throughout his policing career were missed. Katy Balls talks to James Heale and Isabel Hardman about where politicians failed Sarah Everard. Produced by Cindy Yu.

Tuesday

James Heale

Post Office ex-chairman hits back at Badenoch

Kemi Badenoch emerged from this morning's Commons evidence session strengthened by the testimony of one of her top officials. But this afternoon a very different story emerged as Henry Staunton – the man she forced out as Post Office chairman – got his say before the Business Select Committee. He said he had been the target of a 'smear campaign' led by Badenoch and fought back against allegations that he had told 'lies'. The key moment of Staunton's evidence concerned claims that he was forced out at the Post Office after bullying allegations were made against him. But, in an astonishing turn of events, he insisted it was the company's current chief executive, Nick Read, who was the subject of an internal investigation, not him.

James Heale

Officials back Kemi Badenoch in Post Office row

The row over compensation for wrongly convicted postmasters returned to parliament again today. Kemi Badenoch, the Business Secretary, is currently embroiled in a war of words with Henry Staunton, the man whom she sacked as chairman of the Post Office. He claims that he was told to delay compensation to victims of the Horizon scandal; she denies this and insists Staunton ‘had a lack of grip getting justice for postmasters.’ It was left to the Business Committee to try and establish the veracity of the pair’s claims. Oral evidence was this morning submitted by officials in the Department for Trade. The panel of MPs heard from Carl Creswell, who oversees compensation payments for Post Office operators.

Monday

James Heale

Have the Tories got ‘Islamophobic tendencies’?

11 min listen

Conservatives are divided over Lee Anderson's suspension, with some believing that if he apologises for comments made about Sadiq Khan, he should be allowed to return. This has sparked new concerns about the Tory party having a problem with Islamophobia, worsened by Liz Truss appearing at an event with Steve Bannon who has also been accused of making Islamophobic comments. How can Rishi Sunak squash these accusations? Should Truss also lose the whip? Cindy Yu speaks to James Heale and Katy Balls.

Friday

James Heale

Commons chaos revealed the threat to MPs’ safety

13 min listen

As MPs return to their constituencies, the drama from Wednesday's parliamentary debate is still fresh in Westminster. James Heale speaks to Fraser Nelson and Isabel Hardman about whether MPs' safety concerns are influencing democracy, and why the outcome of the debate could mean lessons are learned for the future.

Wednesday

James Heale

Has Lindsay Hoyle overstepped?

12 min listen

Sir Keir Starmer can breathe a sigh of relief this afternoon, thanks to Lindsay Hoyle. The Speaker has selected Labour’s amendment on a Gaza ceasefire, which means that a likely mass rebellion from Labour MPs will be averted. SNP and Tory MPs are furious at Hoyle, and say that he has tried to rewrite the rules. What's going on? Katy Balls speaks to James Heale and Isabel Hardman. Produced by Cindy Yu.

James Heale

Hoyle helps Starmer by selecting Labour ceasefire amendment

Sir Keir Starmer can breathe a sigh of relief this afternoon. The Speaker has selected his party’s amendment on a Gaza ceasefire, after an hour of frenzied lobbying from the Labour Whips’ Office. Lindsay Hoyle told MPs that he has selected both the Labour and government amendments as this is an issue where they will want to consider a wide range of options. It means that a likely mass rebellion from Labour MPs will be averted – as happened the last time the SNP tabled an opposition day debate on Gaza in December. The Scottish nationalists are furious at Hoyle’s decision to select the Labour amendment. They claim it is in breach of precedent whereby one opposition party cannot alter another’s motion. ‘This is the SNP's opposition day,’ declared Owen Thompson.

Tuesday

James Heale

Home Office sacks immigration inspector after border claims

James Cleverly has tonight sacked the independent borders inspector after he voiced concerns about 'high-risk' aircraft landing in Britain without security checks. David Neal, the Independent Chief Inspector of Borders and Immigration, was due to leave his post on 21 March but has now been forced out a month early after publicly criticising the department. In a statement, the Home Office said that Neal 'breached the terms of appointment and lost the confidence of the Home Secretary.' Neal had served in the role since March 2021. He reportedly had his reappointment blocked by Downing Street, in an unusual move given that his predecessors all served two full three-year terms in the post.

James Heale

Starmer moves to quell ceasefire rebellion

10 min listen

Today Keir Starmer has moved his party’s position on a ceasefire in Gaza as he seeks to quell what could the biggest rebellion of his leadership. MPs will vote on an immediate ceasefire in Gaza with Labour set to add its own amendment to the SNP motion tomorrow. For the first time, Labour is calling for an ‘immediate humanitarian ceasefire’, but is this really such a big change in Labour's position?  James Heale speaks to Katy Balls and Isabel Hardman.  Produced by Cindy Yu and Oscar Edmondson.

Monday

James Heale

Are citizens’ assemblies the future?

13 min listen

In the Times today is the latest instalment of Tom Baldwin's authorised biography of Keir Starmer. It includes reports that Labour chief of staff Sue Gray has been drawing up plans for so-called citizens' assemblies. Are citizens' juries the future of democracy? Or is this simply a way for Starmer to avoid making policy decisions?  Elsewhere there is some interesting polling out from the think tank Labour Together, warning that Labour should not get complacent despite their huge poll lead and recent by-election success. This is due to the large 'don't know' vote share and the possibility that the Reform vote could be squeezed at a general election. What would happen if the Reform vote collapses? James Heale speaks to Katy Balls and Fraser Nelson.

Saturday

James Heale

Do accents still matter in politics?

14 min listen

The new MP for Kingswood has been under fire for apparently changing his accent over the course of his political career. Does this matter? And if so, what does this tell us about British politics today? Cindy Yu talks to James Heale and author and former cabinet minister, Nadine Dorries. Produced by Cindy Yu and Patrick Gibbons.

Friday

James Heale

Labour triumphs in by-election brace

12 min listen

Labour has the won two by-elections in Wellingborough and Kingswood, overturning big Conservative majorities in the process. Party chairman Richard Holden has brushed the results off as typical midterm by-elections where voters what to give the government a kicking. Does this argument stack up? And what can Reform take from the results? Isabel Hardman speaks to James Heale and pollster John Curtice.

James Heale

Labour triumphs in by-election brace

Labour has won both the Kingswood and Wellingborough by-elections in another night every bit as bad as expected for Rishi Sunak. The Tories saw majorities of more than 11,000 and 18,000 respectively easily overturned. It means the Conservatives have now lost ten by-elections in a single parliament, a worse run than any government since the 1960s. Labour's double triumph mean it has taken five seats off the Tories since 2019. Kingswood declared first. Labour's Damien Egan won with a majority of 2,500 in a place where the Tories won by more than 11,000 in 2019. He polled 11,176 votes compared to 8,675 votes for the Conservatives, on a swing of 16 per cent - some way above the 11-point swing the party needed to win.

Thursday

James Heale

UK tips into recession – what’s left of Sunak’s priorities?

11 min listen

This morning's figures show that the UK went into a technical recession last year. Forecasts suggest it will be a short and shallow recession, but how badly does this reflect on the government's priorities to increase growth and lower inflation? Also, will this make Rishi Sunak think again about his plan to meet as many rattled voters as possible on the campaign trail? Natasha Feroze speaks to Kate Andrews and James Heale.

James Heale

Can Sunak find the common touch?

A former Tory minister likes to tell the tale of a recent charity dinner in his constituency. The organiser began by stressing that the occasion had to remain ‘a strictly non-political event’. The MP rose to reply: ‘Not to worry, ladies and gentlemen – I belong to a strictly non-political party.’ That question of Rishi Sunak’s political instincts – or lack thereof – is preoccupying Tory MPs. Three recent encounters are held up as examples. An ill-judged bet with Piers Morgan was followed by a warm embrace with the Sinn Fein First Minister Michelle O’Neill. Images of this latter encounter went down badly with Tory MPs who served in the military.