Katy Balls

Katy Balls

Katy Balls is The Spectator’s former political editor.

Wednesday

Katy Balls

How America’s 2024 election will affect Britain’s

From our UK edition

There were many potential titles for Liz Truss’s memoir: 49 Days that Shook the World, perhaps, or simply What Happened, like Hillary Clinton’s. Instead, she’s gone for a cri de coeur: Ten Years to Save the West. Westminster has a long history of drawing inspiration from Washington Such swashbuckling language is best suited to an American market, and the former prime minister seems to have this in mind. She has declared that her book will appear ‘ahead of the US presidential election’ and explain why it’s vital that ‘conservative arguments win – and the left is defeated’. In the PR so far, Truss has referenced Joe Biden more times than Sunak or Starmer. It’s not just that the American book market is more lucrative.

Tuesday

Katy Balls

Will Rishi axe the pensions triple lock?

From our UK edition

11 min listen

Rishi Sunak has refused to commit to keeping the pensions triple lock in the next Conservative manifesto. What’s behind his equivocation? And, if the triple lock is ditched, will Labour follow suit?  James Heale speaks to Katy Balls and Kate Andrews.

Katy Balls

Will Rishi axe the pensions triple lock?

From our UK edition

Will the pensions triple lock survive the election? That’s the question being asked in Westminster after Rishi Sunak refused to commit to keeping it in the next Conservative manifesto. In a press huddle with hacks on his trip back from India, the Prime Minister said: ‘I’m not going to get into our manifesto now but the triple lock has been a long-standing policy for us.’ Sunak will argue that voters ought not to listen to politicians offering easy solutions This could be read two ways. The first is that the PM simply doesn’t want to get into the game of confirming manifesto commitments as doing so will invite further questions about other policies. The second is that he wants to at least leave open the option of ditching the costly policy.

Monday

Saturday

Katy Balls

Is Humza Yousaf a people-pleaser?

From our UK edition

8 min listen

James Heale speaks to Katy Balls and Lucy Dunn for the latest update on Scottish politics. Humza Yousaf has been on a 'reset'. But critics claim the Scottish First Minister is simply rehashing Nicola Stugeon's policies. Also on the podcast, will Labour take the Scotland by-election from the SNP? And what happened at the Holyrood Magazine awards?

Katy Balls

Kate Andrews, Katy Balls and Max Pemberton

From our UK edition

24 min listen

Kate Andrews talks crumbly concrete, overcrowded trains, NHS waiting lists, and describes the general air of despair and asks – who broke Britain? (01.15). Katy Balls analyses Keir Starmer’s reshuffle and describes the appearance of a New Labour restoration as the party prepares for power (11.20), and Max Pemberton outlines the worrying increase of Tourettes and tics in children, neglected during lockdowns and possibly damaged for life (17.25). Produced and presented by Linden Kemkaran.

Friday

Katy Balls

India trade deal: is this what Brexit was for?

From our UK edition

11 min listen

Rishi Sunak has landed in Delhi ahead of the G20 summit this weekend. He will be hoping to smooth the way for a new free trade deal with India. What does a good result look like for the prime minister? Will the new deal result in increased immigration? Katy Balls speaks to Fraser Nelson and James Heale.  Produced by Cindy Yu and Oscar Edmondson.

Katy Balls

Could Corbyn thwart Sadiq’s mayoral bid?

From our UK edition

Is next year’s London mayoral contest a done deal? When the Tories first started the process of candidate selection, the general sense was that they had little chance of taking the mayoralty from Sadiq Khan. However, as the Labour mayor has faced a voter backlash over his support for Ulez (the ultra low emission zone), the race looks closer than previously thought. What’s more, there is one man who could decide it. Step forward Jeremy Corbyn. The former Labour leader – who is currently banned from standing as a candidate for the party – could deny Khan a third term as London mayor if he decides to run as an independent candidate. That’s the finding of a Redfield and Wilton poll for Times Radio.

Wednesday

Katy Balls

Was Truss doomed to fail?

From our UK edition

10 min listen

It was the first PMQs since the summer recess today and Labour were on the attack, comparing the Tory government to 'cowboy builders' over the ongoing school concrete debate. Rishi Sunak replied by calling out the leader of the opposition as 'captain hindsight'. Who came out on top?  Also on the podcast, it's a year since Liz Truss's doomed premiership. How should we reflect on her time as PM?  Max Jeffery speaks to Katy Balls and James Heale.

Katy Balls

Does the public want reheated Blairism?

From our UK edition

To understand the political journey of Sir Keir Starmer, look to Liz Kendall. This week the Blairite and one-time leadership contender was put in charge of Labour’s welfare reform policy. Her promotion has upset the party’s left-wingers, who already think Starmer is too right-wing on welfare. ‘She’ll be more hard-line than Jonathan Ashworth,’ says one shadow minister in reference to her predecessor. But her real influence started well before she was given a place at Starmer’s shadow cabinet table. Even those who were demoted or axed put on a brave face: ‘It shows Labour senses it is about to win’  Kendall’s role in the 2015 contest was to speak hard truths following the party’s defeat under Ed Miliband.

Tuesday

Katy Balls

Who’s to blame for the concrete crisis?

From our UK edition

13 min listen

The government is struggling to change the story. After Gillian Keegan yesterday said, about the concrete crisis, that ‘everyone else has sat on their arse and done nothing’, the story has continued to dominate the news. How can the government recover? Who should take the blame? James Heale speaks to Katy Balls and Conservative Home’s Paul Goodman.

Monday

Katy Balls

Labour reshuffle: who’s in and who’s out?

From our UK edition

14 min listen

Labour leader Sir Keir Starmer has reshuffled his shadow cabinet but just who has made it in and who has been moved aside? James Heale speaks to Katy Balls and John McTernan. Produced by Oscar Edmondson and Linden Kemkaran.

Katy Balls

The winners and losers from the Labour reshuffle

From our UK edition

Who is the big winner so far from Keir Starmer's reshuffle? The MP with the most to complain about is Lisa Nandy. She has been demoted from Levelling Up secretary to shadow cabinet minister for international development. Given she held the Foreign Office brief in Starmer's first shadow cabinet, it's quite a fall from grace. While Nandy does still get to attend shadow cabinet, a cabinet role if Labour forms a government at the next election could elude her. Labour sources suggest no decision has been made on whether DfID would be re-established as a separate department in such a scenario.

Katy Balls

How did the Tories not see the school concrete crisis coming?

From our UK edition

12 min listen

Parliament is back from recess and the row which will be dominating MPs inboxes is the school concrete crisis, which has disrupted the start of term for over 100 schools. Why didn't the government act sooner?   James Heale speaks to Katy Balls and Isabel Hardman.   Produced by Oscar Edmondson.

Saturday

Katy Balls

Katy Balls, Owen Matthews, Kate Andrews and Ian Thomson

From our UK edition

28 min listen

This week Katy Balls asks whether Rishi is a risk taker or whether he’ll choose to play it safe as Conference season approaches (01.17), Owen Matthews explains why America is still Ukraine’s best hope for victory (07.27), Kate Andrews is totally baffled and exasperated by the British refusal to get checked out by a doctor (15.34) and Ian Thomson reports from Sicily on the Godfather, Greek Temples and a misunderstanding involving mascarpone cheese (20.50). Produced and presented by Linden Kemkaran.

Friday

Katy Balls

Inside the No. 10 shake-up

From our UK edition

Thursday’s cabinet reshuffle may have been minor but the No. 10 shake-up is proving more substantive. Amber de Botton has stepped down as Director of Communications saying ‘it is the right time to move on’. In her statement, the former broadcast journalist describes No. 10 as ‘a demanding and high pressure place to work – yet the professionalism and talent they display every day is exceptional.’ De Botton’s successor is her former deputy Nerissa Chesterfield. Chesterfield is a long-standing aide of Sunak’s, handling his press operation during his time as chancellor. Prior to that Chesterfield worked for Liz Truss as well as the Institute for Economic Affairs. She is a Brexiteer.

Thursday

Katy Balls

Who is Claire Coutinho?

From our UK edition

12 min listen

Rishi Sunak may have shelved his plan for a big reshuffle but we have had some cabinet changes today. Grant Shapps has taken his fifth cabinet position in one year, replacing Ben Wallace as Defence Secretary, and Sunak loyalist Claire Coutinho will take over as Energy Secretary. What does Coutinho’s appointment reveal?  James Heale speaks to Fraser Nelson and Katy Balls.  Produced by Oscar Edmondson.

Katy Balls

Claire Coutinho is a revealing choice as Energy Secretary

From our UK edition

Rishi Sunak has completed his very mini reshuffle with the appointment of Claire Coutinho as Energy Secretary, the role left vacant by Grant Shapps's move to the Ministry of Defence. Coutinho leaves her role as a minister in the Department for Education and becomes the first of the 2019 intake to make it to the cabinet. Her speedy rise will come as little surprise to her parliamentary colleagues. She is a key Sunak ally, having worked for him as a special adviser when he was Chief Secretary to the Treasury. On entering parliament, Coutinho served as Sunak's PPS. The Brexiteer – and former banker – backed him in both leadership contests and is someone the Prime Minister trusts deeply.

Katy Balls

Why Grant Shapps got the job as Defence Secretary

From our UK edition

Grant Shapps is the new Defence Secretary, after Ben Wallace officially resigned this morning. The seasoned cabinet minister moves from energy secretary to the coveted role. As I reported in this week's politics column for the magazine, the desired criteria in No. 10 for the candidate included ‘efficient, non-flashy, loyal, decent’. Does Shapps fit all four? Well, he's certainly loyal having backed Rishi Sunak not once but twice for leader. He's also viewed as a capable minister both in terms of running a department and performing on the media. Shapps – who famously took the media round over Barnard Castle when Boris Johnson was prime minister – is seen as one of the safest pairs of hands. As for Shapps's defence credentials, he conveniently visited Kyiv in the past week.

Wednesday

Katy Balls

The Tories need a shake-up – and Sunak knows it

From our UK edition

When prime ministers sense the end is near, they tend to follow a similar pattern. They change senior civil servants and appointees, as Boris Johnson and Gordon Brown did. They avoid consulting their cabinet and instead hide behind special advisers. They declare they don’t like polls, before saying that the only poll that matters is the election. But before all of this, they usually attempt a ‘reset’. It’s rarely a sign of rejuvenation, but rather the start of the embalming process. Rishi Sunak is aware of this, which is why there’s no use of the word in No. 10 as politics prepares to resume. He has so far resisted calls from backbenchers to change course, ditch his five priorities and articulate a grand new vision.