Katy Balls

Katy Balls

Katy Balls is The Spectator’s former political editor.

Tuesday

Katy Balls

Truss gets ready to be unpopular

From our UK edition

Liz Truss is ready to be unpopular. Or at least that is what the new Prime Minister is keen to suggest. On a media round from New York – where she is attending her first international summit since entering No. 10 – she told the BBC's Chris Mason: If that means taking difficult decisions which are going to help Britain become more competitive, help Britain become more attractive, help more investment flow into our country, yes, I'm absolutely prepared to make those decisions. 'Yes, yes I am', was how she answered Beth Rigby's question about whether she was prepared to be unpopular. Is this significant? Well, it points to two things.

Katy Balls

Why is Liz Truss ruling out a US trade deal?

From our UK edition

14 min listen

Liz Truss is in New York today on her first foreign visit as prime minister. On the flight across the Atlantic, Truss said that a trade deal with the United States was unlikely in the 'short to medium term'. Why has the PM, who was so vocal about a free trade agreement with the US in the 2019 election, changed her tune? Cindy Yu speaks to James Forsyth and Katy Balls. Produced by Cindy Yu and Max Jeffery.

Katy Balls

What Truss’s US trade deal U-turn is really about

From our UK edition

Farewell to the UK/US trade deal. That's the news from Liz Truss's trip to the UN assembly in New York. The Prime Minister has told hacks on the flight over that the UK will not strike an agreement with America for many years. The former international trade secretary suggested that talks were unlikely to even start in the medium term: 'There isn't currently any negotiation taking place with the US and I don't have an expectation that those are going to start in the short to medium term.' The comments come ahead of her first proper meeting with Joe Biden since becoming Prime Minister. The former International Trade Secretary suggested that talks were unlikely to even start in the medium term Her comments have caused quite a stir back home.

Monday

Katy Balls

How will Queen Elizabeth II be remembered?

From our UK edition

12 min listen

Today was the state funeral of Britain's longest reigning monarch Queen Elizabeth II. From Westminster, we evaluate the day's proceedings.Also on the podcast, as the period of mourning ends and politics resumes, can Liz Truss hit the ground running? Will we get some clarity on how much her energy plan will cost?Katy Balls speaks with Fraser Nelson and James Forsyth.Produced by Oscar Edmondson.

Thursday

Katy Balls

Who will be at the Queen’s funeral?

From our UK edition

15 min listen

Preparations are well under way for the Queen's funeral next week, but which world leaders will be in attendance? Will they all be able to behave themselves? Also on the podcast, as the new Chancellor Kwasi Kwarteng works quietly in the background, is his idea to scrap caps on banker's bonuses a risk worth taking? Cindy Yu speaks with James Forsyth and Katy Balls. Produced by Cindy Yu and Oscar Edmondson.

Wednesday

Katy Balls

What will happen while the Queen lies in state?

From our UK edition

12 min listen

The Queen's coffin has been taken from Buckingham Palace to Westminster Hall. Mourners will pay their respects for the next four days before the funeral on Monday.Also on the podcast, James Forsyth and Fraser Nelson discuss the latest news in the Ukraine conflict.

Tuesday

Katy Balls

What was the message behind King Charles’s visit to Belfast?

From our UK edition

12 min listen

King Charles arrived in Belfast where he was met by the new Secretary of State for Northern Ireland, Chris Heaton-Harris. The King has pledged to follow the 'shining example' set by his mother during her life of public service. Tonight, the Queen's body will be moved from Edinburgh to Buckingham Palace where her body will lie-in-state ahead of the funeral. Also on the podcast, is Ukraine's largest counteroffensive against Russia working? And how might Russia escalate?Katy Balls is joined by James Forsyth and Isabel Hardman. Produced by Natasha Feroze.

Monday

Katy Balls

King Charles III addresses parliament

From our UK edition

16 min listen

This morning, surrounded by the lead, oak and stone of Westminster Hall, King Charles III addressed parliament. Lindsay Hoyle, speaker of the Commons, introduced him, and said that he knew the new King would 'bear those responsibilities which fall to you'. King Charles said that he was resolved to follow his mother's 'selfless duty'.  Katy Balls speaks to Fraser Nelson and James Forsyth about what comes next.  Produced by Max Jeffery.

Saturday

Katy Balls

Melanie McDonagh, Katy Balls and Nigel Richardson

From our UK edition

15 min listen

This week on Spectator Out Loud: after the sad passing of our longest reigning monarch, the great Queen Elizabeth II, Melanie McDonagh reads her poignant piece on how Britain, as a nation, will be lesser without her (01:09). Then, turning to politics, Katy Balls gives us an update on how Liz Truss is shaking up Number 10 (05:18) before Nigel Richardson, author of the new book The Accidental Detectorist, tells us about his new hobby, metal detecting (10:55).

Thursday

Katy Balls

Kwarteng axes top Treasury civil servant

From our UK edition

Liz Truss's shake-up of Whitehall continues. Her Chancellor Kwasi Kwarteng has sacked Tom Scholar as permanent secretary to the Treasury – with the Cabinet Secretary to begin the recruitment process to find his successor. Announcing the news in a government press release, Scholar made clear the decision was made by Kwarteng: 'The Chancellor decided it was time for new leadership at the Treasury, and so I will be leaving with immediate effect'. What message does it send to the markets? There's a risk that it suggests turbulence The new Chancellor did at least offer some parting words of praise – describing Scholar as 'a dedicated and exceptional civil servant' who had provided a great service to the government and the country for the past 30 years.

Katy Balls

How much will Truss’s energy plan cost?

From our UK edition

10 min listen

Today Liz Truss has announced in parliament an energy price cap to tackle rising bills. As of October, the average household energy bill will be frozen at £2,500 for the next two years. How effective will this be? And how have her free market allies reacted to her use of price controls? James Forsyth and Katy Balls discuss.

Wednesday

Katy Balls

Have Labour underestimated Truss?

From our UK edition

12 min listen

It's Liz Truss's first full day as prime minister and, backed by a fully assembled cabinet, she has conducted her first Prime Minister's Questions with Labour leader Keir Starmer. Who came out on top?  Cindy Yu speaks to James Forsyth and Katy Balls.  Produced by Cindy Yu and Oscar Edmondson.

Katy Balls

Inside Liz Truss’s No. 10 shakeup

From our UK edition

How 10 Downing Street works – or doesn’t – always reflects the character of the prime minister who inhabits it. Boris Johnson’s No. 10 was chaotic and scandal-ridden. Theresa May’s indecision meant that hers was led by the will of her strong-minded advisers, not by her own agenda. David Cameron’s was slick, but last-minute. Liz Truss served in government under all three of them, and so witnessed all three approaches. She wants her Downing Street to be different. Even before Truss entered Downing Street on Tuesday, change was under way. After No. 10 earned a reputation in the past year as a louche place full of late-night drinking, aides have been told that the government is smartening up: there will be a shirt-and-tie dress code.

Katy Balls

Could Liz Truss’s cabinet cull come back to haunt her?

From our UK edition

Liz Truss's new cabinet will meet this morning for the first time, hours after the new Prime Minister rattled through all her key appointments last night. Following heavy briefing and speculation in recent weeks as to who would make the cut, there were few surprises. The most senior positions were won by Kwasi Kwarteng as the new Chancellor, Therese Coffey as deputy prime minister and Health Secretary, James Cleverly as Foreign Secretary and Suella Braverman as Home Secretary. The vast majority of Sunak backers were culled from cabinet by Truss When it came to the other candidates, there was continuity – Ben Wallace stays on as Defence Secretary and Robert Buckland, who switched his allegiance halfway through the contest from Sunak to Truss, will continue as Welsh Secretary.

Tuesday

Katy Balls

Truss’s cabinet: Who’s in? Who’s out?

From our UK edition

11 min listen

Liz Truss has appointed her cabinet. Allies of Rishi Sunak are out, and the former foreign secretary's closest allies are in. What does this mean for her government? Katy Balls speaks to James Forsyth and Isabel Hardman. Britain after Boris: Coffee House Shots Live, with Andrew Neil, Fraser Nelson, Katy Balls, James Forsyth and Kate Andrews takes place on 13 September.

Katy Balls

Was it a fond farewell for Boris Johnson?

From our UK edition

10 min listen

Boris Johnson finally departed Downing Street early this morning, but left the door slightly ajar on the prospect of a comeback. What will this mean for Liz Truss? Also on the podcast, as Truss makes her way to Balmoral to meet with the Queen, what will the rest of the day look like for the new prime minister? Isabel Hardman speaks to James Forsyth and Katy Balls. Produced by Max Jeffery and Oscar Edmondson.

Monday

Katy Balls

Liz Truss wins. What next?

From our UK edition

17 min listen

Liz Truss has won the Conservative leadership race, and will become Britain's prime minister tomorrow. In a speech in Westminster this morning, after finding out the result, Truss paid tribute to Boris Johnson, promised to 'govern as a conservative' and said she would 'deliver, deliver, deliver'. What should we expect from the first days of the Truss premiership? Katy Balls speaks to Fraser Nelson and James Forsyth.Produced by Max Jeffery.

Katy Balls

This week will define Liz Truss’s premiership

From our UK edition

This lunchtime Liz Truss has been announced as the new leader of the Conservative party. After a contest that spanned the summer, the chair of the 1922 Committee Sir Graham Brady announced the result, with Truss winning 81,326 votes to Rishi Sunak’s 60,339. Some 654 votes were rejected, suggesting spoiled ballots. This means Truss won with 57 per cent of the vote – a narrower margin of victory than her predecessor Boris Johnson who beat Jeremy Hunt with 66 per cent of the vote in 2019. This means her lead over Sunak was smaller than several of the membership polls suggested – and the contest was tighter than expected.

Sunday

Katy Balls

Liz Truss hints at her radical plans for government

From our UK edition

What help will Liz Truss provide households and businesses with the coming cost-of-living crisis? That's the question the frontrunner of the Tory leadership was pressed on as the Foreign Secretary appeared on the BBC's inaugural Sunday with Laura Kuenssberg show. After ducking out of a planned interview earlier this week with Nick Robinson, Truss once again refused to get into specifics as to what her offer to the public will be if she – as expected – is announced as the winner of the Tory leadership contest on Monday. She did, however, give a timeline for action should she enter 10 Downing Street.