Katy Balls

Katy Balls is Diary Editor at The Spectator.

‘Change’: Starmer unveils manifesto

13 June 2024 10:46 pm

What would Labour do in power? This is the question Sir Keir Starmer tried to answer this morning as he…

The Tories are going public with their ‘Dunkirk strategy’

12 June 2024 9:54 pm

The Tories managed to avoid any major own goals or gaffes during the launch of their manifesto. Given some of…

Fighting over the Tory manifesto begins a day early

11 June 2024 3:36 am

On Tuesday morning, Rishi Sunak will unveil the Conservative party’s 2024 manifesto. So far, there is talk of tax cuts,…

Can Sunak get his election campaign back on track?

10 June 2024 5:29 pm

As a general rule, you know your election campaign has gone off track when politicians are being asked on the…

Can the Tories survive Nigel Farage?

8 June 2024 9:00 am

Nigel Farage had given less than a day’s notice, yet hundreds stood ready to welcome him on Tuesday morning on…

Backlash grows over Sunak’s D-Day mistake

7 June 2024 9:18 pm

When Rishi Sunak’s team were mapping out this week, Wednesday and Thursday were viewed to be non-political days as the…

Clacton goes wild for Nigel Farage

4 June 2024 11:23 pm

Farage-mania has come to Clacton-on-Sea this lunchtime. Hundreds of locals gathered around the Essex seaside town’s pier to hear Nigel…

Rishi’s nightmare: YouGov MRP predicts Labour super majority

4 June 2024 3:36 am

It never rains but it pours for Rishi Sunak. Less than an hour after Nigel Farage performed a shock U-turn,…

Sunak and Starmer’s plans for battle in first TV debate

3 June 2024 6:37 pm

The parties are gearing up for their first full week of campaigning since parliament was dissolved on Thursday. This means…

Are any of the party leaders ready to be PM?

1 June 2024 9:00 am

Since Rishi Sunak called the election last week, Tory MPs have been in a state of discombobulation. ‘It’s an absolutely…

Why is Starmer now saying that Diane Abbott can stand as an MP?

1 June 2024 12:46 am

They say a week is a long time in politics but in the Labour party just three days is enough.…

Starmer purges the Corbynites

30 May 2024 7:16 pm

One of the first thing Keir Starmer and his team decided to focus on after winning the Labour leadership was…

Rachel Reeves avoids the Miliband trap

28 May 2024 7:18 pm

Rachel Reeves is out once on the campaign trail once again today as she gives her first major speech since…

Sunak introduces the ‘Triple Lock Plus’

28 May 2024 8:30 am

Another day, another big policy pledge from the Tories – and this time it’s a pitch for the grey vote.…

Tory backlash grows over Sunak’s national service pledge

28 May 2024 12:27 am

The Conservative campaign pledge to introduce mandatory national service is still dominating the news two days on. Many of Monday’s…

Tories and Labour go to battle on TikTok

27 May 2024 3:08 am

The digital election battle is heating up. Just a few days ago the Labour party joined TikTok, the social media…

Sunak: let’s bring back national service

26 May 2024 8:00 am

The first big new policy announcement of the election campaign is in from the Tories, and it’s likely to be…

How many Tory big beasts will the Lib Dems oust?

26 May 2024 6:09 am

It’s four days since Rishi Sunak surprised his colleagues and announced a summer election. So far a lot of the…

The deluge: Rishi Sunak’s election gamble

25 May 2024 9:00 am

‘Only a Conservative government, led by me, will not put our hard-earned economic stability at risk,’ said Rishi Sunak as…

Inside Labour’s fight with the unions

25 May 2024 9:00 am

By the end of the year, Britain may be one of the few countries in the democratic world where the…

Michael Gove leads the Tory exodus

24 May 2024 8:27 pm

When Rishi Sunak told cabinet colleagues about his decision to call a general election, Michael Gove sought to raise spirits…

Has Sunak’s Farage gamble just paid off?

23 May 2024 8:29 pm

Rishi Sunak’s election gamble has hit a little turbulence less than 24 hours in. Several members of the cabinet voiced…

Sunak takes his biggest gamble yet: a July election

23 May 2024 3:29 am

Rishi Sunak has chosen to go for a summer election. The Prime Minister has confirmed in an address to the…

Infected blood scandal was ‘no accident’, says report

21 May 2024 1:01 am

The Infected Blood Inquiry has finally concluded after a five-year investigation. This lunchtime, the inquiry’s chair Sir Brian Langstaff said…

Shabana Mahmood: The disgraceful treatment of Kate Forbes

18 May 2024 9:00 am

It was like a scene from the Blair government: a minister admits inmates are being released before their sentence ends,…