Conservative party
I’ll vote Lib Dem – but I can’t join them
I don’t believe that before last week I’ve ever quit any organisation on an issue of principle. I tend to…
Boris is taking a huge gamble with an election – but it could pay off
Contrasting Boris Johnson’s enthusiasm for a general election with Jeremy Corbyn’s reluctance, it would be easy to assume that the…
Forget Brexit: Boris’s toughest task will be energising his exhausted party
Boris Johnson will now be receiving plenty of unsolicited advice about how to be Prime Minister. As his victory speech…
Max Hastings vs Boris Johnson: I know who I’d trust more
Sir Max Hastings, whom I engaged as editor of the Daily Telegraph in 1986 and who stayed in that role…
The leadership contest exposes how few Tories have a clue about the economy
‘Choice’ is a word that is used liberally in Conservative thinking — whether it be about schools, hospitals or consumer…
An early election is beginning to look inevitable for the next Tory leader
There’s a joke going around the various warring tribes in the Tory leadership contest. They might not win this time,…
Boris is the only one who can save the Tories
A lady once offered to go to bed with me if I could ensure that she would write The Spectator’s…
The end of May: Theresa must go so the Tories can heal
This week’s European election was always going to be pointless, at least from a British perspective. It is possible that…
The Tories are giving a masterclass in how to lose elections
When a political party is in trouble, we see infighting, leak inquiries, resignations, dismissals and botched attempts to depose the…
As an ex-Brexit minister I can tell you – May’s ‘plan’ was built on sand
Management books often repeat the dictum: ‘If there’s one thing worse than making mistakes, it’s not learning from them.’ So…
Why we must make an example of Shamima Begum
The three most popular justifications for punishment under the law all (as it happens) begin with R. They are retribution,…
Letters: What Adam Smith would say about Trump’s tariffs
What would Smith say? Sir: Adam Smith’s writings were so definitive that it is said one can find the kernel…
This should be Theresa May’s last conference as Tory leader
The worst of Britain’s post-war mistakes, ideas we thought long dead, are once more in the air. Yet again there…
The minister for spinning plates: David Lidington interview
David Lidington is the most powerful minister you’ve never heard of. He is Theresa May’s de facto deputy, tasked with…
Ukip should return – our politics depends on it
‘The return of Ukip’ declared the headline on our cover story last week. The polling boffin Matthew Goodwin to whose…
A home truth for the Tories: fix the housing crisis or lose power for ever
Much rot is spoken about how the young have it so bad. In fact, this generation is healthier, richer and…
The wrong Brexit: what happened to ‘Global Britain’?
A few months ago, Britain’s most senior ambassadors gathered in the Foreign Office to compare notes on Brexit. There was…
Revealed: the Tory health tax bombshell
The single most important domestic policy decision that the Conservatives must take is what to do about public spending. After…
Theresa May must lead or go
The Brexit ‘inner cabinet’ met on Monday. It was meant to be an important meeting, one which made some real…
The Tory drift goes on – but replacing May is impossible
‘We take the view that while things are bloody awful, we don’t want to risk making things worse.’ That is…
The Cabinet reshuffle highlighted Theresa May’s three great weaknesses
‘They are not as strong as they thought they were,’ one Whitehall source remarked to me on Monday night as…
If Damian Green lied about looking at porn, I don’t blame him one bit
I first viewed pornography at the age of 12, when a school friend showed me a magazine called, I think,…
The Tories urgently need a boost from Philip Hammond’s Budget
The Budget this Wednesday represents this government’s best, and perhaps its last, chance to regain the political initiative. Ever since…
Does Theresa May’s zombie government even want to survive?
Dealing with a hung parliament was never going to be easy, but no one quite foresaw the decay which now…
Sexual misconduct claims leave government in crisis
Home An air of crisis hung over the government. Priti Patel, the International Development Secretary, was told to fly back…
