Labour Party
What Bridget Phillipson has in common with Plato
One does not like to disagree with one’s editor, but while the image of Rome salting the earth of its…
Why was everyone fooled by Rachel Reeves?
It is some time since I could claim any close acquaintance with the daily skirmishes of workaday Westminster. From risers…
‘We’re pretty bullish’: Farage’s plan to transform politics
‘We’ve had enough of living in two-tier Britain,’ bellows Nigel Farage to cheers from an 800-strong crowd at Chester’s Crowne…
When will Tulip Siddiq be sacked?
It’s rare that a world leader knows the name of a junior minister in the British government – let alone…
Press barred from grilling Starmer’s Chagos chum
There are just eight days to go until Donald Trump takes office. So the question much of Whitehall is asking…
How green is the government’s car service?
The government’s green credentials are in the firing line – and not for the first time. In office, Keir Starmer…
Donald Trump and new political disorder
Donald Trump isn’t back in the White House yet, but already his victory is being felt across the world. Greenland…
Right move: will Britain benefit from the global conservative turn?
The world appears to be turning on its axis – and moving hard to the right. The New World is tilting hardest.…
Rachel Reeves’s new year’s resolution
On Christmas Day, 12 million people watched the will-they-won’t-they couple Smithy and Nessa finally marry after 17 years in the…
My business predictions for 2025
Headed for ‘the worst of all worlds’ is not where any of us would wish to find ourselves at the…
Portrait of the year: Subpostmasters scandal, Rishi in the rain and Syrian rebels topple regime
January After an ITV drama, the government suddenly proposed to do something about the unjust prosecution of sub-postmasters. Junior doctors…
What’s in store for politics in 2025?
Santa will have a tricky time this year fulfilling all the Christmas wish lists in Westminster. Keir Starmer is desperately…
The marketing genius of Jaguar
Woke it may be, but Jaguar’s ‘Copy Nothing’ video is a work of marketing genius. With its ungendered models, ungrammatical…
Portrait of the week: Labour’s ‘plan for change’, falling productivity and 20,000 wolves in the EU
Home The Labour government announced a ‘Plan for Change’ that it refused to call a reset. Sir Chris Wormald was…
Can Labour’s reset see off Reform?
Arriving on stage to accept ‘Newcomer of the Year’ at The Spectator’s Parliamentarian of the Year awards, Nigel Farage gave…
I hope you didn’t sign that petition
Did you sign it, then? And if so, what were your expectations? That Sir Keir Starmer would look at the…
Wild Wes: Streeting is causing trouble for Starmer
Avote on assisted dying was supposed to be one of the easiest reforms for Keir Starmer’s government. To many, including…
Labour’s Chinese takeaway
I was thrilled to learn that our government intends to enjoy an ‘open’ relationship with China – one of my…
Assisted dying is becoming Starmer’s mess
In the months before the general election, the Labour party had an internal debate about starting a ‘national conversation’ on…
Labour’s war with Elon Musk
How do you solve a problem like Elon? That is the dilemma facing Keir Starmer. Musk seems particularly exercised about…
The problem with Dawn Butler
We hear a lot about white supremacy these days. But for some reason we rarely hear about black supremacy. I…
Inside Kemi Badenoch’s first shadow cabinet
At her first shadow cabinet as Tory leader, Kemi Badenoch walked into the room and declared that there were ‘still…
Labour’s war on the countryside
Two miles from where I am writing, the neighbouring village is plastered with posters demanding ‘Say No to Pylons’. The…
Portrait of the week: Tax rises, a cheddar heist and snail delivery man gets slapped
Home Rachel Reeves, the Chancellor of the Exchequer, repeatedly mentioning an inherited ‘£22 billion black hole’, raised taxes by £40…
Portrait of the week: Budget leaks, prisoners released and Israel kills Hamas leader
Home Rachel Reeves, the Chancellor of the Exchequer, was expected to freeze tax thresholds in the Budget on 30 October,…
