News and Opinion

Readers respond to claims that it would be wrong for Remainers to campaign for associate EU citizenship. Mark Bates might be missing the point of associate EU citizenship (TNE #182). It would not and could not be an easy passage to living and collecting our pensions abroad. What it could do would be to show […]

Andreas Hofer led a rural rebel army to fight against Napoleon’s troops to try and claim back Tyrol, a region of Austria that had been given to the German state of Bavaria. “You’ve been to mass; you’ve had a schnapps. Now forward in the name of God!” As battle cries go it’s an unusual one […]

JASON WALSH on an intriguing election for the city’s mayoralty… and a possible springboard to the presidency. France goes to the polls next month in nationwide municipal elections. The most eye-catching of the contests is in Paris, where a bizarre sex scandal has pushed out a challenger, leaving incumbent mayor Anne Hidalgo likely to triumph […]

A play which is all about saluting strong women was recreated at Young Vic Theatre in London. 7. Zephryn Taitte in Nora A Doll’s House (c) Marc Brenner – Credit: Archant When Henrik Ibsen wrote A Doll’s House in 1879, he recognised the fight for gender equality was never going to be a quick and […]

CLAUDIA PRITCHARD on a stunning new show of paintings from a moment in history when the country and its rulers were at their most self-aggrandising. peter lely self portrait – Credit: Archant Upon the Restoration of the monarchy in 1660, and faced with the task of restating its majesty, Charles II appointed a spin doctor. […]

As another portrayal of Ned Kelly arrives on the big screen, RICHARD LUCK explores the murderous legend’s enduring appeal. Ned Kelly – Credit: Archant One of the great myths about Australia is that it doesn’t have any history. Having been populated for the better part of 50,000 years, the Great Southern Land actually has no […]

Nick Hopkinson recounts the long campaign by the separatist movement in his native Québec and finds striking parallels with the UK’s departure from the EU. Streets were alive with the sounds of victory in Montreal after word of the Parti Quebecois victory was announced. People danced and drank beer openly celebrating the election results. Picture: […]

Why is the BBC’s coverage of politics in the US so much more extensive than its reporting of it in Europe, asks DENIS MacSHANE? Morning, noon and night on the BBC we have, of late, been getting endless coverage of the US Democratic Party nomination process. Star reporters like Jon Sopel have been providing excellent […]

Brexit has prompted a rebalancing of the EU and enhanced the influence of Central European states, raising difficult questions about where it goes next, JOHN KAMPFNER reports. Protesters attend an anti-government protest at the Letna plain in Prague, Czech Republic (Photo by Gabriel Kuchta/Getty Images) – Credit: Getty Images On the first working day after […]

Question Time has been criticised sharing a video of the views of an audience member who claimed the country had ‘had enough’ of immigration on social media without balance. An audience member on Question Time calls for government to close all the borders. Photograph: BBC. – Credit: Archant The programme, which was broadcast from Weymouth, […]

Intelligence officials in America have claimed that Russia is still interfering in elections in 2020 – this time to get president Donald Trump re-elected. The New York Times said intelligence officials told parliamentarians about the interference in a closed-door briefing to the House Intelligence Committee last week. It said the disclosure angered Trump, who complained […]

A draft report of a review into the Windrush scandal has reportedly been ‘watered down’ to remove a claim that the Home Office is ‘institutionally racist’. The delayed independent review was commissioned after people with a right to live in the UK were wrongfully detained or deported to the Caribbean. The Times reports sources saying […]

Gordon Brown has warned that Scotland is at risk of becoming ‘one of the West’s most divided countries’ – with the issues of Brexit and independence polarising the debate. The former prime minister made the claim after a YouGov poll of 2,500 Scots suggested that only 16% believe the country is united. Commissioned by the […]

As a New European reader, you probably reckon you keep a close eye on the continent’s news. Test yourself with our quiz… Think you’re on top of what’s been going on across Europe in the past seven days? Take The New European’s tricky quiz and find out just how much of a Europhile you are…

WILL SELF on Naples and how our generation’s wake-up call on climate change is simply not enough to tackle the issue. One of the famous narrow streets in Italy. Picture: GettyImages – Credit: REDA&CO/Universal Images Group v My eldest son is heading off to Naples this week, to spend a few months in this storied […]

Dominic Cummings stands for everything that he advocated the country rejecting, writes a reader. Dominic Cummings is the epitome of everything he advocated rejecting, all the reasons he fabricated for leaving the EU. The ‘unelected Eurocrats’ spin was a lie; instead, decisions on our futures are now actually being made by faceless, unaccountable figures, not […]

Artists, sports players and entertainers from the European Union will not be disadvantaged by the new rules on visas, the Home Office has claimed. The end of the Brexit transition period will mean an end to current freedom of movement for performers and entertainers from the EU. At present they can travel to the UK […]

For all its failings, the BBC needs your support, writes JAMES BALL. BBC Sport Presenter Gabby Logan, Alan Shearer and Michael Appleton during an FA Cup match. Photograph: David Davies/PA. – Credit: PA In the midst of last year’s parliamentary battles on Article 50 and the Withdrawal Agreement – and Labour’s struggle to find a […]

Mary C. Murphy assesses the likely impact on Brexit of Sinn Féin’s election success. Political hostility, historical antipathy and considerable incompatibility on both policies and principles has traditionally sullied the relationships between Sinn Féin and Ireland’s two other largest parties, Fianna Fáil and Fine Gael. But while they are reluctant to share power with Sinn […]

MITCH BENN on the tragic death of television presenter Caroline Flack – and how we all played a part in the media’s involvement. I wasn’t really that aware of Caroline Flack; I realise what a tiresomely bourgeois and pretentious-sounding thing that is to say right now, but it does become relevant, so bear with me. […]

MICHAEL WHITE on the week that Boris Johnson surrounded himself with a cabinet of vassals. Chinese emperors past and present have traditionally been judged by their people on the speed and efficiency of the regime’s response to the great natural disasters, earthquake and flood, pestilence and famine, which have always beset the world’s oldest surviving […]

Google will shift control of UK data from Google Ireland – where it is protected by tough EU protection – to its American parent Google LLC, where this is weaker oversight. The tech giant insisted the same data protection standards will apply in place for UK users despite the EU’s tough rules no longer applying. […]

Remain-backing former prime minister Tony Blair says that the next Labour leader should not campaign to rejoin the EU for the time-being. Blair was speaking at a 120th anniversary of the Labour Party when he said the party could have stopped Brexit if it was “a serious opposition”, but said that now it had to […]

As Labour members prepare to cast their votes for their chosen candidates, MEG RUSSELL explains why the process is so flawed and damaging. This Friday, the ballot opens in the Labour leadership election. It will close again on April 2, with the result announced two days later. The three candidates still in the running – […]

Dominic Cummings previously called for the NHS to provide funding to allow people to select genetic traits such as intelligence for babies. Cummings, Boris Johnson’s senior aide, made the comments in a post published on his blog in 2014. In a blog post entitled, Standin’ By The Window, Where The Light Is Strong Cummings said […]

BONNIE GREER questions Bernie Sanders’ ‘socialist’ credentials and wonders why political parties and activists ignore the wider electorate when they choose leaders. Some of my family back in the States have been emailing me the one question that I imagine much of America is asking: “What’s the difference between a socialist and a democratic socialist?” […]

Celebrities have turned to Twitter to oppose Priti Patel’s new immigration system – pointing out their own relatives ‘wouldn’t have made the cut’. Famous faces including Jay Rayner and Caitlin Moran have responded to a viral tweet from author Sathnam Sanghera – who suggested that the families of many British citizens would not currently be […]

Brexit Party leader Nigel Farage is still trying to cash in on Brexit – this time by selling old election placards for £35 a pop. Despite insisting that he would “disappear” after Brexit, the outspoken Leaver is still emailing supporters of his organisation asking for donations. At the start of the month the chairman of […]