News and Opinion

ALASTAIR CAMPBELL on how the UK is in a bad place when it comes to racism – and why recent political events have made it worse. Amid all the excitement (sic) ahead of the election, I overlooked a request from the editor to contribute to the ‘book of the year’ feature in the Christmas special […]

If Russia interfered in the general election we should expect more of the same during Brexit trade talks in the coming months, writes JAMES BALL. Russia very likely interfered in the UK’s 2019 general election, and virtually no-one cares. The documents which Labour used to suggest the Conservatives had a secret plan to put the […]

Labour peer ANDREW ADONIS believes that Sir Keir Starmer is the one electable leader in the race. At last I have discovered an index on which Jeremy Corbyn is mainstream: He survived nearly five years as leader of the Labour Party, which is the average for its leaders since Ramsay MacDonald. The only Labour leaders […]

Birmingham Yardley MP Jess Phillips has put herself in the running to replace Jeremy Corbyn with a call for a ‘brave and bold’ response to Labour’s devastating election losses. The outspoken backbencher has been widely expected to stand, following Emily thornberry and Clive Lewis who have announced their bids. The backbencher launches her campaign with […]

Foreign secretary Dominic Raab has called for a calming of tensions from all aggressors after the US killed Iran’s top general in an air strike – as Boris Johnson contined his holiday. Kashmiri Shiite Muslims shout anti American and anti Israel slogans during a protest against U.S. airstrike in Iraq that killed Iranian Revolutionary Guard […]

A group of Brexiteer MPs are seeking to write into law that Big Ben chimes to mark Britain leaving the EU on January 31. The iconic bell is currently undergoing a multimillion-pound restoration, having fell silent in August 2017. It is not expected to return to full service until 2021 and in the meantime has […]

As Boris Johnson’s senior political adviser, Dominic Cummings is often criticized for wielding the kind of power mocked by TV shows like The Thick of It. Today’s recruitment drive, however, might be too close to the bone. The avant-garde nature of the ad – posted directly to his personal blog – probably impressed some. It […]

Liberal Democrat MP Layla Moran has come out as pansexual and has revealed that she is in a relationship with a woman. The MP of Oxford West and Abingdon tweeted a photo of herself and her partner Rosy Cobb, saying: “2020 is a new decade and a new path in my journey. Last year I […]

Dominic Cummings has posted a rambling job advert of almost 3,000 words to his personal blog calling for ‘unusual set of people with different skills and backgrounds’ to work in Downing Street. The former Vote Leave director posted the advert asking people to apply to become special advisers (spads) or other government officials in 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…

The Labour party is making a fresh attempt to make sure the UK does not crash out without a deal with the EU at the end of 2020. The opposition will push for a new clause to Brexit legislation, requesting a two-year extension to the implementation period if certain conditions are not met by mid-June. […]

As calls grow for Iain Duncan Smith not to receive a knighthood, an interview has re-emerged from 2017, reminding people of the time he divided migrants into the worthy and people of ‘low value’. Tory fiction. We always had the right to limit immigration to people who had a job/resources, but UK governments repeatefly failed […]

In his pitch to become leader, Norwich South MP Clive Lewis has called for an end to “division and bigotry” and said that the first job of anyone who aspires to be PM is to “help our people live together harmoniously”. The pro-Remain MP is one of the first Labour figures to put himself forward […]

The author of the Conservative general election manifesto has claimed that civil servants are ‘woefully unprepared’ for the changes Boris Johnson’s government is about to make in Whitehall after Brexit. Civil servants could be made to take regular exams to prove they are up to their jobs under “seismic” changes about to be wrought, claimed […]

A pro-Brexit news website founded by a key Vote Leave figure has decided to shut down by the end of January. With another year of negotiations with the EU left to go, BrexitCentral’s editor-at-large Matthew Elliott said that he felt “basically its work will have been done” by the UK’s leaving date. He told Politico’s […]

A new poll has found that Sir Keir Starmer is the clear front-runner to take over from Jeremy Corbyn at Labour’s leader. The shadow Brexit secretary would be on course to win the leadership contest, a YouGov survey reported in the Guardian has found. Sir Keir, who has not yet officially launched a campaign, was […]

Gary Lineker has challenged Brexiteers to ‘own it now’ as he explained how he feels about Britain’s upcoming exit from the EU. The footballing legend and outspoken Remainer talked about the abuse he received online for his views on Brexit but added nonetheless that he hopes Brexit works. Speaking on TalkRadio, Lineker said that he […]

Protests are to be held outside UK train stations against the annual increase in rail fares as new research suggests they have risen twice as fast as wages in the past 10 years. The biggest demonstration will be outside London’s King’s Cross station, with rail workers and campaigners joining forces to argue that staffing, not […]

MITCH BENN will continue to be a ‘sore loser’ in 2020 because his views on Brexit have not changed – regardless of the general election result. Okay, so that sucked. Not Christmas; I should point that out. I can’t speak for anyone else but I had a good Christmas, indeed, judging by the fact I […]

A reader has called for Remainers to march again to show they have not given up the fight to stop Brexit. I seriously hope that some sort of pro-EU march will take place (in London and/or elsewhere) on Saturday, February 1. It might now seem pointless to march for a People’s Vote or to stop […]

After a Remainer made the headlines for the wrong reasons on Boxing Day, MICHAEL WHITE proposes a series of resolutions for the movement. When I noticed on my Twitter feed that the litigious Remain barrister, Jolyon Maugham QC, had just admitted clubbing a fox to death with a baseball bat (“How’s your Boxing Day going?”) […]

A politician is to hand back his MBE medal in protest at a decision to knight Tory Brexiteer Iain Duncan Smith in the New Year’s honours. Mike Smith-Clare, a Labour party councillor from Great Yarmouth, was awarded his MBE in 2016 for services to community education but said he could no longer be associated with […]

London Mayor Sadiq Khan has said he is yet to decide which of the Labour front-runners he will support as the next party leader – but said he is ‘fed up’ of his party losing. He said his vote in the Labour leadership race will be reserved for the candidate who understands the party “lost […]

Despite calls from prominent leaders for people to come together in 2020, Nigel Farage has used his New Year’s message to claim he had ‘crushed Remoaners’. In a joint message with Richard Tice, the Brexit Party chairman, he took credit for Boris Johnson’s majority in the general election. He also claimed Johnson never would have […]

Boris Johnson has claimed there will be a decade of ‘opportunity’ after his Brexit deal is passed on January 31st. In his New Year message, the prime minister said that with the UK set to leave the EU on January 31, the Government could look to address other priorities. “As we say goodbye to 2019 […]

Shadow justice secretary Richard Burgon has announced his intention to stand as the party’s deputy leader, saying Jeremy Corbyn is not to blame for the party’s election defeat. The left-winger and Corbyn ally said the party had lost out to the Tories in a contest where the overriding issue of Brexit had triumphed over traditional […]

Jess Phillips has got social media users talking about the possibility of her running for Labour leader with a tweet saying: ‘2020 watch this space’. ???????????????????????????????????????????????? WATCH THIS SPACE????????????????????????????????????????????????— Jess Phillips MP (@jessphillips) December 31, 2019 Phillips, one of the only Labour backbenchers high-profile enough to attempt to take over from Jeremy Corbyn, acknowledged in […]

There’s been two prime ministers, three elections, and UKIP’s had more leaders than you’ve had hot dinners. If a week is a long time in politics, then we’ve crammed more than a few political lifetimes into 2019. Can you remember all the twists, turns and trivia of another year in Brexit? – Let us know […]