News and Opinion

The Liberal Democrats could win ‘up to 100 seats’ in a general election with its anti-Brexit stance, MP Chuka Umunna has predicted. Chuka Umunna speaking during the Liberal Democrats autumn conference at the Bournemouth International Centre in Bournemouth. Photograph: Jonathan Brady/PA. – Credit: PA Wire/PA Images The party’s foreign and commonwealth affairs spokesman said his […]

Former prime minister has apologised for what his decision to hold an EU referendum sparked in his first major television interview since his resignation. As part of The Cameron Interview on ITV, the ex-Tory leader was asked if the decision to call the referendum haunted him. He replied: “Yeah, of course. You know, this is […]

Diehard Brexiteer Andrew Bridgen has accused the EU of threatening British lives in the event of a no-deal Brexit affecting medical supplies. The MP made the claim when he was asked by a German news channel if he was willing to risk lives for Brexit, in the wake of warnings that a no-deal situation could […]

MIKE BUONAIUTO is calling for urgent action against the light-touch approach Facebook takes towards political campaigning on its platform. Ever heard of the anonymised, political Facebook groups that gather data and then disappear within weeks of opening, with no obligation to declare any of their funding to the Electoral Commission? Or how it’s impossible to […]

A Lib Dem MP has criticised the party’s new stance to revoke Article 50 if it wins a general election – claiming a failure to compromise has led to rise of Farage and Johnson. Sir Norman Lamb said that his party was “playing with fire” by pledging to stop Brexit without a second referendum. Speaking […]

STEVE ANGLESEY on if the irrational work of irrational men is down to a diet either smacked out by meat or in the amphetamine grip of a sugar rush? Pork took an unexpected and unsavoury leading role in the last political biography written by Lord Ashcroft, so it comes as a relief that the foodstuffs […]

Scores of local Labour parties have backed a call for the national leadership to support the revocation of Article 50. Overall, 90 motions that have been submitted to the national party have been related to Brexit, with 81 calling for Labour to explicitly back Remain. The calls for the revocation of Article 50 are being […]

Boris Johnson has been forced to cancel his outdoors press conference in Luxembourg after anti-Brexit protesters turned up to greet him. Protesters outside the Luxembourg Ministry of State in Luxembourg, prior to a meeting between Prime Minister Boris Johnson and Luxembourg Prime Minister Xavier Bettel. PA Photo. Picture date: Monday September 16, 2019. See PA […]

After articles appeared in the rightwing press about its international work, the Royal National Lifeboat Institution (RNLI) said it has had a spike in online donations – but others are withdrawing their support. In response to the @MailOnline & @thetimes:we are proud of our international work. Its saves (mostly kids') lives. And we haven't kept […]

The government has spent more than a quarter of a million pounds on Facebook adverts about the Brexit deadline date of October 31st – despite MPs trying to force their hand to delay the date. Figures from the social network showed the UK government had spent £216,613 on the adverts between September 8 and September […]

Universities are concerned about the impact a no-deal Brexit could have on areas such as student recruitment, research and staff, according to a poll. A survey by Universities UK (UUK) of 75 institutions across the country found nearly one in five (19%) are extremely concerned about the possible effect of a no-deal exit. In addition, […]

Ahead of next month’s return of Jeux Sans Frontières, Roger Domeneghetti explores the complex role the show has played in European relations. Television Programme BBC series It’s a Knockout The British heat of Jeux Sans Frontieres which is being held at Princess Anne Park in Washington (Photo by NCJ Archive/Mirrorpix/Getty Images) – Credit: Getty Images […]

The trade unions are shifting on Brexit, says ZOE WILLIAMS. And that can only be a good thing for the cause. I have a couple of problematic allergies that I believe have adversely affected my career. They’re all to words; it’s worse than that. They’re all the words that make up the processes of deliberative […]

The prime minister’s undoubted gift for comedy should not be treated as trivial, says Chris Arning. We need to understand it. Boris Johnson. Picture: TOLGA AKMEN/AFP/Getty Images – Credit: AFP/Getty Images Imagine you’re in a comedy club where the compere hogs the mic making the most puerile, sickening jokes, engages in cringeful puns then gradually […]

JAMES BALL on the unwritten rules in politics that are damaging the system and why. It’s a common saying that the UK constitution is unwritten. It’s also a false saying. Much of the UK constitution is written, albeit across multiple laws, treaties, and parliamentary procedures – and in the last few weeks, a good few […]

Dominic Cummings is still a director of an info tech company, Chris Grayling a joke in theatre land and Gina Miller’s grace under pressure. Britain’s Prime Minister’s special advisor, Dominic Cummings. Photograph: DANIEL LEAL-OLIVAS/AFP/Getty Images. – Credit: AFP/Getty Images In what might well suggest he regards his job working for Boris Johnson as a short-term […]

MATTHEW D’ANCONA outlines the vision behind a revolutionary journalism project designed to reflect the modern day. If in doubt, always consult The Hitchhiker’s Guide to the Galaxy. As Douglas Adams wrote, the Earth is “an utterly insignificant little blue green planet whose ape-descended life forms are so amazingly primitive that they still think digital watches […]

BONNIE GREER on why the relatable average Joe from the quieter states of America, is the rival Trump should fear most. Joe Biden – Credit: NurPhoto via Getty Images Delaware is one of those places where, when many Americans begin to talk about it, they start their sentence “with respect”. Quiet, boring old Delaware, some […]

The government might want to rethink its marketing campaign strategy after adverts telling listeners to ‘get ready for Brexit’ have been among those featured on our staunchly anti-Brexit podcast. The adverts – which appeared on the podcast for two weeks in a row – are part of a £100 million advertising spend from the government […]

Scotland’s constitutional relations secretary has said there is a path open for an independent Scotland to ‘walk into’ EU membership. Mike Russell said there has been a “huge change” in the EU’s attitude towards Scotland, where 62% of people voted remain in the 2016 referendum. He was speaking after a former president of the European […]

Boris Johnson has compared his Brexit strategy to the Hulk and the internet has reacted with its usual scorn. In an interview with the Mail On Sunday, Johnson likened Britain to the fictional scientist Bruce Banner, who transforms into the monstrous green Hulk when he is angry in the Marvel superhero comics and movies. He […]

Liberal Democrat leader Jo Swinson has promised to cancel Brexit altogether if her party wins a majority at the next election. The pro-EU party is enjoying a revival under Swinson’s watch, having seen a host of MPs defect to her party with its clear stance on Britain’s relationship with Brussels. Sam Gyimah, a former Tory […]

Boris Johnson and Dominic Cummings are considering prorogation of parliament for a second time as the government loses control of the House of Commons. The Sunday Times and Mail on Sunday reports that during a meeting of ministerial aides on Friday evening, Cummings warned of a “nuclear” option which means if the courts ruled against […]

Former Tory MP Sam Gyimah says his new party will still be campaigning for a second referendum – despite its plans to make cancelling Brexit its main policy on Europe. The East Surrey MP was unveiled last night as the latest politician to switch to the Liberal Democrats. Members of the anti-Brexit party are expected […]

Following Sam Gyimah’s high profile defection from the Tories, the Liberal Democrats are preparing for the second day of their party conference. Former Conservative minister and leadership contender Gyimah took to the Liberal Democrat conference stage yesterday amid wild adulation as he confirmed he had become the sixth MP to defect this year. Speaking at […]

David Cameron has launched another stinging attack on Boris Johnson, claiming the prime minister ‘didn’t believe’ in Brexit and only backed the Leave campaign to further his career. The Conservative former prime minister said Johnson privately claimed there could be a “fresh renegotiation, followed by a second referendum” – which he now says he opposes. […]

MITCH BENN on Boris Johnson becoming the first prime minister since 1894 to lose his first commons vote and also reducing his from +1 to -43 in a week. So this time last week, you may or may not recall, I was bewailing the near-impossibility of submitting a regular current events-based (and specifically Brexit-related current […]

BBC broadcaster Steph McGovern has apologised after making a jibe about Boris Johnson following his speech. The BBC Breakfast presenter, who is on maternity leave, was hosting the Convention of the North in Rotherham where the prime minister was speaking, and comments she made after the pair passed each other on the stage have resulted […]