Boris Johnson

Boris Johnson is famous for making babies. Now his Brexit is making babies unhappy. It has been a gloomy week on the sunlit uplands of sovereign Britain, where Boris Johnson dismisses the unfolding post-Brexit trade fiasco as mere “teething problems”, Michael Gove talks of “issues which I would not describe as teething problems” and manufacturers […]

The government has tried to give NHS staff “as much as we possibly can” after recommending a 1% pay rise, the prime minister has said. The proposal has sparked talk of industrial action and demonstrations were planned across England on Sunday, with senior Conservatives also speaking out. An Opinium poll has suggested as much as […]

European leaders have made catastrophic errors over vaccines, for which their citizens are paying a price. But the shambles has not undermined the basic principles on which the EU is built. The roll-out of the Covid vaccine should be a moment for universal celebration, but something disturbing is happening. It’s being wrapped in a Brexit narrative […]

Labour leader Sir Keir Starmer has suggested the success of the coronavirus vaccine rollout has led to the Conservatives establishing a 13-point lead over his party. He said “people want the government to succeed” during a pandemic, but conceded there is a “lot of work to do” to rebuild support. The poll by YouGov for […]

Sky producers are searching for a Michael Gove lookalike to play the cabinet minister in the upcoming series, This Sceptred Isle. The five-part drama charts events surrounding the prime minister, Downing Street, and the country during the first wave of the global pandemic. A casting brief says producers are searching for a male “in his early 50s, […]

Mark Drakeford has told a Welsh Affairs Committee that the union “is over” and a new one was needed to reflect a “voluntary association of four nations”. The first minister also condemned Downing Street’s approach of bypassing the devolved administrations through levelling up funds. He stated: “For the first time since devolution, we are dealing with a UK government […]

Former French ambassador to the UK Sylvie Bermann made recent headlines with her very undiplomatic comments about Boris Johnson. She talks to TIM WALKER about how the country changed in her time here, and what she sees for its future. Almost a month after the EU referendum, the newly-appointed foreign secretary Boris Johnson bounded into the opulent residence […]

MEPs have dropped plans to approve Boris Johnson’s Brexit deal after the UK government was accused of violating the agreement. The UK’s latest Brexit move saw the government unilaterally extend the Northern Ireland Protocol grace period until October, despite on-going conversations with the EU. In a damning statement, Maroš Šefčovič, vice president of the European Commission, said the move announced […]

The allocation of £1 billion funding to mainly Conservative seats “feels like pork-barrel politics”, Labour leader Sir Keir Starmer has claimed. He said of the 45 areas allocated cash under new towns deals, 40 were represented by Tories and it sounded “fishy”. But Boris Johnson said it was partly due to his success in the […]

Loyalist paramilitary organisations have told prime minister Boris Johnson they are withdrawing support for Northern Ireland’s historic peace agreement. The outlawed groups said they were temporarily withdrawing their backing of the Belfast/Good Friday accord amid mounting concerns about the contentious Northern Ireland Protocol governing Irish Sea trade post-Brexit. However, they stressed that unionist opposition to […]

MITCH BENN with his weekly look back at some of the highlights and lowlights of recent days… BLAME-DODGE OF THE WEEK So at last we know whose fault the spectacular and ongoing implosion of Brexit is. And it’s a bit of a jaw-dropper.  So who is to blame? The prime minister? The previous prime minister(s)? […]

The UK’s spending watchdog has said in its latest analysis to accompany Rishi Sunak’s budget that the prime minister’s Brexit deal will shrink the economy by 4%. The Office of Budget Responsibility (OBR) said there was very little in Johnson’s deal that would change the prediction of a long-term loss to productivity over 15 years. […]

Boris Johnson should “listen to his own MPs” before cutting the UK’s foreign aid contribution to Yemen, Sir Keir Starmer argued during Prime Minister’s Questions. Grilling Johnson over a proposed 0.2% cut to Britain’s foreign aid budget, Sir Keir said: “This week the government halved our international aid to Yemen. If the prime minister thinks this is […]

Downing Street has refused to deny reports that Boris Johnson is considering setting up a charity to pay for the refurbishment of his official flat. The Daily Mail reported that the scheme – based on one used by the White House – could be funded by wealthy Tory benefactors. The move comes amid reported concerns […]

Boris Johnson has branded Nicola Sturgeon’s plans for a second Scottish independence referendum as “irrelevant”. Johnson said the Covid crisis was a reason to keep the UK together and pointed to the vaccine rollout as an example of the four nations working together. Sturgeon has hinted at holding a second vote early next year if […]

Boris Johnson is reportedly planning to set up a charity to bankroll Carrie Symonds’ make-over of their Downing Street flat. The fund would allow private donors to hand over cash for the upkeep of No 11 and other staterooms. Critics argue this sets up back-door access to the prime minister. According to reports in the […]

Former prime minister David Cameron has claimed that the EU referendum was ‘necessary’ and defended his decision process that led to the vote being held. Cameron defended the vote while speaking to parliament’s National Security Strategy Committee. He explained: “The Brexit referendum was discussed and called in 2013, two years before the general election and three […]

MITCH BENN starts his weekly look back at some of the highlights and lowlights of recent days… UNFATHOMABLE STRATEGY OF THE WEEK The trouble with an inscrutable and mysterious strategy is that to the untrained eye, it’s indistinguishable from an entirely non-existent one. What is Sir Keir Starmer’s plan as leader of the opposition? Does it […]

Boris Johnson has supported calls for a campaign to promote British seafood during a video conference with Conservative MPs from coastal areas. Johnson also promised to address concerns surrounding quotas and the ban on shellfish exports to the EU, following massive trade disruptions for British fishermen. MORE: George Eustice claims EU ‘unexpectedly’ changed its position on […]

The coronavirus crisis has made the UK look “dysfunctional” at times due to a lack of co-operation between administrations, Gordon Brown has said. In an article on devolution for the Scottish Fabians think tank, the former prime minister also said Boris Johnson risks becoming the “biggest recruiting sergeant for nationalism” due to his position on […]

A new book by Peter Oborne chronicles Boris Johnson’s history of deceit and how his time in Downing Street has poisoned British political culture.  In an interview with the American television network CBS earlier this month Boris Johnson sought to reassure president Joe Biden that he would do nothing to harm the Good Friday agreement. Johnson tried […]

Warm words about climate action are one thing. But Brexit means it's likely all we will get is hot air. 

Downing Street has rejected claims that Boris Johnson is running a “populist” government and lacks the appetite to be unpopular by doing the right thing. Responding to remarks from former chancellor Philip Hammond, who said he was not being honest with the public about the budget, press secretary Allegra Stratton, said: “The prime minister has spoken […]

Former chancellor Philip Hammond has urged Boris Johnson to tell the public “some difficult home truths” ahead of next week’s Budget. The ex-occupant of Number 11, who was a close ally of Theresa May, also said the government should ditch “very extravagant” promises from its manifesto. Lord Hammond of Runnymede told the BBC he broadly […]

TIM WALKER on Downing Street’s rival camps. Michael Gove may have put a brave face on Boris Johnson‘s decision to give his Brexit brief to Lord Frost, but I hear relations between the two old rivals are at their most strained since the 2016 Tory leadership contest. “The flashpoint was the PM’s disastrous trip to Scotland last month […]

Calls for Matt Hancock to resign following the recent court ruling against him over PPE contracts simply underline the problem with bringing such cases.  This week, a lot of people are confused – and very reasonably so. A court has ruled that health secretary Matt Hancock broke the law over Covid-19 related contracts. The ruling seems to […]

A German newspaper has expressed “envy” at Britain’s roadmap out of lockdown and criticised Angela Merkel’s handling of the country’s vaccine programme. German daily Bild criticised chancellor Merkel on Tuesday over her failure to secure the same results for her citizens. The paper read: “Dear British, WE ENVY YOU! Simply HAPPY! This means: normal life is coming […]

Boris Johnson is “an unrepentant and inveterate liar” who is not subject to the same rules as others, a former French diplomat to the UK has said in her new book. Sylvie Bermann, the French ambassador to the UK during the Brexit vote, also claimed Brexiteers were consumed with a hatred for Germany and were […]