News and Opinion

Glimpses inside the so-called ‘hermit state’ of North Korea are rare, choreographed encounters designed to give the impression of an immaculately-run society in which citizens function as contented cogs in a well-regulated machine. In TV footage, the capital city of Pyongyang appears a grey, monotonous expanse, a joyless backdrop against which lives are lived in […]

Many years ago now, I was on a panel at a sceptics’ conference with, among other luminaries, professor Richard Dawkins (it’s on YouTube if you look for it). Towards the end of the discussion we were asked if there could be a version of ‘God’ which we could find easier to believe in than those […]

The deadline for the post-Brexit trade talks between the EU and the United Kingdom UK looms, and with it concerns about a no-deal. The outcome is being closely monitored in South Africa – and elsewhere – where it will have significant implications. The EU as a regional bloc is South Africa’s largest trade partner, and […]

Nine writers from across the continent tell us what ‘Europe’ means to them… Ana Pessoa, Portuguese authorEurope is about multilingualism and multiculturalism. We might not speak the same language, we might not share the same cultural background. Perhaps we don’t laugh at the same jokes even and we live very different lives. But we share […]

A cabinet minister has refuted calls to provide the science behind the government’s 10pm curfew decision – insisting it was a “commonsensical view”. Robert Jenrick insisted the approach was similar to “well-run, sensible, rational governments” when he was asked to defend the measure. He told Sky News: “There is a commonsensical view that given that the virus thrives […]

Each year sees more books being published in English about the Nazis, but then, when it comes to post-1945 history, this flood of books about German history suddenly dries up. There are a few English language history books about Germany and the Cold War, but much fewer about the country’s politics in the immediate post-war […]

It’s becoming difficult to throw a stone these days without hitting someone setting up a right wing broadcasting outfit. Mandrake can disclose that Sarah Sands – having lately relinquished the editorship of the Today programme – is following in the footsteps of former Corporation colleagues Andrew Neil and Sir Robbie Gibb and has established an […]

A former Brexit Party MEP who has refused to apologise for historical support of the IRA bombing in Warrington that killed two children has taken her seat in the House of Lords. The appointment of Claire Fox to the unelected chamber has sparked controversy, with Labour branding it “an insult to the people of the […]

Winston Peters – leader of the New Zealand First party – has long been described as a populist, both in New Zealand and internationally. At different times during his career he has embraced the label. As he said recently, populism to him “means that you’re talking to the ordinary people and you’re placing their views […]

Liz Truss has accidentally announced that new post-Brexit trade deals will “undermine” British farmers during a debate in the Commons. The international trade secretary was answering a question on whether a new trade deal with the US would severely impact British pig famers. Shadow foreign secretary Emily Thornberry asked: “Can [Truss] please tell us which law prevents the import […]

Polling for the upcoming New Zealand election has put the Brexiteers’ choice of candidate on as little as 1% of support. New Zealand First’s Winston Peters has reportedly hired key allies of Nigel Farage from Leave.EU to help with his communications strategy during the country’s election. Peters is currently a coalition partner in Ardern’s government […]

Almost half of all people who voted for the UK to Remain in the European Union appear to disagree with the spirit of the EU’s freedom of movement rules, a new study has found. 48% of Remain voters were in favour of having EU citizens apply to come to Britain rather than under existing provisions. That number almost doubles among […]

Dr Sean Conley, in one of his appearances outside the Walter Reed National Military Medical Center – where Donald Trump received his treatment for coronavirus – put his best diplomatic foot forward. What was the president’s mental fitness? We should look at ‘the tweets’ as a gauge, he replied. So I did. “Don’t be afraid […]

Boris Johnson’s choice to be the next leader of the World Trade Organisation has been eliminated from the race. Disgraced former defence secretary Liam Fox had been backed by the prime minister and international trade secretary Liz Truss. But the WTO said Ngozi Okonjo-Iweala of Nigeria and Yoo Myung-hee of South Korea had made it through […]

There are now fewer than 30 days left until the USA goes to the polls to select its next president: Donald Trump or Joe Biden. That polling day will come just two weeks after Trump should stop self-isolating to protect those around him from catching the deadly illness his White House admitted he’d contracted late […]

I’m sure it seemed a good idea at the time… it’s one I had myself from time to time, when running the Number 10 media operation – get the regional telly in; get the PM to do a round of one-on-ones that cover the whole country; lead the news on every regional bulletin; get the […]

The past few months have been rocky for Franco-British cooperation on migration, with Priti Patel denouncing Channel crossings and the dire conditions of migrants living in the streets of Calais and other cities in northern France. A ‘Clandestine Channel Commander’, Dan O’Mahoney, has even been given the job of making the crossing route unviable for […]

China was the gift that kept on giving. What was there not to like about a country that was bringing hundreds of millions out of poverty and into the global consumer market? Certain human rights indiscretions might need to be mentioned, ever so politely, but Western governments, policy makers and business leaders saw China more […]

The government’s Brexit strategy threatens to drive the UK down a “very slippery slope” towards “dictatorship” or “tyranny”, one former supreme court judge has warned. Ex supreme court president Lord Neuberger condemned Boris Johnson’s internal market bill during a seminar with legal professionals. He told lawyers on Wednesday that “Once you deprive people of the […]

How did it come to this? We are a moderate nation; most of us stand somewhere around the centre politically. Get on with your life without too much interference from the state, work hard, pay your taxes, be tolerant, do what you can to help those worse off than yourself, create safety nets for the […]

The Scottish parliament has overwhelming voted against Boris Johnson’s Brexit bill and called on the UK government to abandon the “deeply damaging” piece of legislation. SNP, Labour, Green and Liberal Democrat MSPs all united to vote against the bill, with just the Tories backing it. While the vote – by 90 votes to 28 against […]

As tighter lockdown looms, what does Donald Trump’s response to his coronavirus infection tell us about leadership in a crisis like this, his own and that of others stricken by illness at a crucial moment? How does it compare with Boris Johnson’s behaviour after he too succumbed as the pandemic took hold last spring? And […]

A television presenter has criticised a government minister for appearing on BBC Breakfast to say “absolutely nothing”. Charlie Stayt was interviewing Robert Jenrick, the communities secretary, about newspaper headlines suggesting large-scale coronavirus restrictions are about to hit the north of England. But rather than explaining what the reports mean and defending the restrictions, Jenrick was […]

Labour’s Keir Starmer has called on Boris Johnson to guarantee high food and farming standards after Brexit by putting protections into law through the government’s agriculture bill. Ahead of a visit to National Farmers’ Union president Minette Batters’ farm in Wiltshire, Starmer warned that without action to protect standards there was a “real risk” of […]

This week’s Question Time comes from Coventry, a city that was once the capital of England – and home to our parliament back in the 1400s. But what will the virtual audience make of this week’s panel of politicians from the past and present? On the panel is: Gillian Keegan MP Keegan is the Tory MP […]

The EU is expecting the UK to lower its opposition to the Human Rights Act which could result in the two sides moving closer to a trade deal. Brussels is expect Boris Johnson to make a major concession to salvage security ties with the EU by vowing not to tear up the Human Rights Act, according to […]

The government will walk away from Brexit talks with the EU next week if there is not a visible path to a deal. Boris Johnson had previously set a deadline of 15 October to make progress, with high levels talks expected next week, before a top-level meeting between European Commission chief Ursula von der Leyen. […]

It would be a “monumental failure of politics and diplomacy” if the government’s Brexit bill is pushed through and ends up in court, an Irish minister has claimed. Ireland’s foreign affairs minister Simon Coveney said that such a court case would be a “folly”. The EU and the UK have clashed over the British government’s Internal Market […]

A Tory MSP sparked laughter in Holyrood when she accidentally announced her “resignation”. Rachael Hamilton had intended to highlight her register of interest but instead said: “Can I draw members to my resignation?” Hamilton, the MSP for Ettrick, Roxburgh and Berwickshire, laughed as she added quickly: “Register of interests. No resignation.” She made the blunder […]

A Tory minister has defended Boris Johnson’s 10pm curfew amid calls the government release its scientific advice behind the decision. Prisons minister Lucy Frazer said there had been “opportunities” for ministers to hear the scientific advice. Appearing on BBC 2’s Politics Live, Frazer said it was important MPs get to scrutinise the new rules but that the government […]

Boris Johnson has been urged to consider a “circuit breaker” national lockdown sooner rather than later over fears that the current measures to stop coronavirus are not working. Professor Calum Semple, a member of the government’s scientific advisory panel who specialises in disease outbreaks, recommended a “circuit breaker” be considered on a national basis in […]

Boris Johnson has been accused of “hurtling towards a crash crash” after “ignoring the warning signs”, follow scrutiny of his new coronavirus measures during Prime Minister’s Questions (PMQs). Taking to the despatch box, the prime minister argued that the 16,000 positive coronavirus cases that went unreported due to a “technical glitch” did change the “basic distribution” […]