News and Opinion

Amidst the chaos of Brexit comes clarity from afar. Italian journalist and Anglophile PAOLA PEDUZZI provides a plaintive view of her beloved UK As Brexit edges closer, my overwhelming feeling is one of sadness. I love Britain. I always have. I hope I always will. But this sadness stems not just from what I fear […]

When stand-up, fantasy football fanatic and novelist David Baddiel first became famous hecklers were in the audience. Now, talking to NATHANIEL TAPLEY, he explains how trolls have become a new, nastier version of the loud-mouth in the crowd One of the things I remember best about being young during the 1990s was our attempts to […]

Ukip leader Henry Bolton has ended his “romantic relationship” with his controversial model girlfriend, but still faces a backlash from senior figures within his party. Mr Bolton admitted that his relationship with Jo Marney was “obviously quite incompatible” with his position as party chief after it was reported she made racist remarks about Meghan Markle. […]

So, will the Big Bad Wolff blow the Trump White House down? That’s the question still dominating America’s political and media landscape amid all the huffing and puffing fallout from Fire and Fury, Michael Wolff’s sensational, excoriating and hotly-disputed best-seller, with its depiction of a deranged POTUS and a dysfunctional, devious and deeply-divided West Wing. […]

Labour leader Jeremy Corbyn has again ruled out his party backing a second EU referendum even in the face of growing public support. There is a ground swell for a second vote with even former UKIP leader Nigel Farage suggesting a new poll might be needed before Brexit is delivered. According to recent research by […]

SNP leader Nicola Sturgeon has told hardline Brexiteers ‘you’ve had your chance and failed’. Ahead of the publication of a detailed study on the implications of leaving the European Union, she said no clarity or certainty has been provided about a so-called hard Brexit’s supposed benefits. This, she said, ‘presented a golden opportunity’ for moderate […]

UKIP’s leader Henry Bolton has been called on to step down after his model girlfriend reportedly sent highly offensive text messages about Meghan Markle. The crisis stricken party has suspended 25-year-old Jo Marney after she apparently said Markle would ‘taint’ the royal family, that she had a ‘tiny brain’ and black people were ‘ugly’. The […]

Pulitzer Prize winner ALBERT SCARDINO assesses the mental health of Donald Trump, and the chances of an intervention An increasing number of people believe Donald Trump’s mind has gone missing. According to a new book by journalist Michael Wolff, this includes most of those who work most closely in the White House with him and […]

Readers of The New European react through our letters pages to this week’s cabinet reshuffle. Theresa May’s baffling treatment of Justine Greening is good for our cause. As a Remainer with a small majority in a massively pro-Remain area, she is now free to make the case for Remain from the backbenches and, more importantly, […]

The savaging that Milo Yiannopoulos’ awful book received at the hands of its editor provided joy for many. But CHARLIE CONNELLY had a very personal, and pressing, reason not to join in the ridicule Just before the turn of the year there was much merriment on social media concerning the manuscript of Milo Yiannopoulos’s memoir […]

The New European’s Editor-at-Large, Alastair Campbell, on the reasons the BBC is dancing to the tune of Brexit… For fairly obvious historical reasons, I tend to avoid whacking the BBC too hard. Added to which, it continues to provide huge amounts of good programming, and is an important part of Britain’s cultural strength and global […]

The latest New European podcast is available now including an exclusive interview with former Europe Minister Denis MacShane. MacShane, interviewed by New European Editor Matt Kelly, discusses why he fears a second referendum might not be the best route towards the UK remaining in the EU. And Richard and Steve offer their usual take on […]

Steve Anglesey counts down the worst Brexiteers of the week NEIL HAMILTON ‘We are looking forward to welcoming our new team member, Mandy Jones into the group,’ beamed UKIP’s Welsh leader on December 29, having won a long-running fight to get rival Nathan Gill to resign from the Welsh Assembly. Just 10 days later, after […]

For this week’s podcast we asked you what you’d put in a hamper that truly represented Brexit. https://twitter.com/Steven_Woolfe/status/951086674875953152 Prominent Brexiters received much ridicule on Twitter this week with the news that they were taking a hamper of British goodies to gift EU chief Brexit negotiator Michel Barnier. In the hamper were delicacies including British gin, […]

Scotland’s first minister has described delays to amendments to key Brexit legislation as “absolutely disgraceful”. Nicola Sturgeon said the EU Withdrawal Bill should be changed to take account of the concerns of the devolved administrations “without further delay”. The Scottish and Welsh governments have said they could not recommend that the legislation be granted consent […]

A senior Conservative MP demands Theresa May appoints a ‘minister for Hard Brexit’ to her team as he claims she had “promised”. Former minister Sir Edward Leigh told the House of Commons the role was promised before the reshuffle and asked whether or not such a minister would respond to questions when key Brexit legislation […]

MICHAEL WHITE on a muted reshuffle and why waiting for Corbyn is a waste of time Donald Trump’s latest biographer, Michael Wolff, says the candidate didn’t know the meaning of the word ‘Brexit’ until the 2016 referendum result went his way, in the direction of market-led populism cloaked as nationalism. But hey, were British voters […]

RICHARD PORRITT on the week’s big stories, including a chaotic reshuffle, an unlikely resurrection and criticism of Portuguese parenting For a time this week Wikipedia listed among Chris Grayling’s roles ‘Conservative Party Chairman January 8, 2017 – January 8, 2017’. Conservative Campaign Headquarters veteran Iain Carter was the man at least partly responsible for the […]

Former Ukip leader Nigel Farage has said that “maybe” there should be a second referendum on EU membership to “kill it off for a generation”. Speaking to Channel 5’s The Wright Stuff, Mr Farage said: “What is for certain is that the Cleggs, the Blairs, the Adonises will never, ever, ever give up. “They will […]

Former Fleet Street editor Peter Preston has died, aged 79. MICHAEL WHITE pays tribute to an ex-colleague and pro-European ‘ultra’ In his magisterial obituary of Peter Preston, David McKie, who served as his deputy for half Preston’s 20 year editorship of the Guardian, wrote that on some topics ‘what Peter thought was a mystery’. Europe […]

The PM was today asked at Prime Minister’s Questions to give a ranking for her performance over Brexit so far out of 10. The PM is asked to give herself a score out of 10 on Brexit by @PeteWishart #pmqs pic.twitter.com/WQdaTthk2B— BBC Daily Politics and Sunday Politics (@daily_politics) January 10, 2018 In doing so Pete […]

Of all people, the government has sent David Davis on a charm offensive to Germany. Chaperoned by Philip Hammond, the Brexit Secretary warned the European Union not to put ‘unnecessary barriers’ to trade in goods and services between the bloc and the UK after Brexit. The pair – who don’t see eye-to-eye over how the […]

Britain desperately needs leadership and vision and the post-war, reforming Prime Minister Clement Attlee should be the inspiration. Then Prime Minister Clement Attlee arguing that Soviet Russian imperialism made the re-arming of Britain necessary. – Credit: PA Archive/PA Images The opposition to Brexit spends too much time talking about Brexit. We need to address, head […]

The EU’s chief Brexit negotiator has warned European companies with links to the UK the ‘real transition period’ has already begun. Despite plans for a transition period of around two years after the date of Brexit in March 2019, Michel Barnier has told firms they need to be ready now for the potential outcomes of […]

Ministers have claimed they are listening as they table a number of EU bill amendments to curb Henry VIII powers, but Labour says ‘nothing has changed’. The changes to the text of the EU Withdrawal Bill will impose limits on ministers’ powers to use so-called ‘Henry VIII’ powers to amend EU rules and regulations when […]

MITCH BENN asks whether, despite being calendrically ‘closer’ to Brexit, it now looks further away than ever. So, here we are again then; at the start of a new year. On the one hand, it seems like only a few weeks since we were assessing the global garbage fire which had been 2016 and wondering […]

Theresa May has been accused of “capitulating” to Hard Brexiteers after appointing an influential Tory Europhobe as a minister in the Brexit department. Suella Fernandes, who chairs the European Research Group (ERG) of Hard Brexiteer Tories, has joined the government as parliamentary under secretary of state at the Department for Exiting the European Union (DExEU) […]

Theo Paphitis has launched an blistering attack on the government, branding Theresa May’s administration as “incompetent” and accusing it of posing a threat to the high street. The entrepreneur behind Ryman, Robert Dyas and Boux Avenue said retailers were “getting it right in the neck” as the sector struggled with labour costs, the apprenticeship levy, […]

Record numbers applied for Irish passports in 2017 in a bid to remain EU citizens after Brexit. https://twitter.com/chris4nature/status/950693474478764032 More than 160,000 people living in Northern Ireland and Britain applied for Irish passports in 2017 bringing the total number of Irish passports issued last year to a record-breaking 779,000. ‘The number of applicants from Northern Ireland […]

The appointment of a “no deal” Brexit minister is a sign that the UK is “hurtling towards retreat and isolation”, MPs have heard. SNP MP Stephen Gethins (North East Fife) told ministers the creation of the post would impact on the government’s ambitions for “a global Britain”. The new minister is likely to be based […]

David Davis has been accused of “extraordinary moaning” after attacking the EU for preparing for a no-deal Brexit while setting aside £3.7bn ready for the scenario himself. In a letter to Theresa May, the Brexit secretary said he would urge the EU to drop measures and guidance that could require UK companies to relocate to […]

Jeremy Corbyn has snubbed a cross-party summit at the Houses of Parliament on retaining UK membership of the single market and customs union. The talks, co-ordinated by SNP Westminster leader Ian Blackford, will involve the leaders of the Liberal Democrats, Plaid Cymru and the Greens, the party said. The SNP also said there would also […]