News and Opinion

10 myths about the June vote debunked 1) Theresa May needs a big majority to handle Brexit Article 50 negotiations. Not true. She has won every vote in the House of Commons with support from Labour MPs looking over their shoulder at their working class voters after the referendum. After the election, last June’s vote, […]

It would be bliss to elect a pro-EU government that would ditch Brexit, says A C Grayling Theresa May might have had any one of three reasons for calling a General Election. One is that she was in danger of losing her Commons majority because so many Tory MPs are under investigation for alleged election […]

The truth behind the headlines and the claims that Britain’s Press is rabid and running wild ‘Hypocrite … the most dangerous women in Britain … shambolic … rambling …’ the insults levelled at our party leaders are brutal. And on the political sidelines it doesn’t ease up – we have Sir Shifty, Lord Sleaze, Sir […]

It is one of the great Brexit paradoxes: farmers voted in high numbers to leave the EU, yet no other group benefits as much from European largesse https://infogr.am/food_and_drink_exporters The referendum unmasked great divides in modern Britain, young and old, north and south, Scottish and English, but none felt as stark as urban versus rural. We […]

Election news, updates and reaction on May 2. .

This former Tory MP and the current chairman of the European Movement is battling Brexiteers – including ones from his own party. Our central message in this election is that Europe trumps party. We say that not because we are citizens of nowhere, but because we believe that the drift towards nationalist isolation represents a […]

My name is Emma Jones and I’m a Lib Dem. There. I’ve said it. Now others need to end their denial Say it loud: ‘I’m Lib Dem and I’m Proud.’ It’s always going to be a tough one for Tim Farron to pull off like James Brown – even if he was rallying the 12,000 […]

European Commission President Jean-Claude Juncker fears Brexit talks will collapse after a disastrous meeting with Theresa May. Juncker walked out of the Downing Street talks saying he was ’10 times more sceptical than before’. Opposition parties warned the UK was heading for a ‘disastrous hard Brexit’ after a detailed account of their meeting last week […]

With the splintering of the left could this be a big election of the Greens? In the coming week’s politicians from all parties will be writing in these pages trying to persuade you to vote for them. Their pitch will, no doubt, be pro-European and liberal – identifying the good readers of The New European […]

Election news, updates and reaction on May 1. .

All the news, reaction and analysis on Sunday April 30. .

Our Editor at Large sticks up for Joey Barton, and sticks it to the hypocrites happy to hand over football to booze and betting firms First, a declaration of interest, that might upset the more sensitive among you … Joey Barton is a pal of mine. When I was drawing mild abuse for defending him […]

European leaders have come together to back a tough negotiating position on Brexit. The 27 remaining members states formally agreed their talks strategy at a special European Council meeting in Brussels. Council president Donald Tusk tweeted the outcome of their discussions, saying: ‘Guidelines adopted unanimously. EU 27 firm and fair political mandate for the Brexit […]

All the news, reaction and analysis on April 29. .

Our resident Brexiteer takes his own very particular (and not at all partisan look) at this week’s shenanigans Tory election poster – Credit: Archant Right, let’s get this over with right from the start. I voted for Brexit, shock horror! Why, you may ask, did our esteemed editor recruit a Leave supporter to the serried […]

We pick out the worst Leavers of a week in which people came together and united behind the opportunities which lie ahead. Probably. 10. Graeme Souness The permanently furious former player/manager/moustache abandoner/pundit capped a trademark rant about English teams trying to adopt a ‘tap-tap-tap’ European style by admitting he’d voted Leave. Appearing on Irish channel […]

The problem is that these days, it’s not the physical danger that usually brings about a fear – or panic attack – but an emotional one. Fear: don’t you just hate it? That gnawing anxiety attacking your belly and bowels, those sweaty palms, inability to focus, broken sleep? We’ve all read about what’s going on […]

All the news, updates and reaction from April 28. .

Is it time for toughness to discourage further defections or for accommodation to a changing public mood across the Union? This summer’s accidental collision between a French presidential election and a British general election offers splendid opportunities for selective outrage on both sides of La Manche. How can those woad-wearing Brits stage an unnecessary election […]

When the most feeble government of recent memory describes itself as strong. When they have the gall to bandy the word chaos about when our country has never been more chaotic thanks to their referendum and subsequent fall-out, when the Opposition refuses to bring clarity to the one issue this election will be decided on, […]

Zen And The Art Of Brexit ‘When one person suffers from a delusion, it is called insanity. When many people suffer from a delusion it is called a Religion.’ – Robert M. Pirsig, Zen and the Art of Motorcycle Maintenance To adapt the classic quote from Pirsig, who died this week: ‘When one person suffers […]

All the action from Question Time as Britain gears up for the Brexit Election. .

Angela Merkel has said the UK has ‘illusions’ about the realities of Brexit and insisted talks on the UK’s divorce bill from the EU must be dealt with before trade negotiations can begin. The German chancellor’s firm stance puts her on a collision course with Theresa May’s Hard Brexit Governemnt and the comments came as […]

All the news, updates and reactino on April 27. .

Listen, get angry and share Boris Johnson appeared on Radio 4’s Today programme this morning. We suspect it will be the last we hear of him during this election since his combination of Etonian arrogance, abject lies, obfuscation and self-serving twisting makes for a far better Remain advocacy than most of the Opposition. If you […]

All the news, reaction and updates on April 26. .

When you think about it, Theresa May’s decision to call a snap election should come as no surprise. We were once on Question Time together. Before the show, she paced the waiting area like many of the politicians do. You have to be careful on QT if you’re an elected official. One slip, and you […]

With the clock ticking not only on Article 50, but also a UK general election, is Ireland the part of Europe with most to fear from Brexit’s fallout? Ireland has long been seen as one of Britain’s closest friends in the EU. Not only do the two countries have longstanding cultural and political ties, which […]

The Prime Minister believes she holds all the cards as the country embarks on a General Election. But Labour could still spring a surprise at the ballot box Theresa May has sprung an early election, breaking her earlier pledges not to, and there are three reasons why. • She knows the Brexit negotiations will very […]

The Liberal Democrat leader is the one Number 10 increasingly fears Cometh the hour, cometh the man. A hoary old cliché, true enough, but for one man in particular Theresa May’s mother of all U-turns means opportunity knocks. Step forward, Tim Farron, leader of the Lib Dems and principled champion of the 48%. OK, he’s […]

MPs would be given the chance to halt a Brexit deal secured by a Labour government, Shadow Brexit Secretary Keir Starmer has said. But outlining Labour’s Brexit strategy Sir Keir again ruled out a second referendum. He instead insisted that if Theresa May was ousted from Number 10 Jeremy Corbyn’s Labour would give MPs the […]

All the election news, reaction and updates on April 25. .