Opinion

Readers give their views on the latest developments in Brexit talks. There are six clear reasons why no-deal Brexit will happen regardless of fuss, fight or furore; 1. There is no effective UK opposition. 2. The EU is not going to abandon Ireland. 3. Johnson has not/will not play by any rules so cannot be […]

Dominic Cummings’ schemes seem less convincing than those of Blackadder’s Baldrick. So what exactly is the Number 10 masterplan? Asks JAMES BALL Dominic Cummings’ plots are are as sophisticated as a Baldrick stratagem. Picture: Archant – Credit: Archant Just as the flaws of any cunning plan hatched by Baldrick on behalf of his master Blackadder […]

BONNIE GREER became a hero in Ireland after her latest comments on Brexit on the latest edition of Question Time. Even if you do not want it, even if you no longer need it, a childhood memory can stay. Form you, still. This came to me from a stranger: “I vividly remember as a 17-year-old […]

Those caught up in the momentous events of the fall of the Berlin Wall recall its demise 35 years later

Readers demand politicians stop listening to just the 17.4 million and start listening to the millions that didn’t vote for Brexit. It is quite impossible to keep count of the number of times pro-Brexit MPs have referred to the 17.4 million who voted to leave the EU. Do any of them give a toss for […]

Readers argue that, ahead of a general election, parliament must defend its actions to avoid Dominic Cummings and Boris Johnson controlling the narrative. The dog-whistle slogans which the Cummings-Gove-Johnson triumvirate used to distort the case for Brexit are being lined up ready for the next election. By defining all parliamentary opposition as Remainers intent on […]

Some in the City of London may not deserve to be tainted by an apparent conspiracy that would dwarf Watergate. Former chancellor Phillip Hammond – Credit: PA Wire/PA Images On the surface of it, the story is devastating. The prime minister is accused of working with shadowy business figures to deliver disaster capitalism in its […]

It will be curtains for the president if Michigan recognises him as a danger to national security, according to BONNIE GREER. One possible reason that speaker of the House Nancy Pelosi announced that she now supports a narrow impeachment enquiry in the matter of the possible Trump shakedown of Ukraine is this: Michigan is ready. […]

The toxic twins are being met with increasingly defiant opposition – and it’s working, says MITCH BENN. Last week, I took to Twitter to express what is, these days, an unusual statement to be heard coming from the likes of me; I said I was proud of Britain. My specific point was this: just now, […]

After a billboard company pulled an advert targeting a pregnant female MP with anti-abortion messages, campaigner BENEDICT PRINGLE asks why there were no regulations against it. Twitter-can you get me the CEO of @CCUK_Direct advertising? how much did you get for this crap? @metpoliceuk still think this is just 'free speech' and not harassment of […]

Labour’s message on Brexit is fooling no-one says MITCH BENN. And so, we pass the autumn equinox and soldier on into the last bit of the year. There are two things which happen around this time of year with a maddening predictability: firstly, Christmas stuff will start to turn up in the shops despite it […]

The firm’s fall has provided a number of lessons for the UK ahead of a possible no-deal Brexit, says JAMES BALL. The UK got a preview of what chaos in Europe looks like this week, at least on a comparatively small scale. That came not at the Supreme Court – although that’s caused ructions enough […]

The die-hard Republican state is growing frustrated with its leaders, says BONNIE GREER The first time most people in the United States, or probably anywhere else, heard the term ‘the Lower 48’ was around the time that Senator John McCain introduced his running mate, the then governor of Alaska, in the 2008 presidential election. Alaska […]

Readers give their verdict on the Lib Dems using conference to pledge to revoke Article 50 – while Labour used theirs to carry on sitting on the fence. MP Jess Phillips talks about traditional Labour voters who back Remain being “parked on the Lib Dems’ drive” because of Brexit, “and they will go into the […]

Boris Johnson is running out of options to find a way out of the Brexit mess – but he still has the option of a second referendum. An honourable man would resign his position, but Boris Johnson is not an honourable man. His next-best option is to rescue himself and help bring an end to […]

A new referendum on Brexit is now practically inevitable. But what exactly should the question on the ballot paper be, asks AC GRAYLING. It is common cause among all – and ‘all’ means the ever-increasing majority – who want a second referendum to be held, that ‘Remain’ must be one of the options on the […]

Sebastian Reichel, who has grown up, studied and worked in the North East of England could not vote in the EU referendum. His encounter with the Brexit Party left him even more uncertain about the UK leaving the EU. I have lived in the North East of England for most of my life. I grew […]

Ahead of a crucial vote on the conference floor young Labour activist GEORGIE HARRIS writes why Labour must back the pro-Remain motion this afternoon. The votes on Brexit today will be a pivotal moment for Labour’s future. Delegates will have to decide between whether Labour will pledge to campaign to Remain or whether they will […]

With a possible recession and trade war with China looming, even Republican strongholds are no longer guaranteed to plump for Trump, says BONNIE GREER. North Carolina, the state where Donald Trump has arguably received his most urgent wake-up call regarding 2020, is known as the Tar Heel State. That name may have come from the […]

Readers consider the possibility of an election pact between Nigel Farage’s Brexit Party and the Conservatives. Having dealt with the moderates, it is Dominic Cummings’ feuds with fellow Brexiteers which will alienate the prime minister’s remaining parliamentary supporters and reduce the chances of a deal with the Brexit Party. Cummings has called the European Research […]

A general election would be a proxy vote on Brexit – but it still will not resolve Brexit. Readers call for a People’s Vote. Judging by the three little words flung at journalists recently by Dominic Cummings as he left the basement of his flat, “trust the people” looks likely to be a central theme […]

MITCH BENN asks why the PM would compare himself to the Hulk – a personification of uncontrolled anger, fury, and whose alter ego is desperate to escape. It doesn’t seem to take much these days to get me feeling old. Mind you, that’s been the case since I was about 24; sometimes I wish I […]

Young anti-Brexit and Labour activist NATHAN BORODA on his expectations for next week’s Labour conference. More than 70% of young people voted to Remain in the EU in 2016, and at least 80% of those enfranchised since, like me, would vote to Remain if given the chance. It is undoubtedly true that for those who […]

JAMES BALL says the Lib Dems are doing what they do best: bite-size, populist politics based on the principle they won’t have to deliver on promises. Even to those not following the news closely, the big news out of the Liberal Democrat conference probably didn’t feel all that new – the party has made it […]

The government has been accused of hiding the ‘full picture’ in its release of Yellowhammer documents after Department of Transport files were leaked to the press. The contradicting reports suggest that Yellowhammer documents have significantly played down the impact of a no-deal Brexit on potential disruption to ports. The documents, which were seen by the […]

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 […]

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 […]

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 […]

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 […]

JAMES BALL warns a repeat of Labour’s 2017 election campaign will seal Britain’s fate Westminster voting intention. “If a general election was held tomorrow, which party would you vote for?’ Source: YouGov, 2-3 September 2019 – Credit: Source: YouGov, 2-3 September 2019 In a week of what feels like perpetual round-the-clock political turmoil, it is […]

BONNIE GREER on why the grassroots are not a good place for a black presidential candidate to be. A few stats about California, the Golden State… n Last year it emerged that its GDP had surpassed that of the United Kingdom. If California was a country it would be the fifth most productive in the […]

Readers have their say on the ‘stop the coup’ protests – and say that it is the perfect opportunity to win over Brexiteers. Last Saturday I protested at the ‘Stop The Coup’ march in Birmingham. However, unlike many I took the view that this wasn’t just about Brexit, it was about upholding the basic values […]