Politics
After a referendum campaign like this, will even no mean no?
This is really happening. The Scots could vote to end the greatest, most successful union in human history next week.…
David Cameron's next big European mistake
David Cameron loathes European Union summits, and with reason: they seldom go well for him. He has been ambushed by…
David Cameron's fog of war
It was clear that things were going wrong for David Cameron when he had to say that his position on…
It costs £34,000 to become an MP. No wonder they expect higher pay
Mark Simmonds has been in politics long enough to know not to expect much sympathy from his constituents. He resigned…
Why this could be David Cameron's last summer in politics
At this time of year, whenever you see a British politician looking particularly busy, you can take it as a…
Parliament's next crisis: a dangerous shortage of middle-aged men
The House of Commons is off for the summer. But few MPs and ministers expect to make it through to…
Gove, gone
‘There’s no shame in a cabinet to win the next election,’ declared an exasperated senior No. 10 figure on Tuesday…
Could Michael Howard be the next EU Commissioner?
In recent weeks British government visitors to Berlin have been confronted with a persistent question: when will David Cameron make…
George Osborne's been playing politics since he was 12. Now, finally, he's winning
George Osborne’s first taste of political leadership came aged 12. At his prep school, Colet Court, he took charge of…
How the Westminster hawk became an endangered species
There is a slight whiff of the summer of 1914 to Westminster at the moment. The garden party season is…
Once Scotland votes, it's England's turn for a constitutional crisis
Before David Cameron heads off for his summer holiday, he’ll be presented with a first draft of the Tory manifesto…
Nigel Farage is becoming a moderniser
There are many words that you might associate with Nigel Farage, but moderniser probably isn’t one. Yet the Ukip leader…
Nick Clegg's weird war with a former Gove adviser
We’ve come to expect strange things from coalition government, but the events of the last few days have been particularly…
Meeting George Osborne at Waterloo
The defence of Hougoumont is one of the great British feats of arms. If the farmhouse had fallen to Bonaparte’s…
How David Cameron does God (even when his Chancellor wishes he wouldn't)
If Ed Miliband wins the next election, he’ll be Britain’s first atheist Prime Minister. It is a sign of how…
Could Jeremy Browne be the anti-Nigel Farage?
Conviction politics is back. The two men making the political weather at the moment, Alex Salmond and Nigel Farage, both…
Two coming revolutions: in election tactics, and in Whitehall
This is a unique moment in British politics. All three major parties have a realistic prospect of being in power…
Has Ed Miliband's luck finally run out?
Ask anyone in Westminster about the obstacles to a Tory victory in next year’s election and you’ll hear a well-rehearsed…
The risks for Osborne now he's back on top
The old Budget traditions are dying off. No Chancellor has observed Budget purdah, the tradition of not speaking about the…
Michael Gove, Boris Johnson and the return of Tory wars
From the moment he took his job, Michael Gove knew that he would make energetic and determined enemies. The teachers’…
Welcome to the age of four-party politics
Two things will make the next general election campaign quite unlike any previous election in this country. The first is…
Only Angela Merkel can save David Cameron now
British politicians still prize a visit from the President of the United States above all others. Yet no American President…
If David Cameron can't get the floods right, all his hopes will wash away
It is all hands to the pump in Downing Street. The entire No. 10 operation from the Prime Minister down…
Ed's finally reforming Labour. So why are the unions happy?
Ed Miliband has his legacy. Or, at least, what he hopes will be the first part of it. He has…
