News and Opinion

Comedian, musician and writer MITCH BENN recalls the speech he gave at a People’s Vote rally What do you think, is 48 too old to discover your true calling? I’m still in Edinburgh, still have a few days left of my Fringe run… About 10 days ago, I got wind of the fact that there […]

When will the Left wake up to the fact that Brexit is a project of the Right, by the Right, for the Right? As it was Michel Barnier who first uttered, in the context of Brexit, that old negotiations process cliché – ‘the clock is ticking’ – it is usually assumed that time pressures are […]

Labour moderate Chuka Umunna has described claims that the campaign for a second Brexit referendum is cover for the creation of a new centrist political party as “utter bollocks”. Allegations that the People’s Vote group calling for another poll on Britain’s relationship with the EU was a smokescreen for disaffected MPs to breakaway under his […]

A petition of members of left-wing pressure group Momentum has hit a key milestone – triggering a bigger conversation with the wider membership. At least 4,000 members of the group – formed to back Jeremy Corbyn’s leadership bid and now one of the most powerful voices within the Labour party – have now backed a […]

Donald Trump is facing the most crucial phase of his turbulent reign. PAUL CONNEW reports on the bombshell news that could see the president impeached Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) Director Robert Mueller testifies during a hearing before the Senate Judiciary Committee May 16, 2012 on Capitol Hill in Washington, DC. The hearing was to […]

As conference season looms one party has the chance to seize the initiative, says JANE MERRICK, as she outlines why their annual gathering is vital for the Lib Dems MANCHESTER, UNITED KINGDOM – OCTOBER 04: British Prime Minister and leader of the Conservative Party Theresa May MP speaks during her keynote speech on the final […]

Two leading Brexiteers – and close associates of Nigel Farage – have had their applications to join the Conservative Party rejected. Multimillionaire founder of the Brexit campaign Leave.EU Arron Banks and his spin doctor Andy Wigmore announced on social media that they had joined the Conservatives. Banks recently encouraged Leave.EU supporters to join the Tories […]

The British taxpayer will be furious at the news MPs are demanding yet more money for their expenses, writes Chris Moncrieff. Is the fatted calf getting ever more corpulent and greedy? It would certainly seem so judging by the latest demands of Members of Parliament. They are lobbying for a larger expenses budget because of […]

BARNABY TOWNS assess the balancing act facing Theresa May as she tries to keep her MPs, Tory members and the public happy As Theresa May writes to Conservative Party members to win backing for her ‘Chequers compromise,’ and embarks upon a summer tour of Conservative Associations, the polite, but sceptical and unyielding response might remind […]

What happens next in both the UK and the US could be pivotal. BONNIE GREER reflects on the story of the two countries and asks who will write the next chapter US comedian Rosie O’Donnell addresses a protest against US President Donald Trump in front of the White House in Washington, DC, on August 6, […]

Bluffocracy chronicles how the country’s establishment has been taken over by chancers. In an exclusive report, authors JAMES BALL and ANDREW GREENWAY profile the much-hyped PPE degree OXFORD, UNITED KINGDOM – MAY 01: People seen during the May Day celebration on May 01, 2015 in Oxford, England. Thousands gather to hear Magdalen College School Choir […]

There is still time to force the opposition leader to back a People’s Vote, argues RICHARD ANGELL Does Jeremy Corbyn ever change his mind? It is easy to come to the conclusion that he does not, having held roughly the same view on every single topic since before he was first elected to parliament in […]

So it seems Nigel Farage is about to hit the road to campaign again, in yet another of his ‘returns’. The reason? The ‘lies, deceit and treachery’ of the political class, he says. A bit rich, coming from a professional politician who himself lied to, deceived and betrayed the British public, and on a grand […]

Well done to Gavin Esler for his opinion piece on why he’s changed his mind on Brexit. I also worked at the Beeb for many years and know Brexit was far from its finest hour. BBC staffers could and should have looked at the meaning of ‘balance’ and how they could help the debate, not […]

Steve Richards’ piece reminds me of the ‘stab in the back’ policy otherwise known as Dolchstosslegende, propagated by the right in Germany after 1918. Right-wingers stated that the German army didn’t lose the war but were betrayed by civilians at the home front. When a hard Brexit does go wrong, the liars Johnson, Gove, Fox, […]

Isn’t it ironic that our divided government should mark the centenary of the ending of the First World War with facile arguments over Brexit and internal feuding? If only, for the sake of the millions killed on all sides in the conflict, they could show some real magnanimity and unity with our European counterparts. John […]

ANDREW ADONIS talks Tory party loyalty, and Tom Tugendhat Here are some wise and moving words: ‘I cannot, in all conscience, follow my heart and not my head when to do so would, I believe, diminish our security. No matter how emotionally appealing it would be to leave, I have a duty to think hard […]

No deal is not better than a bad deal – that’s the verdict from politicians after technical papers were released revealing the impact it could have on the UK. Brexit Secretary Dominic Raab delivers a speech on preparations for a no deal Brexit. Photograph: Peter Nicholls/PA Wire. – Credit: PA Technical papers released by the […]

To many people who voted Remain, it often feels like moving Britain back into the past is a major objective for many Brexiteers. As the plans and assessments of a no-deal Brexit – from the government and from independent bodies alike – begin to appear in earnest, it seems like such Brexiteers may get their […]

Among the doom and gloom predicted to hit the UK if it crashes out of the European Union there was some positivity in the Brexit secretary’s announcement. https://twitter.com/BBCPolitics/status/1032576462300299264 We will still be able to eat a BLT sandwich after Brexit. In one of the most comprehensive (and bizarre) statements from his speech ahead of the […]

Tim Walker’s diary reveals Paul Dacre may soon be heading up a Saudi-backed Telegraph, Damian Green’s nice little earner and how fellow actors rallied round Sir Patrick Stewart in his hour of need Frances Barber attending the premiere of Film Stars Don’t Die In Liverpool as part of the BFI London Film Festival, at the […]

Michael White says all political parties have an as-yet-unfulfilled duty to think much harder about reforms. Elon Musk attending “Oz The Great and Powerful” World Premiere held at the El Capitan Theatre in Los Angeles. PHOTO: Starmax/PA Images/Michael Germana – Credit: Starmax/PA Images Have you had time in your busy week (busy relaxing, I hope) […]

Matt Kelly explains how you can help us invest in more anti-Brexit journalism and our fast-growing digital channels. There’s something in the air. The mood in Britain is changing. The only difficulty is trying to work out whether things are getting more hopeful, or worse. Such is the emotional see-saw that is life as a […]

As a Labour voter who still (just about!) believes in Jeremy Corbyn, these are difficult times, writes John Johnston. The best way for him to put an end to the last few weeks of misery and to shift the argument is to accept two things: the IHRA definition of anti-Semitism in full, and the desire […]

Jeremy Corbyn has once again failed to answer a key question on Brexit – despite being asked it six times just the day before. https://twitter.com/Channel4News/status/1032268026551386112 The Labour leader had a tense exchange with a Sky News reporter when he was again asked if the UK would be better off outside of the European Union after […]

Shadow Brexit secretary Sir Keir Starmer today performed a massive u-turn on Labour’s policy on leaving the EU, saying a second referendum was still “on the table”. Two days after shadow international trade secretary Barry Gardiner said that holding another referendum could lead to “civil disobedience”, Sir Keir Starmer told the Today programme he had […]

TIM WALKER reviews Little Shop of Horrors at Regent’s Park Theatre LITTLE SHOP OF HORRORS by Ashman ; Directed by Maria Aberg ; Designed by Tom Scutt ; At the Regents Park Open Air Theatre, London, UK ; July 10 2018 ; Credit : Johan Persson – Credit: Archant It is right of course that […]

In the March 15 edition of The New European, the Mandrake diary item written by Tim Walker and titled ‘Mum’s the word’ contained a number of inaccuracies. Firstly, the diary item said that the Legatum think tank was being wound up. In fact, the Legatum entity which was wound up in the Cayman Islands was […]

The North East of England, which voted overwhelmingly for Brexit in 2016, is now an exact 50/50 even split about whether to leave or stay, according to a new YouGov poll. It comes as the People’s Vote campaign, which is calling for a referendum on any final deal, publishes a detailed impact study on how […]

Remain campaigner Femi Oluwole shut down accusations of ‘scaremongering’ when two radio presenters tried to compare Brexit to the Millennium Bug. Oluwole appeared on TalkRadio with Jane Moore and Jon Craig to discuss the consequences of Brexit when the radio presenters started to use the ‘Project Fear’ card. Craig said: ‘Femi, this is scaremongering, this […]

The European Commission has backed a newly-launched petition calling for Britons to be able to retain EU rights after Brexit. The petition – ‘Permanent European Union Citizen’ – has this week launched as a European Citizens’ Initiative (ECI). ‘The main objective of the proposed initiative is to guarantee that European citizenship and its associated rights […]

Business leaders have warned that papers outlining government planning for a no-deal Brexit must provide “clarity” so they can continue to trade freely if Britain crashes out of the EU. Tomorrow will see the publication of the first in a series of “technical notices” setting out what businesses and citizens need to do in the […]