James Ball
25 January 2023
The Tories’ immoral maze
How a backscratching culture created a network of scandals that taints No 10, business, the civil service and the BBC
Read the full article16 January 2023
The Brexiteers could turn Sunak’s Protocol victory into a defeat
Britain and the EU are nearing an agreement in Northern Ireland. But will the hardliners let it happen?
Read the full article11 January 2023
The man who wasn’t there
His tactics mix invisibility with stating the obvious. How long can Rishi Sunak survive?
Read the full article03 January 2023
Back into the great unknown
People may want someone or something to blame for Covid. But we have to get used to the idea of just living with it
Read the full article22 December 2022
The year the clown fell
Boris Johnson - the man who brought himself down not once, but twice
Read the full article08 December 2022
‘Save the NHS’ is a bad slogan in need of a good policy
If we want the NHS to be functional in 10 years time, we need to start having more honest conversations about the state of affairs
Read the full article01 December 2022
Westminster is a breeding ground for the bullying class
What is behind this new wave of bullying allegations? Part of the answer lies in the UK's political system and Westminster's bizarre culture
Read the full article24 November 2022
The spies in our pockets
Four European nations are accused of snooping on their citizens’ phones – and the EU doesn’t seem to care
Read the full article17 November 2022
Breaking China
Xi Jinping has made himself president for life. Yet he may be about to lead his nation into catastrophe
Read the full article03 November 2022
Elon Musk’s bitter Twitter harvest
The self-styled ‘Chief Twit’ is often called one of the world’s most successful men. You wouldn’t know it from his latest purchase
Read the full article25 October 2022
It’s the Rishi Horror Show
Rishi Sunak has taken the reins of the country. However, he has just as many reasons to be afraid as the rest of us
Read the full article20 October 2022
The man who would be media king
Mathias Döpfner is Europe’s leading media mogul; the most influential man you’ve never heard of
Read the full article11 October 2022
Burning down the house
Mortgages helped cause the 2008 financial crash. Now they may bring about a new crisis
Read the full article06 October 2022
Why are they so hopeless?
System faults have left the UK being governed by the least gifted political class in memory
Read the full article29 September 2022
Is the prime minister a Groucho Marxist?
The comic actor said he’d never join a club that would admit him. Will Liz Truss apply the same rule to Macron’s new European forum?
Read the full article22 September 2022
The dangers of this uncivil war
Liz Truss has entered Number 10 wanting to change government. This time may be better spent on some reflection
Read the full article15 September 2022
The mission of King Charles
He has the task of preserving a system that even he knows can no longer be justified
Read the full article08 September 2022
Inside the Brexit bubble: The thinktanks who won’t take yes for an answer
A certain group of Brexiteers have got everything they wanted - but they still yearn for the impossible
Read the full article06 September 2022
Regrets? Boris Johnson should have a few
Boris Johnson wants to be remembered as a great man of British political history. So how does his scorecard look?
Read the full article01 September 2022
How to fix Boris Johnson’s Lords fraud
One thing is clear: reforming the House of Lords won't be easy
Read the full article25 August 2022
Can the new prime minister keep the lights on?
Britain’s energy crisis is even harder to fix than you thought – and Truss and Sunak don’t even seem to be trying
Read the full article18 August 2022
The executives on the make
The harsh reality of how this is achieved is that it takes from the public not once, but twice
Read the full article10 August 2022
27 reasons why Rishi Sunak will be a bad prime minister
As predicted, Liz Truss was a hopeless prime minister. But her successor, Rishi Sunak, is likely to be equally terrible
Read the full article03 August 2022
39 good reasons Liz Truss will be a terrible Prime Minister
Truss has the potential to be a prime minister who makes the Johnson era look like one of calmness and stability
Read the full article27 July 2022
Battling to lead the Britain they broke
Anyone coming into No 10 with the slightest hope of fixing Britain would need to acknowledge it is actually broken, and neither of the Conservative leadership candidates can do that
Read the full article14 July 2022
A harsh reality is awaiting the new leader of the Conservative party
Whoever is chosen will have no personal mandate nor a manifesto that’s been tried and tested with voters
Read the full article05 July 2022
Put this sleazy house in order
Once again, this government is failing to deliver the most basic levels of decency
Read the full article30 June 2022
The case for Julian Assange
Assange and his fans make it difficult to take his side. But this doesn’t change the fact that this prosecution is dangerous and unjust
Read the full article23 June 2022
No, Brexit won’t ever be ‘done’
Claiming Brexit can be ever “done” ignores the complicated reality of the real world
Read the full article16 June 2022
Our callous Ukraine fatigue
Our tone of how we discuss the war in Ukraine has evolved and not for the better
Read the full article02 June 2022
Trans children are suffering because of the government’s cowardice
The government are too afraid to challenge adults’ belief systems. This is pure cruelty
Read the full article26 May 2022
At sea over sanctions
The government has the chance to show the world the days of London being Russian oligarchs' playground are over, but that would involve action by Boris Johnson
Read the full article