Opinion

Sci-fi fan MITCH BENN on what his hero Douglas Adams would have to say about politics today Whoever came up with the expression “You must never meet your heroes; they’ll always disappoint you” had dreadful taste in heroes. I’ve been lucky enough to meet quite a few of my heroes over the years and by […]

Traditional party allegiances are not enough in the Brexit era, argues TIM WALKER. A tactical vote is the only way to thwart the prime minister’s plans Voters have been acting tactically since the dawn of democracy, but it’s unusual, of course, for a candidate to do it. In Canterbury, where I was until earlier this […]

The polls are too volatile and the consequences too unpredictable for people to tactically vote with any confidence, says JAMES BALL. And that’s before all the other objections are taken into account. Given the proximity and importance of Brexit – and the severity of the economic damage it could wreak – it is hardly surprising […]

The EU has agreed to triple funds for students participating in Erasmus+ over the next decade, just as the UK’s collaboration in the scheme looks less than certain. MEP JUDITH BUNTING says the injustice is both infuriating and heart-breaking. While Erasmus+ has traditionally been a platform through which university students can study abroad, until now […]

The prime minister’s decision to sit on the ‘Russian connection’ report could backfire on him, says JAMES BALL. At the start of the campaign, you would have been forgiven for thinking that if any party was going to have a Russian problem in the 2019 general election it would be Jeremy Corbyn’s Labour. His long-standing, […]

JAMES DUNNE looks back on a brief moment in British history where the country was at the forefront of pro-European federalism Following the outbreak of the Second World War, a wave of pro-European, federalist sentiment swept the United Kingdom. While the popular movement of that period is now largely forgotten in 
Britain, its leaders’ writings […]

Trump’s reelection prospects are looking far from rosy judging by the travails of his allies, says BONNIE GREER Whenever we classic cinema buffs think of grapefruit we think of that iconic moment in The Public Enemy, the film that made the young James Cagney a star. In the scene, his petty gangster Tom Powers, pushes […]

With Donald Trump and Boris Johnson up for election, MITCH BENN looks at just how untouchable they are The word ‘mistake’ has two principal uses, related but definitely distinct. It can mean an involuntary error, a slip-up, a blooper, a typo… something you didn’t want to do or intend to do, but did anyway through […]

JAMES BALL on how the Brexit Party leader has become Remain’s secret weapon. As Tammy Wynette so nearly sang, sometimes it’s hard to be an attention-seeker. So we should all spare a thought for poor Nigel Farage, who if he were any normal entry-level attention-seeker would be on the horns of an absolutely intractable dilemma […]

As BONNIE GREER continues her look at each US state ahead of next years election she turns her attention to Colorado. There was a time when Colorado was a place where cowboys reigned, a fairyland where you lived on the Saturday afternoons of your childhood. This was way back at a time when it was […]

MITCH BENN on why there are no safe seats in this election and uses Richmond Park to defend tactical voting. It’s utterly absurd that while I’ve been writing this column for a little over three years now, not only is this the second general election I’ve had to cover in that time, but that previous […]

The welfare of the country should not be forgotten amid Brexit, writes MITCH BENN. Before I became active in the Remain campaign I was active for many years in the sceptical (and indeed Skeptical) community, which is a rather self-congratulatory way of saying that before I started wasting precious hours out of every day getting […]

JAMES BALL on how we can expect the party campaigns to play out. At long last, it’s finally over. Months after the rest of the country realised this current parliament couldn’t get anything done – other than deciding not to decide anything just yet, the message has sunk in with MPs and we are heading […]

Bonnie Greer on Tulsi Gabbard, the controversial senator, running for the Democratic presidential nomination. One of the best things about growing up in America in the 1960s was being able to watch the first run of the original Hawaii Five-O, the greatest police procedural, to this very day, that has ever existed. Everything about the […]

The group campaigning for a second referendum has been in the news for all the wrong reasons. JAMES BALL looks at the story behind the headlines. It seems particularly ominous that infighting at the People’s Vote group spilled into the public eye in the same week the country finally shifted towards a general election. The […]

Plaid Cymru’s leader ADAM PRICE says his party has helped to turn the country from a Leave to a Remain country, and will continue to fight for a Final Say referendum. We find ourselves on the cusp of a general election which has little promise of solving the Brexit crisis. For precisely that reason, Plaid […]

French citizen ÉMILIE ANCELIN has always dreamed of becoming a lawyer in Britain. In a devastating letter to Boris Johnson, she explains how he has wrecked her dreams by pursuing his Brexit vision. Émilie Ancelin on the People’s Vote March. Photograph: Twitter. – Credit: Archant Dear prime minister, I am writing this letter to you […]

Social media networks have bigger issues than to concern themselves with Remain campaigners, writes MARTYN SLOMAN. Your article “Twitter’s twisted tales” (published on 10 October) has prompted me to write and highlight a problem that I have encountered with the social media platform. Eighteen months ago I created a Twitter account with the handle @eugrandparents […]

Every day we’re still in the EU is a solid win for Remain, says Mitch Benn First of all, a little essential housekeeping: You might recall that I ended last week’s column by issuing a plea for help. I bewailed my enforced absence from last Saturday’s march and asked if you could help me make […]

JAMES BALL on how Dominic Cummings is using political blitzkrieg to tear down UK institutions. Dominic Cummings, holds a poster saying “Yes to Europe, No to the Euro poses for a photograph as campaign director at Business for Sterling on March 19, 2001 in London, England. (Photo by David Levenson/Getty Images) – Credit: Getty Images […]

The ‘Get Ready for Brexit’ campaign not a good look for either the government or marketing, writes JON GOULDING. Not only does it damage public trust in the marketing industry, he says it also shows that even £100 million can’t buy you a smart campaign. Last week the government rolled out a ‘Get Ready for […]

MITCH BENN challenges you to make up for his absence at the People’s Vote march. My committed activism in the Remain cause since the 2016 referendum is fuelled in no small part by residual guilt at the knowledge that I didn’t do a damn thing to help or promote the Remain cause before the 2016 […]

Despite Boris Johnson’s claims that the EU is inflexible, they have moved considerably to give him a deal. If this recent movement towards a deal turns out to have just one benefit, it will surely be to demolish once and for all the myth of the European Union’s wilful inflexibility. It seems obvious to me […]

As was regularly noted during the David Cameron’s premiership, there is a much-discussed phenomenon among Oxford students called the ‘essay crisis’. As ever with staples of the Oxford University social scene, this is just a university-specific name for a much wider phenomenon: that of doing no work whatsoever on an essay you’re given seven days […]

The politicians have floundered on climate change, says Green Party MEP Alexandra Phillips. It’s time to listen to the young Faced with fatal inaction on the part of politicians and parliamentarians, children and young people across Europe are taking matters into their own hands. The waves of youth climate strikes and direct action in recent […]

James Cleverly’s much-mocked graph gives a revealing insight into the mindset of panicky Brexiteers says MITCH BENN. James Cleverly’s explanation for why Brexit must be done by October 31st. Photograph: Twitter. – Credit: Archant The phrase “There are lies, damned lies and statistics” is selectively trotted out by whoever wants to dismiss whichever set of […]

Talks about a government of national unity have taken up too much time, argue readers. They claim MPs need to focus their efforts elsewhere. The fantasy of a government of national unity (GNU) is taking up far too much time on the Remain side. Jeremy Corbyn’s supporters will only accept him as leader; Amber Rudd […]

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 […]