Blair has handed Starmer the best PR any embattled PM could wish for
Sir Keir has the chance to win hearts and minds on the back of public rebukes from two men loathed by the public. Will he take it?
Politics
The pill is not perfect – but hands off our contraception
We must be able to challenge the lack of research and funding into women’s reproductive healthcare without the risk of access being curtailed altogether
Pete Hegseth – the secretary of WTF
It is hard to imagine a more unsuitable, callous and dunder-headed person to lead the US into war. He is a misogynist, frat-boy, booze-swilling fantasist. One day his favourite slogan, FAFO, might well come back to bite him
Markwayne and Hannah – a tale of two plumbers
Politically they couldn’t be more different. But between them, these two politicians, one GOP, one Green, tell a story about how to confront populism
The White House press office has totally lost its mind
The US secretary of war insulted the American dead, attacked the press and released one of the most stupid pieces of propaganda ever made.
Even as the bombs fall, freedom-loving Iranians are celebrating
After decades of persecution and murder in the streets, chaos and danger are being embraced
Iran’s war strategy – to create chaos
Trump may not have a plan, but the Iranians do. And Americans aren’t going to like it
So prime minister, are we European or not?
Starmer, it seems, just doesn’t want to deal with the question of our relationship with the EU – or at least, not in public. That now has to change
Did White House insiders bet on the Iran war?
Prediction markets are a way of betting on the future. But have members of the Trump administration been using them to profit from secret military knowledge?
Whisper it, but Starmer might be getting it right on Iran
It’s legalistic, complicated and barely comprehensible but the PM’s position on this war has ended up in tune with public sentiment
America hates Trump’s Iran war
Even his MAGA base thinks it’s madness. But amongst the outrage, there are still some Americans who cling to magical thinking, and to the idea that it’ll all work out fine
This is the last chance for the French left
They are the only political force that can keep the extreme right wingers out of power in France. And so, of course, they have just fallen out
Iran, Trump and the US right’s post-modern swerve
Somewhere along the line, the American right became detached from the importance of “truth”, and we all know whose fault that is. But how did it happen?
Outraged and outplayed: how we lost the Brexit wars
Morgan Jones’s new book unpicks the chaos of the campaign for a second referendum
Will AI destroy capitalism?
A recent report by a consultancy imagined a global economic crisis caused by artificial intelligence. The trouble is, they might just be on to something
Stephen Miller, American psycho
The Minnesota bloodbath was all his idea. For now, he’s safely in the White House – but one day he could make a very useful scapegoat
‘Operation Epic Fury – as it happened’
Donald Trump takes on the world and loses – as imagined by Henry Morris
How Epstein used sex as a weapon
He drew other men towards him and trapped them in a state of complicity. But the cynical use of young women as tools to achieve power is nothing new
Special investigation: The strange case of Allister Heath
The Telegraph opinion writer is very strange indeed. An afternoon spent poking around in the archive revealed a trove of relentless, baffling weirdness
US spy chief: Trump is repeating the mistakes of Vietnam and Iraq
Trump’s Iran war has been launched with no evidence, no intelligence and no plan
Iran War: Trump has now sealed his own fate
The Iran War will inevitably lead to the collapse of Trump’s political project. It’s tempting to welcome that prospect – but it could make the president even more dangerous
What Ken Burns’s new documentary tells us about America
Ken Burns, the great documentary-maker, returns with a masterful study of the American revolution. The resonances for the present day are hard to miss
Letter of the week: Reform has no plan to fix “broken Britain”
Write to letters@thenewworld.co.uk to have your views voiced in the magazine
I fell in the street – then this happened
The government doesn’t need to legislate for every possible crime. Why? Because most people know the difference between right and wrong – as I discovered
A dangerous development for the AfD
The German right wing extremists are guilty of the very thing they criticised in other parties. Hypocrisy is not a good look, especially in an election year
The return of slavery
The Taliban government in Afghanistan has just released a new penal code. The rules it sets out are relentlessly brutal and backward
Spring Statement: a speech out of date before it was delivered
The economic projections in the chancellor’s statement today have been made obsolete by war in Iran. Rachel Reeves would have won sympathy if she had acknowledged this. She didn’t
Operation Epic Fuck-up is the quintessence of this Trump administration
On the off chance something good does emerge from this chaotic conflict, don’t rush to give the President any credit for it
The murder of Sarah Everard made me an activist
The Metropolitan Police claims to have changed, but its reforms fail to address its systemic issues. Five years after Sarah’s murder, I still do not trust them
The lose-lose politics of dealing with Trump
The German chancellor is in Washington meeting Trump, a man who sees Europe as irrelevant, who supports Merz’s opponents and who is political poison. What can he hope to gain?
Iran war: It’s time for Europe to become a superpower
We know what happens when the US breaks something and then walks away. The result is catastrophe. The problem is, Trump doesn’t really care
Attacks on Iran: this is going to spread
The US and Israeli assault on Iran has the potential to escalate into a broader international conflict. Not only that, but Trump has put the entire global economy in danger
War on Iran: you can’t cause regime change from the air
The experiences of Iraq and Libya show what happens when the west attacks but has no plan.
US attacks on Iran push the world towards chaos
Trump wants to decapitate the Iranian regime. But the danger now is a proliferating conflict that runs out of control
Gorton and Denton: Starmer’s worst nightmare
Starmer may think his party is fighting a war on two fronts. But the reality is far worse than that
Viktor Orbán, the man who broke Hungary
Even if he loses the general election, Viktor Orbán will retain his grip on the country’s institutions, which he has stacked with his placemen. That could spell disaster for whoever wins – and for Hungary
Dear Matt Goodwin, why are you such a bad loser?
The Reform candidate in Gorton and Denton tried to blame “woke” ideology and “Islamism” for his by-election defeat. Might it be that actually, he and his politics are just not very appealing?
Abortion and democracy in the EU
European funds can now be used to provide abortion across the continent. Campaigners have faced personal and political obstacles fighting for this result. Has a real moment of change arrived?
Charles Kushner, the worst diplomat in the world
Charles Kushner – Jared’s dad – spent two years in jail after secretly filming his brother-in-law with a prostitute. So naturally Donald Trump made him ambassador to France. It’s been a disaster
Labour tried to become the nasty party. Big mistake
The Labour strategy in Gorton and Denton backfired disastrously, and drove its core voters towards the Greens. If it doesn’t change course, the same thing could happen at the general election
Hannah Spencer: “I will not accept a society where having more money gets you a longer life expectancy”
The full transcript of Spencer’s speech as the Green party pulls off a landmark victory – in a significant blow to Keir Starmer
Yet another Brexit prediction turns to dust
The europhobes said if we left the EU, other countries would follow. Wrong. In fact, the opposite has happened – nations are now clamouring to get in
Keeping Trumpism out of Britain
The battle for Labour is to keep US-style bigotry out of Britain. To do that, it cannot simply change its language on immigration and race. It must also change policies
Matthew Goodwin’s by-election diary
Canvassing, former school bullies and a snoring, prosecco-filled Johnathan Gullis are just some of the challenges when campaigning for high office
How Brexit spurred a malaise across Europe
Author David Marsh spoke to 160 key players – and they painted a picture of a continent losing its way
Starmer risks falling to a new Lowe
The PM’s constant u-turns and lack of any apparent plan are a gift for the extremists, who feed off the sense of chaos and drift
Letter of the week: Stop waiting for Keir Starmer to inspire us
Write to letters@thenewworld.co.uk to have your views voiced in the magazine
The death of ‘progress’
The idea emerged at a time very different to our own, and now the Silicon Valley tech bros have revealed what was true all along – that the notion of ‘progress’ is riddled with contradictions
The awful truth: why America hates white women
They’re the single largest demographic group in America and arguably the most politically influential – yet they seem to attract the ire and contempt of political figures from all sides
The Epstein scandal will create a wave of conspiracy theories
The problem is that the secret international network of powerful men that Epstein created around himself will only convince the paranoid fantasists they were on to something
This is what happens when the rule of law dies
In Pakistan, the courts are no longer there to administer the law – they have become extensions of the security state. It is a worrying indicator of where the US may be heading
The dream is no longer to be the boss – it’s to be the intern
Young people can’t get a job nowadays. It’s not because they’re workshy, or snowflakes – it’s because last year, over a million 16-24 year olds were chasing just 17,000 positions. The result? Misery
Secrets, shame and sextortion
It’s a horrific digital age crime that often targets the young and is almost impossible to stop. The only real option is to disrupt the perpetrators’ business model
I’m in Ukraine, a nation let down by America
Four years after the all out invasion, Ukrainians want more than just warm words. They want real help to end this war. Trump isn’t going to give it – so it’s down to us
How Europe stops Gen Z going to war with Putin
Governments across the continent must borrow to spend on defence. If they do not, then Gen Z will end up going to war
A scandal that leads everywhere and infects everything
The Epstein revelations have provoked fury around the world. That anger could spell the end of the ‘Epstein class’. But it could also have much darker consequences
Trump’s Ukraine delusion
After four years of war, Putin isn’t winning. So why does the president insist he is?
This is what happens when Putin loses
If the Kremlin has to spin defeat in Ukraine as a victory, it might need other, quick victories to distract from its losses. That means a beaten Russia will be just as dangerous
The Queen, the palace and the media were accomplices in the Andrew fiasco
Failings of the past mean the final test of King Charles’s reign will be damage control
Andrew’s reckoning belongs to the survivors
The arrest of a prince will inevitably capture the world’s attention. But his disgrace is really just a distraction from the deeper story and the more uncomfortable lessons
Farage’s fundamentalists are coming for abortion
The Reform party now contains a group of prominent christian conservatives who have learned from the US that the way to ban abortion is through the slow erosion of rights
Trump is set to lose the mid-terms – but what if he cheats?
If the president thinks he’s about to lose control of Congress, there’s a range of tricks he could use to steal the election. It will take a nation of millions to stop him
Stop blaming women for Britain’s falling birth rate
If right wingers like Matt Goodwin want us to have more babies, perhaps he could think of ways to make parenthood affordable again
It’s time for a European bomb
The US is pulling back from Europe. If it withdraws its nuclear umbrella, that will leave the continent dangerously exposed. It is time to plan for that scenario
Bari Weiss is crying all the way to the bank
Weiss made a career by playing the media outsider. But now she’s running CBS – and despite declining audience and newsroom turmoil, there’s no way she can lose
No, Jonathan Dimbleby, this does not make the monarchy stronger, you absurd toady
Grovelling sympathy for the royals’ trials and tribulations is not what is required at this moment in time
Hello America – this is what accountability looks like
The powerful sociopaths who gathered around Epstein, who attended his parties and wrote him crawling emails asking for favours, need to be held accountable. The UK is starting out on that process. America – now it’s your turn
What the hell are ICE agents doing in Milan?
When I heard that ICE would be attending the 2026 Winter Olympics, I was shocked – but not surprised
Sorry America, but China makes better electric cars than you
For a while it looked as if Elon Musk would dominate the world of electric cars – but then he turned out to be a basket-case. Now there’s a new global leader in town
Marjorie Taylor Greene: MAGA’s No.1 heretic
She supported Trump, the January 6 riots and spouted antisemitic conspiracy theories. Now she’s renounced the president and appears on liberal chat shows – but is her conversion all it appears?
The future of Reform rests on Matt Goodwin’s by-election
Lose in Gorton & Denton and the party may be driven even further right
Trump has destroyed America’s intelligence system
The former chair of the US National Intelligence Council says that America’s security apparatus is so damaged the UK is holding back intelligence from the US
The unBrexited Britain that could have led Europe
London could have been the EU’s capital, leading the continent’s defence against Putin and Trumpworld, instead of a spectator to decisions it once helped to shape
Trump’s next victim: the US economy
With his own man as chair of the Federal Reserve, and infuriated by the Supreme Court ruling on tariffs, the president might now seek to manipulate the currency for political ends
The return of the German military
There is a strong anti-military strain in German culture and the introduction of national service has not been popular. But times have changed
Is university worth it?
The costs are huge, the interest repayments on student loans are crushing and the jobs market is alarmingly weak. And yet – there are still very good reasons to go to Uni
The coercive control of Marco Rubio’s Munich doctrine
The US secretary of state told his audience he was only being tough on Europe because he loved it. It was almost as offensive as JD Vance a year earlier
Matt Goodwin, Zack Polanski and Lucifer: the fight for Gorton and Denton
The Green candidate – a local plumber – is convinced she can win. But does a Labour-Green fight risk splitting the vote on the left, and handing the seat to Reform?
Will populism wreck Poland’s dream?
A booming land of opportunity, of young entrepreneurs and start-ups, is locked in a 50-50 culture war that could see it replace Hungary as the EU’s biggest internal nightmare
Inside the world’s largest refugee camp
A quarter of a million Rohingya people have fled Myanmar for Bangladesh. In the camps there is almost unimaginable suffering, danger and a longing for another life
London is unaffordable – even for an optimist like me
My rent is about to jump by well over 10% and I’m not alone in my struggle. Why aren’t alarm bells ringing for the government?
Pakistan’s quiet disruptors
An extraordinary tech surge is underway. At its core are female founders solving the untouchable problems
Sir Jim Ratcliffe is right about immigrant colonisers like himself
When Man United’s co-owner talks about being “colonised by immigrants”, does he mean Monaco?
Am I still a friend of Peter Mandelson? It’s complicated
I find it hard to think he didn’t hear and see things that made him feel he had to get Epstein out of his life
Letter of the week: Farage has bitten off more than he can chew
Write to letters@thenewworld.co.uk to have your views voiced in the magazine
Ai Wewei wants you to know that the west censors too
The dissident artist has been targeted by China – but On Censorship reveals a wider world of control
A cure for political extremism
Smoking and drinking might be bad for the health, but sitting around with people who see the world differently can have profoundly beneficial effects
Three years to save Europe
When leaders meet at Munich, they must start the process of European rearmament in a way that takes account of the threat from Putin – and Trump
A world dragged headfirst into the Epstein Sewer
Viciously abused by her father, Ghislaine Maxwell made the horrible mistake of falling for a sexual predator
Generations of politicians have ignored the young. Big mistake
While older Britons have their final salary pensions and the triple lock, young people today can’t even afford to start a family. That could be pushing the country towards political disaster
The God delusions of Jeffrey Epstein’s secret brotherhood
The paedophile fixer’s depraved, narcissistic, super-rich circle have come to believe that they are beyond mortality and morals
The German army’s women problem
Beliefs about equality are colliding with a constitutional ban on female conscription as a drive to increase Bundeswehr numbers ramps up
Using the dead to justify war against Iran
News reports that emerged from outside Iran put the number of dead protesters in the tens of thousands. Iranians inside the country, who took part in the demonstrations, tell a very different story
The remains of the coke-snorting, boozing British empire
In the Kenyan mountains, a collection of colonial-era party houses is slowly rotting away. What should a nation do with the remains of its imperial past?
How long will it be before AI starts using us?
Elon Musk is getting excited about a new social media platform for AI systems. For once – unusually – he might not be completely in the wrong
How to charm Trump, Colombian style
Gustavo Petro went to the White House as Trump’s South American enemy No 1. But things turned out a little different than expected
The Sopranos’ Michael Imperioli: ‘The guys in the mob are fans of Trump’
The actor talks gangsters from New Jersey to Washington DC – and why he feels ‘sick’ about the state of his country
After Mandelson, here’s how we can start to rebuild trust
People in autocratic and chaotic countries believe in their governments more than we do in ours – it’s about feeling that your children will be better off
I helped uncover the Profumo scandal. Mandelson is in a different league as a liar
Macmillan was a real statesman, while Starmer is a failed party manager. Their shared flaw is that neither were curious enough
Keir Starmer fights to the bitter end
A permacrisis premiership is finished. A Labour defeat in the Gorton & Denton by-election would signal even deeper problems for his successor