PERSPECTIVES

Andy Burnham’s honeymoon period as Prime Minister has encountered its first serious challenge. Labour’s attempt to ease pressure on England and Wales’s overcrowded prisons through the early release of thousands of offenders has provoked fierce opposition, particularly after it emerged that two of the men convicted of killing PC Andrew Harper could benefit. Burnham has already excluded some more serious offenders from the scheme, but political pressure to go further is growing

By Jack Keen Pointless, Counterproductive, and Disastrous. The only ways to describe Trump-Iranian Foreign Policy. In his first term, President Trump withdrew from a functioning The Joint Comprehensive Plan of Action (JCPOA) nuclear agreement negotiated by President Barack Obama. Iran subsequently expanded its enrichment programme. Then, more recently, on 28 February 2026, the US and Israel began a new war by striking Iran and its senior leadership. The latest development, 16

By Stephen Dowse It would not be an exaggeration to say that Reform UK has been the ghost haunting Keir Starmer’s premiership and, unfortunately for Labour, that ghost materialised during the recent 2026 English local elections, with Reform UK winning over 1450 council seats while Labour lost over 1200 council seats. It’s very easy to assume that the people who are voting for Reform UK are disillusioned Conservative Party voters and right-wing political activists; however, th

By Jack Keen This evening, I find myself reflecting on the last few prime ministers. It is easy to point to different failures or different weaknesses in personality and political fibre. But fundamentally, moderate world leaders have failed to do one thing. Communicate. Communication in the new era of modern technology is vital to our politics. No matter how good your policies are, perceptions can be different. Politicians look to other politicians for inspiration on this. Of

By Charles Wawn Last month signalled a permanent shift in the future power dynamics of the Labour party. On May 14, then Health Secretary Wes Streeting resigned, having told Prime Minister Keir Starmer the previous day that he had lost confidence in his leadership. That evening, Josh Simons, a former minister and ally of the Prime Minister, announced he would step down as MP for Makerfield to make way for Andy Burnham, Mayor of Greater Manchester, to replace him. On the socia

Starmer visits HMS Prince of Wales in April 2025. Image: Flickr/No.10 It is often said in politics that the first actions a Prime Minister takes are the most significant— a criticism that the current PM is probably familiar with. But this is quite literal. Indeed once all the clapping, shaking hands with the Cabinet Secretary and warm smiles are done, the Prime Minister does a very specific thing. They sit down, and writes four identical letters. Known as letters of last res

By: Adrian Khodavardar In 2008, Mark Lyttle was detained by immigration authorities despite repeatedly asserting his United States citizenship. ICE records identified him as deportable. He was ultimately expelled to Mexico and left to navigate Central America alone, relying on shelters and strangers to survive. Years later, a federal court found that the government had violated his constitutional rights. Lyttle’s case is extreme, but it is not anomalous. It illustrates how im

By by Ingrid Cochrane Last week saw the defection of Suella Braverman to Reform UK. Joining Andrew Rosindell and Robert Jenrick as the third sitting Conservative MP to defect in less than two weeks , the former Home Secretary’s move was not entirely out of the blue, reflecting continued momentum for Reform UK as they remain Britain’s most popular political party, polling at 29% following Braverman’s defection . Taken together with Reform UK hav ing welcomed 14 Conservative

Opposition parties have accused the government of denying democracy by postponing 30 council elections , as part of its local government reform program. The Labour government plans to abolish the system of two-tiered councils in England, under which around one-third of the population of England lives. Currently, local government services in two-tiered council areas are provided by multiple layers of councils, a situation that wastes government money and creates bureaucracy.

Netflix's extensively touted documentary, The Investigation of Lucy Letby , finally aired last week. The feature promised to offer "unseen footage and unheard insider accounts" offering an unprecedented degree of insight into one of the most divisive and troubling cases of our times. Produced by ITN, working closely alongside Cheshire Constabulary, the documentary left me with an overwhelming sense of unease and a renewed belief that the status-quo, that would see a potenti