perspectives

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

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

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.

Morgan McSweeney's resignation as Chief of Staff is the single largest change to Starmer's operation since the Prime Minister became Labour leader. His departure is a wise decision, and it goes without saying that his support for Lord Mandelson was a severe and reprehensible mistake. Whether it was a preventable one will likely be clear soon—it is difficult to write about the Mandelson-related aspects of his resignation until the ISC publishes evidence. Ensuing analysis of hi

On the 28 November 2024, the Australian government passed a bill that required a minimum age of 16 to create an account on certain social media platforms. Coming into effect on the 10 December 2025, the ban is the first of its kind and the subsequent events since the imposition of the law have been watched very closely by the rest of the world, with many countries seriously considering the idea of introducing similar legislation. Leader of the Conservative party, Kemi Badenoc

“Our wonderful country is sick” and “Britain is Broken” were some of the words spoken by Zahawi and Jenrick, as the two senior Conservatives announced they were joining Farage’s Reform UK over the past week. Tory defections to Reform are now happening at a rate where it is hard to believe the Conservative Party is the longest existing political party in the West. Each week Conservatives once considered stoic and loyal are deserting the party that gave rise to their politic

The Prime Minister holds a press conference in No.9 Downing Street. The room was refurbished after he took office to change the "Tory" blue backdrop, with the Breakfast Room in No.10 used in the interim. Image: Flickr/No.10 “Scumbag journalists” That was how now-Baroness Gray described the media briefing against her to colleagues. The remarks were part of a Whitehall spat that would eventually see her premature departure from Number 10 and as Downing Street Chief of Staff. Sh

By: Lily Hatch On Wednesday, the 3rd December 2025, the Kenyan Parliament’s Departmental Committee on Defence, Intelligence, and Foreign Relations released a 94-page report into the conduct of the British Army Training Unit of Kenya (BATUK) troops. BATUK is a major British military training facility based in Nanyuki, Kenya; However, as Kenya’s report shows, their presence has increasingly become seen as an occupying force by locals. The Unit faces serious accusations of decad

The proscription of pro-Palestinian group Palestine Action earlier this year was met with a myriad of reactions, with some arguing that this was a reasonable response to the group’s high-profile disruption. However, I echo the popular condemnation of their proscription as an Orwellian attempt to quiet dissent to the UK’s complicity in Israel’s genocide in Gaza. The most recent development of eight prisoners, held in prolonged remand related to offences with the group, resorti

By Will Gibson It’s no secret that the UK judicial system is under immense pressure. Cases are entering the system faster than they can be heard, and it’s clear that something must be done to address the seemingly endless backlog of cases awaiting judgment. The BBC notes delays caused by too few prosecutors, defence lawyers, judges and available courtrooms, with over 78,000 cases waiting to be heard in England and Wales alone, and projections suggesting the number could reach