Lord Hattersley obituary Politician, journalist and writer who was deputy leader of the Labour party for a decade The Guardian - UK · Jun 14
‘A giant of the Labour movement’: Roy Hattersley, former Labour deputy leader, dies aged 93 Party grandee was MP for Birmingham Sparkbrook from 1964 until his retirement from the Commons in 1997 The Guardian - UK · Jun 14
Despite what the UK right will tell you, appeasing bond markets has actually led to instability Austerity has benefitted bond traders but impoverished UK society and led to the rise of populism. Is it right that we carry on adhering to their interests, asks Guardian columnist Andy Beckett The Guardian - UK · Jun 2
Labour is living in a fool’s paradise if it thinks it has plenty of time to turn Britain around Going into 2026, the economy has little forward momentum and things may get worse before they get better, says Guardian columnist Larry Elliott The Guardian - UK · Dec 24, 2025
As dark financial clouds gather, Labour has to heed its past: when it chooses austerity, it loses elections Those who insist on spending cuts are those who are never hurt by them. Time to be brave – and take a new tack, says Guardian columnist Andy Beckett The Guardian - UK · Aug 8, 2025
Labour peer David Lipsey found dead after swimming in River Wye Former journalist and adviser to Callaghan government, 77, was pulled from water on Tuesday The Guardian - UK · Jul 3, 2025
Keir Starmer’s muddled politics are reaching their limit. It’s time for him to make a choice Veer left or double down on the right? Either way, the prime minister needs to commit and sell it to an impatient electorate, says Guardian columnist Andy Beckett The Guardian - UK · Jun 6, 2025
Five things you didn’t know about Black British cultural history From northern soul to rugby league beef, here’s what I learned while writing We Were There The Guardian - UK · Apr 16, 2025
How previous prime ministers handled the ‘special relationship’ Winston Churchill coined the phrase to describe what has become an enduring diplomatic priority, but relationships between leaders have varied. Evening Standard · Feb 27, 2025
When Thatcher took performance lessons from Laurence Olivier, it changed the course of her political destiny The PM’s makeover collaboration was kept a closely guarded secret for fear it would hurt her ‘ordinary housewife’ image, says writer and broadcaster Tim Walker The Guardian - UK · Feb 11, 2025
Why the Labour government has run aground so quickly – and what it needs to do to get back on course Many prime ministers at some point find themselves in a situation where nothing they do seems to go right. It happened to Jim Callaghan in the late 1970s, to Gordon Brown in the 2000s and to every Conservative prime minister since 2019. The Conversation · Oct 11, 2024
Peter Jay obituary Economic journalist and broadcaster labelled ‘the cleverest young man in England’ The Guardian - UK · Sep 23, 2024
Peter Jay, journalist and diplomat, dies aged 87 Tributes paid to one of the UK’s foremost economics commentators who was also ambassador to Washington The Guardian - UK · Sep 22, 2024
Why Rachel Reeves can’t seem to make her ‘£22bn black hole’ narrative convincing Rachel Reeves had hardly stepped down from the dispatch box to make her first big statement as chancellor of the exchequer before facing a furious backlash. She had claimed to have discovered a £22bn hole in public finances upon taking office and was using it to explain why the new… The Conversation · Aug 2, 2024
The Conversation · Jun 28, 2024 If Rachel Reeves hikes capital gains tax, she’ll be more in line with Nigel Lawson than Gordon Brown With Labour heavily predicted to win the upcoming UK election, there has been much talk about future tax plans.
MusicRadar · Apr 3, 2024 Own a piece of Rolling Stones history as a Keith Richards stage-played 1972 Fender Telecaster Custom goes up for auction And it will be joined by a battered and bruised Vox wah pedal that Jimi Hendrix used live and in the studio
Evening Standard · Mar 4, 2024 OPINION - Record-low Tory poll explains why there (probably) won't be a May election Cast your mind back – if you can – to September 1978. Jim Callaghan announced he would not call an early election (which he might have won), Pope John Paul I died after 33 days of papacy and the Commodores were number one with their hit, 'Three Times A Lady".
The Guardian - UK · Jan 11, 2024 After 14 years of Tory misrule, voters will crave a fresh start. That may be a blessing for Starmer – or a curse British politics has been drained of all credibility. The Labour leader could turn low expectations to his advantage – for a time, says Guardian columnist Andy Beckett
Evening Standard · Dec 15, 2023 OPINION - I'm addicted to old BBC election night broadcasts — this is what I've learnt On reflection, David Owen was probably too “leading man handsome” to help the SDP break the mould of British politics. That’s right, I’ve been re-watching old BBC election night broadcasts again. This time, it’s back to the Seventies and Eighties for Ted Heath’s miscalculation, Jim Callaghan’s sunny (albeit misplaced) optimism…
Evening Standard · Sep 26, 2023 What a load of rubbish! Thousands of bin bags litter London streets as strike extended for two weeks 6ft high piles of rubbish in echoes of the winter of discontent
The Guardian - UK · Aug 27, 2023 History suggests that Rishi Sunak is doomed to join the ‘tail-end Charlie’ club There’s an incredibly strong pattern of failure among prime ministers coming to office when their party has been dominant for a long period
Evening Standard · Jul 31, 2023 OPINION - Rishi Sunak faces a sea change from voters... can he turn the tide? Two-thirds of voters say “it is time for a change” at the next election, writes Keiran Pedley
The Guardian - UK · Dec 18, 2022 Sunak and Hunt face a rerun of the 70s’ winter of discontent. It didn’t end well then Ted Heath and Jim Callaghan paid a big price for taking on the trade unions, and once again voters are blaming the politicians
The Guardian - UK · Dec 16, 2022 Get Matt Hancock out of here: these are the political diaries worth reading For windows on the corridors of power that were actually written contemporaneously, read this selection of books by MPs from left and right
The Guardian - UK · Dec 4, 2022 This winter of discontent will harden the feeling that the Tories have broken Britain The cabinet is taking a dangerous gamble when it calculates that the public will blame the unions, not the government, for an advent calendar of strikes