Latest from Coffee House

Latest from Coffee House

All the latest analysis of the day's news and stories

St George’s Day: who is the most patriotic leader?

15 min listen

Happy St George’s Day! To celebrate, we thought we would discuss who is the most patriotic political leader — and why some struggle to communicate their love of country. Keir Starmer declared in an interview with the Mirror this morning that Labour is ‘the patriotic party’. This follows a more concerted effort from those within the party

Steerpike

Labour minister admits to PM’s ‘confusion’ over trans issue

Ding ding ding! Sparks were flying this morning on Sky News as host Wilfred Frost interviewed the rather combative Home Office minister Diana Johnson about last week’s Supreme Court judgment – which backed the biological definition of a woman. The duo entered into a tense back-and-forth on Sir Keir Starmer’s belated reaction to it all

Donald Trump has bowed to the markets

A deal will be worked out with China to reduce the tariffs. The chairman of the Federal Reserve won’t be fired. Over the last 24 hours, President Trump has softened his stance on two key planks of his economic policy. It is not hard to work out why. For all the bluster, Trump is ultimately

Ross Clark

Is net zero possible without slave labour?

So, Ed Miliband has relented, and decided that after all it is not a good idea to build his green energy revolution on the back of slave labour in the Uighur region of China. Miliband had refused to back a Lords amendment to the Great British Energy Bill, first reported by Steerpike, which would have

In defence of ‘free’ breakfast clubs

This week the government has started rolling out their free breakfast club scheme, which will be trialled in 750 primary schools until July. The initiative – which, as many are quick to point out, is not actually free but funded by the taxpayer – will cost around £30 million. However, many headteachers have warned of

Steerpike

When will Starmer apologise to Rosie Duffield?

It is Prime Minister’s Questions today and there is certainly much for Kemi Badenoch to go on. From increased government borrowing to the IMF’s UK downgrade, there is a veritable smorgasbord of failure for her to choose from. But Mr S wonders if there might be a more personal angle for Badenoch, following Keir Starmer’s

Michael Simmons

Britain’s borrowing is spiralling out of control

Britain borrowed nearly £152 billion in the financial year to March – almost £21 billion more than at the same point in the last financial year, according to the Office for National Statistics (ONS). The latest public finance figures reveal that borrowing in March was the third highest since records began in 1993. Crucially, it’s

Could Trump cost Australia’s Liberals victory?

Since Australia’s general election was called by Labor prime minister Anthony Albanese at the end of March, the contest for the 3 May poll has been an uninspiring one. Voters must choose between a mediocre Labor government that overpromised and woefully underdelivered since coming to office in 2022, and an underprepared and underpowered conservative opposition.

Starmer’s words about ‘trans women’ are too little, too late

When will Keir Starmer finally show some leadership over the most fundamental distinction in human society: the difference between men and women? The Prime Minister’s silence after the Supreme Court judgement last week had been deafening. The ruling – which stated that sex is binary – brought clarity and restored sanity; it’s a pity the

Why Trump won’t fire Pete Hegseth – yet

On Monday, the liberal outlet National Public Radio reported that Donald Trump’s administration was looking for a replacement for Defence Secretary Pete Hegseth. This report may in fact have helped shield Hegseth from being sacked for having arranged a second Signal chat group about impending war plans for Yemen that apparently included his wife, Jennifer,

Ireland is still in denial about trans rights

The reaction in Ireland to the UK Supreme Court’s decision on the meaning of ‘woman’ in the Equality Act has been revealing. The ruling, which found that women are defined by their biological sex and not a gender recognition certificate, has been watched carefully in Ireland, where trans people have been able to apply to change

Reform and the SNP have much in common

“Storm clouds are gathering. We can all see them.” No, not Winston Churchill on the rise of the Nazis in Europe, but John Swinney on the march of the “far right” in Scotland. Today, the First Minister will host a “mobilisation of mainstream Scotland” against Reform and its “racist” leader, Nigel Farage, who he says,

Is Labour taking Britain back to the 1970s?

As the Birmingham binmen’s strike, full on since 11 March, grinds well into its second month, there is talk of similar action spreading nationwide. A crop of lurid headlines have been appearing in the press: ‘My Mercedes was destroyed by rats’, exclaims the Daily Telegraph, while the Daily Star announces that ‘Psycho seagulls and super rats

Steerpike

Watch: Kemi eviscerates Labour over trans u-turn

Talk about a turn-up for the books. In an unusual breach with convention, it was Kemi Badenoch rising for HM Loyal Opposition this afternoon to respond to Bridget Phillipson’s statement in response to the Supreme Court ruling last week. But the Tory leader – whose conviction on same-sex spaces has been applauded by JK Rowling

Social care funding is broken

Kemi Badenoch, pressed on the Today programme about the leisurely pace of her policy agenda, and the looming council elections, insisted on Tuesday morning that ‘welfare is not a local government issue’. On the ballot instead, she suggested, were such issues as ‘who’s fixing the roads, potholes, [and] adult social care’. This answer seems plausible,

Steerpike

Watch: James O’Brien’s bizarre migrant stats rant

Another day, another rant by lefty loudmouth James O’Brien. Today LBC’s eviscerator-in-chief has decided to take issue with Labour’s decision to publish migrant crime league tables, fuming that ‘I don’t know what else this is designed to do but to feed hatred’ before demanding: ‘Are they going to publish the fact that the massive majority

Does Starmer know what a woman is?

12 min listen

Parliament is back after the Easter holiday and the Supreme Court ruling over what is a woman continues to dominate talk in Westminster. The Prime Minister has changed his tune on trans, declaring he does not think that trans women are women. This has caused some disquiet in the party, with a number of senior

Michael Simmons

Why the IMF has downgraded UK growth

The waves from Donald Trump’s tariff upheaval continue to ripple through the global economy. The International Monetary Fund (IMF) has downgraded its forecasts for global growth to 2.8 per cent for this year and 3 per cent for 2026, down from previous estimates of 3.3 per cent for each year. The UK isn’t immune: the

Stephen Daisley

Will Holyrood do anything about attacks on the Supreme Court?

As the independent bar in Scotland, the Faculty of Advocates is by necessity a reserved and disinterested body. It does not issue letters like the one that has gone out this morning to Karen Adam, the convenor of Holyrood’s equalities, human rights and civil justice committee. The correspondence takes issue, in blistering terms, with the

Ross Clark

No wonder tourists don’t want to come to Britain

Compared with the mobs chanting against sunbathers on Tenerife or the new entry fee just to set foot in Venice, Britain’s own war on tourism may seem mild. Nevertheless, according to the World Travel and Tourism Council, the UK government is ‘sabotaging’ its own tourism industry. In 2024, it says, international visitors spent 5 per

Steerpike

Watch: Starmer finally welcomes Supreme Court gender ruling

Hurrah! The day has finally come: Prime Minister Keir Starmer has, after almost a week of deafening silence, eventually got round to welcoming the Supreme Court’s unanimous judgment that backed the biological definition of a woman. In a rather revealing clip on ITV News today, the PM insisted to interviewers that he is ‘pleased’ about

British fishermen could pay the price for an EU defence deal

You’re being ridiculous, they kept saying. Why do you keep talking about fish? The Brussels lobby could scarcely conceal its disdain when rumours emerged that the price of Britain concluding a defence agreement with the EU at next month’s London summit might be concessions on fishing rights. Defence secretary John Healey chided Labour’s critics for

Pet theft in France is out of control

Dog theft in France is soaring. Animal protection groups estimate that up to 70,000 dogs are stolen each year – nearly 200 a day. The scale of the problem is staggering, and it’s getting worse. Small, high-value breeds are the main targets. French Bulldogs, Pugs, Chihuahuas and Siberian Huskies are among the most frequently stolen.

Trump won’t win against the Fed

President Trump yesterday escalated his attacks on the Chairman of the Federal Reserve Jerome Powell over his reluctance to cut interest rates, prompting a fresh plunge on Wall Street. The President may appear determined to cut his central banker down to size. And yet the reality is that Powell is completely right not to cut

Stephen Daisley

Could this photo cost Mark Carney victory in Canada’s election?

Caryma Sa’d has captured the definitive image of the Canadian federal election. Over the weekend, the independent journalist posted a photograph from an event in Brantford, Ontario for Mark Carney, the former Bank of England governor who has replaced Justin Trudeau as Liberal leader and prime minister. The pic shows an older gentleman appearing to

James Heale

Why Labour is finally publishing migrant crime league tables

Official league tables displaying nationalities of migrants with the highest rates of crime are set to be published for the first time in Britain. Home Secretary Yvette Cooper has reportedly ordered officials to publish the detailed breakdown of offences committed by foreign criminals living in the UK while awaiting deportation. Unofficial tables have previously been

Prince Andrew’s Easter appearance was a royal blunder

Every Christmas, Easter and other public gathering, the Royal Family are faced with an unfortunate choice: what to do about the two pariahs in their midst? One of them, Prince Harry, is sulkily ensconced in Montecito, and tends mainly to pop up in this country when he’s fighting yet another legal battle. The other, however,

Why are the police boasting about how useless they are?

If you’ve been in the City of London recently, you’ll likely have seen one of the blue plaques that have sprung up on pavements. Instead of pointing out the home of someone memorable, these tell a very different story: “A member of the public had their phone stolen here” reads the message, with the City

King Charles has much to learn from the Queen’s Christianity

Easter Monday would have been Queen Elizabeth II’s 99th birthday, a milestone that invites reflection on her extraordinary reign and the faith that defined it. An aspect of the late beloved Queen’s character that set her apart from so many other modern world leaders was her profound commitment to her faith. Her Christian belief was