Katy Balls is The Spectator’s political editor.
How should the Labour government deal with Elon Musk? It’s a question that Keir Starmer has been grappling with since violent disorder broke across England, initially stemming from false claims over the identity of the attacker in the Southport stabbings. Since then, ministers say social media has been used to encourage riots. While Telegram is
14 min listen
Should Keir Starmer go on holiday whilst the country is still grappling with violent disorder? In a YouGov poll on Thursday 71% of those surveyed said he shouldn’t. The PM is meant to be heading off on a summer break on Monday but that is looking increasingly unlikely. We still haven’t got the final word
14 min listen
Elon Musk has it in for the Labour government, his latest tweet screenshotting a racist comment Labour MP Lauren Edwards made over a decade ago. On this episode, Lucy Dunn talks to Katy Balls and John McTernan about whether Big Tech can be regulated, and how DSIT Secretary Peter Kyle thinks the government should treat
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The last week has been dominated by rioting, and last night was expected to be a particularly explosive night. How did it measure up against expectations? Meanwhile, the Tory leadership race continues to chug along, with each of the six candidates providing their own take on Keir Starmer’s response to the violent disorder. Rishi Sunak
During the election campaign, Keir Starmer confessed to taking Friday nights off. ‘I’ve been doing this for years – I will not do a work-related thing after six o’clock, pretty well come what may,’ he told a radio host. But one month into his premiership, and the Prime Minister is struggling even to take his
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Courts have started giving out severe sentences to those involved in the riots today, but there is a continued clamouring for Keir Starmer to do more. The next step seems to be cracking down on discussions online, where social media platforms such as X and Telegram could be inflaming the riots. Could the government give
When will the violent disorder across England and Northern Ireland dissipate? That’s the question being asked in Westminster as ministers brace for further incidents. Keir Starmer last night chaired his second Cobra emergency meeting ahead of a wave of possible events over the next 48 hours, with 30 potential riots anticipated today. Among possible targets
13 min listen
The Prime Minister has clashed with billionaire owner of ‘X’ Elon Musk over comments that Musk made claiming that – in light of the violent disorder across the country – the UK is heading for civil war. How long will this spat go on? And is this the start of Starmer being tough on the
When Rishi Sunak was prime minister, he welcomed Elon Musk as a guest of honour at the government’s AI summit, with the pair even having a fireside chat. However, the new inhabitant of No. 10 takes a different approach to the billionaire owner of X and Tesla. This afternoon, Keir Starmer’s spokesman has slapped down
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Keir Starmer will be chairing his first Cobra meeting, as the government continues to grapple with the rioting that has broken out across the country. The weekend saw numerous examples of violence, including at hotels thought to be hosting asylum seekers. We had a statement from the prime minister condemning the ‘right wing thuggery’, but
After a weekend of violent disorder breaking out across the UK, the Prime Minister has this evening issued a statement from Downing Street. ‘I utterly condemn the far-right thuggery we have seen this weekend,’ Keir Starmer says. ‘Be in no doubt: those who have participated in this violence will face the full force of the law.’ The
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Kemi Badenoch is the favourite in the Tory leadership race at the moment, which is partly why she’s been subject to a fair amount of scrutiny and some mud-slinging this week. But could Robert Jenrick actually overtake her as the frontrunner on the right of the Conservative party? Cindy Yu talks to Katy Balls and
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Today the Bank of England has cut rates for the first time in four years, bringing more good economic news to the Labour government. On the episode, Cindy Yu talks to Katy Balls and Kate Andrews about how this raises the question – again – of why Rishi Sunak called an election before he could
42 min listen
This week: Keir Starmer’s plan to soften Brexit Katy Balls writes this week’s cover piece on Labour’s plans to establish close ties with the EU. Every member of Starmer’s cabinet voted Remain, and the government is trying to ‘reset EU relations through a charm offensive’. Brussels figures are hopeful: ‘There was no real goodwill for
40 min listen
Women with Balls will be back in the Autumn with a new series. Until then, here’s an episode from the archives, with the new Chancellor Rachel Reeves. On the podcast, she talks to Katy about being a teen chess champion, going to a school where her mum worked and what Labour needed to do to
Anew political bromance is brewing on the continent. Keir Starmer has met Olaf Scholz, his German counterpart, three times since he entered Downing Street last month. Already the two men have found plenty in common. Both are social democrats, both are lawyers from similar backgrounds and both went through a socialist phase before selling themselves
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Rioters in Southport have clashed with police after three young girls were fatally stabbed outside a Taylor Swift themed dance class on Monday. The crowd was heard chanting ‘English til I die’ in the violence, which took place outside a mosque. The police have confirmed a 17 year old was arrested over the attack, and
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Rachel Reeves wakes to mixed headlines today after she announced a range of spending cuts to part fill a £22 billion ‘shortfall’ in public spending for this year alone. The most controversial move by Reeves on Monday was her decision to axe the winter fuel benefit for pensioners not eligible for benefits. That saves £1.5
Rachel Reeves wakes to mixed headlines today after she announced a range of spending cuts to part fill a £22 billion ‘shortfall’ in public spending for this year alone. The Chancellor accused the Tories of spending money they did not have in government and going more than six billion pounds over budget on asylum. These
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The Chancellor Rachel Reeves has today been providing covering fire for a raft of unpopular policies, including changes to the winter fuel allowance and cancellations to various building projects. She gave a damning statement in the Commons earlier this afternoon about the economic situation that Labour have inherited from the Tories. We now know that
