Robert Peston is Political Editor of ITV News and host of the weekly political discussion show Peston. His articles originally appeared on his ITV News blog.
Don’t laugh, but Boris Johnson would genuinely prefer a Brexit deal to no deal. And that should make Northern Ireland’s DUP and the Brexiter purists in the Tories’ European Research Group very nervous indeed. Because the EU has made it clear that it thinks a deal could be done if the backstop arrangement, designed to
Here in a few numbers is the measure of the catastrophic mess we are in; caused by failing to resolve how, when and whether we are leaving the EU some 1,174 days after British people voted for Brexit. MPs are being locked out of the Commons chamber for 34 days and nights, because the prime
Dominic Grieve’s successful ‘humble address’ motion, to force disclosure of WhatsApp and other digital messages sent by Boris Johnson, is a naked attempt to politically assassinate Dominic Cummings. Because Grieve and his rebel Tory allies believe if he can show that the prime minister’s senior adviser was plotting to suspend parliament for reasons other than
It’s very interesting that former Supreme Court judge, Jonathan Sumption, says a court could authorise a civil servant to sign a letter asking the EU for a Brexit extension, and could rule that the letter is in effect from the Prime Minister, whether or not the PM agrees. Which sounds like Boris Johnson could be stitched
Here is the measure of the madness. An influential Cabinet minister Amber Rudd has resigned in a blaze of recriminations, citing the ‘assault on democracy and decency’ of Johnson’s expulsion last week of 21 Tories who oppose a no-deal Brexit. But it will change nothing. A lamed government without a majority won’t fall because the
Opposition parties will again vote against a general election on Monday. The debate between leaders of Labour, SNP, Liberal Democrats, Plaid and Greens is whether to vote for an election a day or two after Queen’s Speech on October 14 or day or three after EU summit on October 17-18. Either way, it is all
A conspicuously rattled and tired Boris Johnson – flanked surreally by the police in Wakefield – said yesterday he would ‘rather be dead in a ditch’ than obey the expected new law that would force him to ask the EU for a Brexit delay. Which carries only two implications. Johnson could quit as Prime Minister
With MPs arguing and agonising about when the general election should be, we may have hit peak parliamentary insanity. The PM wants a general election on 15 October. Tory rebels, led by Sir Oliver Letwin, and many Labour MPs, including frontbenchers, want polling day to be any time after 31 October. What is this dispute
Jeremy Corbyn is now in charge – even though he isn’t prime minister. And he faces the most important judgement of his life in the coming days. Does he allow a general election before the EU council of 17 October and take the risk of Johnson winning that election and repealing the law (likely to
I have belatedly worked out that Boris Johnson can and probably will accept the legislation delaying Brexit as the price of going to the country in a general election – because he would campaign on a manifesto of leaving the EU on 31 October. So if he wins the clear Commons majority he seeks, he could
Brexit history and constitutional history may be made at 10 tonight. Because the number of Tory rebels is holding firm at around 20. And that means Sir Oliver Letwin’s motion under Standing Order 24, which would have the effect of handing control of business in the Commons to backbenchers tomorrow, could well pass by around
Boris Johnson’s message to MPs is that if they vote tomorrow for another delay, then Wednesday there will be vote on general election. MPs gone, no 14 days, no legislation on extension. Election on 14 October. Government source: ‘who does country want to sort it out on 18 Oct at EU?’ UPDATE, 6.27pm: “I hope MPs
To reinforce what I said about the gravity of tomorrow’s vote, rumours are swirling that Dominic Cummings – the PM’s chief aide – wants to lose (I am not persuaded!) the vote so he can purge Grieve and any other rebel Tories and then take on Corbyn’s Labour before the next EU council on 17
“The crypto-fascists are in charge”. So spoke one of the senior Tories planning to rebel tomorrow against Boris Johnson – which captures in its visceral anger the magnitude of the gulf between the new prime minister and those of his backbenchers who want a no-deal Brexit taken off the table. This afternoon the Tory rebels
I am finding it hard to capture the scale of the parliamentary battle that will start on Tuesday – because what is at stake is huge, complicated and shifting. One of its more important combatants described it to me as a “once-in-a-century crisis”. Another told me it would not only decide how and whether the
Boris Johnson sees method in and admires some of Trump’s apparent madness: not the ‘send them home’ abusive chants about ethnic minority Democrat critics, but the refusal to play by the normal rules of politics or international relations (threatening to nuke North Korea before talking with its despot; imposing new tariffs on China while claiming to
Boris Johnson is being widely accused of subverting the British version of democracy with his plan to suspend or prorogue parliament for four weeks – unprecedented in modern times. His apparent aim is to make it much harder for MPs to take control of the process of when and whether the UK leaves the EU.
The parliamentary battle of our age, and of many ages – over how and whether the UK Brexits – begins, with the signal from Downing Street that the Commons will rise some time between 10 and 13 September and will return for a Queen’s Speech on 14 October. This will leave MPs with just a
I’ve learned only one thing at the G7 summit of big rich countries here in Biarritz: Boris Johnson absolutely loves being Prime Minister. There’s little of the conspicuous sense of duty that weighed on the shoulders of Theresa May, Gordon Brown and Sir John Major. Nor is there that unnerving claim to embody the spirit
There is arguably the most important conflict raging in the Tory party since Churchill replaced Chamberlain as PM in 1940. Although we are living through 1940 in reverse, because Johnson is already the self-defined “war-time” PM, the wannabe Churchill, when some of his colleagues want something and perhaps someone else. Forget the battle between government
