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Sammy Cotter has been running his grocery wholesalers for a quarter of a century. But now he’s living day to day. ‘I’ve got £7,000 worth of goods sitting in Manchester,’ he tells me. ‘It was supposed to be delivered on December 21. But I’m still waiting.’ At first glance, his warehouse in Quarry Heights, Newtownards, … Read more
The end is nigh. Or rather, the end is apparently nowhere in sight. Last week, the hardcore Lockdown-Deniers began to deploy a new mantra. ‘Your regular reminder that there is no end to lockdowns,’ declaimed their High Priestess, the broadcaster Julia Hartley-Brewer. ‘There is no exit strategy, no plan to reopen schools & businesses, to … Read more
At Wednesday’s PMQs, an unusual thing happened. Boris Johnson flattened Sir Keir Starmer. ‘Would the Prime Minister be happy with his kids living on that?’ the Labour leader chided, as he attempted to get some leverage in the row over free school meal parcels. ‘They are an insult to the families who have received them,’ … Read more
Back in 2018, I stood in a draughty aircraft hangar in Huntingdon, West Virginia, watching Donald Trump address his devoted supporters. It was the final week of the mid-term elections, and he was upbeat. His speech began as a standard brew of US new-dawn optimism, mixed with casual slaps at his Democratic opponents. Then it … Read more
You look as fresh as a daisy for someone who’s spent the night counting fish,’ Boris Johnson joked to Ursula von der Leyen as he began the tele-conference that finally brought Britain’s Brexit purgatory to an end. The Prime Minister’s ability to strike up an unlikely rapport with the daughter of one of the EU’s … Read more
Last week, the long-awaited Home Office report into child grooming was finally published. Commissioned by former Home Secretary Sajid Javid, it was supposed to put the official spotlight on to one of the greatest scandals in British history – the systemic abuse of white working-class girls by Asian men. Instead, it was a whitewash. Literally. … Read more
Last week a dejected Tory MP was sitting in the House of Commons lobby when the Prime Minister appeared. ‘He saw me and said, ‘Don’t worry. Everything will be all right in the end,’ the former Minister recounted, ‘then just ambled off.’ Things are not going to be all right. It was left to Rishi … Read more
The Dom Cummings era is over,’ the Minister told me. ‘But if we’re going to replace it with the Carrie Symonds era, we’re f*****. The environment. Transgender rights. If that’s what we’re going to be about, our coalition is going to fall apart. It’s not what our voters want to hear. We’re going to lose … Read more
The fear in the Minister’s voice was palpable. ‘It’s not just going to be Covid. He’s going to focus on that. But then it will spiral off into all sorts of other issues. It’s really scary.’ Nigel Farage is back. Last week it was announced the Brexit Party would be rebranding as Reform UK. Its mission: … Read more
Mark Rosser is nervous. ‘You’re the second person to call me today. Why are you doing this? Are you checking up on me?’ I’m actually seeing if it’s possible to book a room at his Crown Lodge B&B in Harlech, Gwynedd. The answer, apparently, is no. ‘Are you mad? I’m not even allowed to leave … Read more