David Butler wrote in 1997 in his introduction to the definitive guide to the by-election: They may offer some guide to the public mood; but who now would dare to give a figure for the likely difference between a by-election … [Read more...] about The High-Stakes and Rather Unusual Makerfield By-Election
When the Representation of the People Bill 2026 enters committee stage in the House of Commons later this month, MPs will begin scrutinising one of the most significant pieces of legislation affecting UK elections for many years. This moment … [Read more...] about A New Government Bill: Elections May Never be the Same
Keir Starmer’s premiership is certainly struggling to sustain any forward momentum. One of the many accusations thrown at the Prime Minister relates to the multiple policy U-turns that he and his government have performed since coming to power in … [Read more...] about Government U-Turns: Feeble Politics or Valuable Pragmatism?
The Labour Party’s decision to prevent Andy Burnham, the directly elected Mayor of Greater Manchester, from standing as a parliamentary candidate in the forthcoming Gorton and Denton by-election has largely been treated as an episode of internal … [Read more...] about Our Elections are in a Chokehold: The Burnham Example
The introduction of a national digital ID scheme wasn’t in the 2024 Labour Party manifesto. It now seems a significant omission. National ID schemes have a rather chequered history, and Labour preferred not to reignite the debate during the general … [Read more...] about Identity – The Crisis You Can’t See: Time for digital ID?
Party conferences are weird things. Part political rally, part fund-raiser and part HR team-building exercise, they arguably fulfil none of these functions satisfactorily. And depending on one’s motivation for attending, the same conference can … [Read more...] about The Constitution at the Conferences: our Annual Review
For more than a decade, the question of Scotland’s place in the UK was at the front and centre of political debate – a determiner of voter behaviour and a precursor to the Scottish government’s legislative agenda. Through, and as a consequence of, … [Read more...] about A Quiet Union: The Calm Before the Storm?
English devolution has long been presented as decentralising political power. More often, it simply reinforces Westminster’s control. While the Labour Party was elected last year promising to take power away from SW1, early signs are that the Party’s … [Read more...] about Labour’s English Devolution Plans Risk More of the Same
The decision of the Labour Government to effectively close down NHS (England) came as a surprise to many. Although Wes Streeting, the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, had indicated he wanted to curtail NHS(E), outright abolition was not … [Read more...] about NHS (England): The Death of the Government “Agency”?
Voters in the Republic of Ireland went to the polls in late November. After several rounds of counting in the complex proportional representation system, Fianna Fáil proved the winner, securing 48 of the 174 seats available, ahead of Sinn Féin on 39 … [Read more...] about How Dublin’s Next Coalition Could Define Northern Ireland’s Destiny
Perhaps more than any other party, history holds a power over Labour’s present. This despite that, at a youthful 125, the Party is a relative newcomer to British politics. Labour differs from the other major parties of British history in that it was … [Read more...] about A Very Short History of the Labour Party
One of Donald Trump’s favourite complaints is about what he calls “election interference”. He throws the accusation around a bit like confetti – or is the correct term chaff? A recent example – and most noticed in the UK - has been his accusation … [Read more...] about Have Labour interfered in the US election?
