Latest news with #Brexiteer
Euractiv
18 hours ago
- Business
- Euractiv
A new low: Turnberry spells the end time for the EU's common commercial policy
John Clarke is a trade consultant and former top trade negotiator at the European Commission and Head of the EU Delegation to the WTO and UN. I thought the Brexit deal was the worst trade deal in history. But the Turnberry deal between the US and Europe is giving it a good run for its money. Call me naïve, but aren't trade agreements meant to reduce tariffs, increase trade and benefit consumers? The Turnberry deal fails on all counts. The EU faces an across-the-board 15% tariff and even higher duties on steel, with more bad news to come in August when the US will slap tariffs on pharmaceuticals. Europe has condoned Trump's totally illegal tariff hikes, in defiance of international law. Nothing to be proud of. On the other side of the ledger, the EU made – thankfully – empty and unenforceable promises to buy more US energy, invest $600 billion in US manufacturing, and buy more US weaponry, all of which it was already planning to do. There is much irony in the self-styled freebooting US asking the EU to behave as a non-market economy like China, telling companies what to buy or where to invest. The EU has also committed to removing tariffs on a range of US exports, from lobsters to machinery. It remains unclear whether this will be on a non-discriminatory basis or just for the US – which would be illegal. The Commission's press briefing on Sunday shed no light on this. The EU should have been tougher much earlier, as China was. As Canada is. Instead, thinking it was negotiating a classic trade deal with a reliable partner, one based on mutual benefit, the EU time and again postponed retaliatory measures against the illegal US tariffs to give peace a chance. Trump took advantage of European naivety. Mars against Venus. The mafia bully won. This is not only about tariffs. EU business will, with some pain, adjust to a 15% duty. Business groups initially responded with relief because things could have been far worse – a 30% tariff, a 50% tariff on metals, a 200% tariff on wines…. At least now there may be some predictability in the transatlantic relationship that will help companies plan and invest. But they will hesitate before upping investment in the US. No, beyond tariffs, geopolitics dictated this outcome. In several ways. First, Trump detests the EU and wanted to punish it for both running a trade surplus (in goods only, with services they are in balance), and for being a defender of multilateral institutions. He was also determined that it should get a worse deal than the UK, to encourage the Brexiteer narrative. Secondly, the EU negotiated from a position of weakness, given the overriding priority of avoiding a trade war and breakdown of relations that could have risked the end of the US's already lukewarm support for Ukraine. There was no alternative, to quote Margaret Thatcher. The commitment to buy more US arms was to keep the US inside the tent. We shall see if it has that effect. Thirdly, the EU's unity on trade policy – already fraying – is now in tatters. This agreement sounds the death knell for the EU's vaunted Common Commercial Policy. The EU proved unable to use its considerable leverage as the world's biggest trading bloc to get a balanced agreement. And it failed to get its member states to take a unified stance – notably to do what China did and impose perfectly legitimate retaliatory duties (the only language Trump understands). This damage dates back from the restrictions imposed by Poland and others on Ukrainian imports two years ago, in blatant disregard for the single market, which Brussels accepted, and which I criticised heavily at the time. With this agreement, the EU now condones the USA's WTO-illegal behaviour. It's very sad to see the EU so helpless. Pragmatism should have had its limits. And it's not over. Companies should not assume that the trade relationship has now stabilised. In early August the US will announce tariffs on pharmaceuticals, expected to also be at 15%. It's unclear what has been agreed on cars. The two sides have still to negotiate quotas on steel and aluminium to replace the current 50% tariff. On top of this, the US will be watching closely if Europe indeed purchases defence materiel, invests in manufacturing in rustbelt red states, and honours its promise to buy $750 billion of mostly environmentally-damaging fossil fuels over the next three years. And who knows whether the US itself will stick to the deal? It has a chequered record of adherence to international commitments. So, as Lenny Kravitz – that renowned commentator on trade policy – once tartly observed, 'It ain't over til' its over'. Except that it is over for the EU's common commercial policy. China, Russia and others will be buying the popcorn and smugly watching this act of self-harm.
Metro
22-07-2025
- Business
- Metro
Wetherspoon boss Tim Martin reveals unlikely inspiration behind pub chain
Wetherspoon boss Tim Martin has hailed the founding fathers of America as his biggest inspiration as he spoke ahead of the opening of a new pub named after a major peace treaty. Tim Martin said democracy is 'the important factor in the development of society' — although he admitted his knowledge of history is 'scant'. The company's founder spoke as the chain prepares to open five pubs including the Dictum of Kenilworth. Converted from a former discount store, the £3.2 million venue is named after a 13th Century pronouncement to reconcile the rebels of the Second Barons' War — a group of whom held out in the town's castle— with the royal government of England. 'A lot of businesses in recent decades have gone down a 'branding' route, whereby decor, design, the name and so on are linked to a particular image or brand,' Martin said. 'We've always felt that pubs are more individual and people appreciate authentic links to the community and to the past: to local people, the building, and history. 'We also try and include some works by local artists. 'Many of our early London pubs, for example, featured artwork by my cousin Gabrielle, who comes from nearby Coventry.' Asked if there is a figure from history he most admired, the company's chairman picked out the founding fathers who are credited with establishing the American identity in the late 18th Century. 'I think the most important factor in the development of society is democracy – in spite of the turbulence and arguments it inevitably involves,' he said. 'In that respect America is the most important democracy, which has helped Western Europe, Japan, South Korea and many other countries emerge from authoritarianism. 'So I'd have to say the founding fathers of America are my inspiration, although my knowledge of history is scant.' Wetherspoon is due to open the pubs before the end of the year, all of which incorporate local history into their design. However one desired conversion at the heart of British political history, where Martin will go down as an outspoken Brexiteer, will remain out of reach. 'Wags have often suggested we could convert the Houses of Parliament into a pub, but that's probably a bridge too far,' he said. Seventy jobs will be created following a £3.2 million development project to create the Dictum, according to Wetherspoon. More Trending Photos, details and artwork with local relevance will be displayed inside. Pub manager Tom Clarke said: 'Myself and my team are looking forward to welcoming customers into The Dictum of Kenilworth and we are confident that the pub will be a great addition to Kenilworth's social scene.' The other new pubs due to open are the Sun Wharf in London Bridge, previously The London Dungeon in Tooley Street, The Sir Alexander Fleming in Paddington, named after the eminent physician who discovered penicillin in nearby Queen Mary's Hospital, the Sigered, King of Essex in Basildon, a nod to the town's Saxon origins, and The Chiltern, set in a former silent picture house in Beaconsfield. Do you have a story you would like to share? Contact MORE: Globe-trotting couple couchsurf in Saudi Arabia on mission to visit 1,500 airports MORE: Wetherspoon fan books Ireland cruise on quest to visit all pubs in British Isles MORE: 'It gets me out of the house': Pensioner's 'hobby' sees him visit 900 Wetherspoons
Spectator
15-07-2025
- Politics
- Spectator
James Cleverly's case against the revolutionary right
There is a revolutionary air on the right at present. Whether it is Kemi Badenoch's call to 'rewire the state' or Nigel Farage's attacks on 'broken Britain', few have much good to say about our current political set-up. Step forward James Cleverly to offer balm to all that inflammation. At a speech this morning at the IPPR think tank, the former foreign secretary gave his thoughts on the rise of Reform UK and how government must change to function more effectively. Cleverly began by contrasting two Reform-run councils: Warwickshire and Leicestershire. Both wanted to change the rules to allow only national flags to be flown from council buildings. The former quickly became embroiled in a vicious war of words with its chief executive, prompting threats, warnings and Zia Yusuf decrying a 'coup'. The latter simply held a meeting of their executive and quietly changed the rules. 'Guess which Reform HQ was proud of?' asked Cleverly. 'The one who had the row – or the one who got the result.' His point was: 'delivery requires discipline'. In a twenty-minute speech, the ex-home secretary criticised those elements within Reform who think that 'fighting the system is more important than getting a result'. Cleverly's argument was that – contrary to popular belief – conservatives can achieve success in the current political system. He spoke of the importance of working with civil servants and reeled off his own record in office: migration halved, aid waste cut and relations reset. The system, though, is not perfect. Cleverly pointed out how, as Foreign Secretary, he would find officials working in teams dedicated to 'ministers' priorities'. When he enquired as to which priorities, he discovered that they were the ones of predecessors who had left sometime earlier. Redirecting resources and ensuring Whitehall is both 'leaner and more effective': Cleverly's points here are ones with which few conservatives would disagree. He attacked the quangocracy – 'If power lies where accountability does not, then it has to be changed' – and noted his own record as a longtime Brexiteer, a vote 'I would take again in a heartbeat'. There were some nice Cleverly touches too. He evidently has little time for certain defectors to Reform, the ones who only realised that they were not Tories after they were 'booted out of office'. His boosterism won fans in the room, including his final remarks that evoked the Roman spirit after the Battle of Cannae: 'Rome is not defeated until Rome chooses to be defeated.' But others will be disappointed by Cleverly's lack of radicalism. At one point, discussing reform of the state, he used the analogy of a Formula 1 racing car, pulling in to a pit stop mid-race. He argued that no sensible crew team would tear apart the whole car mid-race: 'You've got work with what you've got and make incremental improvements.' The obvious riposte to that is that, far from being an F1 race car, much of Whitehall today appears to more closely resemble an Austin Allegro. Given his stated preference for 'doing stuff', what does Cleverly now plan to do next? When asked for his future intentions – be that a frontbench return or a bid for London Mayor – the Braintree MP declined to be drawn. He preferred to point to the frustrations of opposition and suggested he is 'taking time to think'. Making the case for incrementalism could well keep him fully occupied, given the strength of feeling among many of his own colleagues.
Spectator
08-07-2025
- Politics
- Spectator
There'll never be another Norman Tebbit
The death of Norman Tebbit at the great age of 94 marks a real ending of an era. They simply don't make politicians like Lord Tebbit any more: caustic, high principled, Tebbit was a fighter rather than a quitter. The modern day Conservative party would be a very different outfit if it had a man like Tebbit in charge. His death is a painful reminder of what the party he was once chairman of has lost. Tebbit revelled in the insult bestowed on him by Labour leader Michael Foot as a 'semi-house trained polecat' Like Nigel Farage, who in many ways is his political successor, Tebbit was an unashamed right winger. He came from a working-class milieu and had a career as an airline pilot and leader of the pilots' Trade Union Balpa, before entering politics. He was MP for an Essex seat, Chingford, and revelled in the insult bestowed on him by Labour leader Michael Foot as a 'semi-house trained polecat' – a backhanded tribute to Tebbit's brutal Parliamentary harrying of Labour's failing governments in the 1970s. In many ways Tebbit epitomised the right-wing attitudes exemplified by 'Essex man': patriotic, hostile to mass immigration, opposed to strikes and trade union militancy, and very hardline on crime and punishment. He took no prisoners politically and was appropriately portrayed as a leather jacketed bovver boy in the TV satire show Spitting Image. Tebbit was the leading Thatcherite in Mrs Thatcher's cabinet, and as employment secretary in her first term was her chief ideological ally in her battles with the Tory 'wets' who opposed her radical policies. In his most famous speech in that time he attacked rioters, and advised them to get on their bikes and look for work like his own father had done in the 1930s. But Tebbit's political career received a brutal blow in 1984 when the IRA bombed the Grand Hotel in Brighton during the Tory party conference. Tebbit was rescued after being buried under rubble for hours, but he was severely injured and never free from pain thereafter. His wife, Margaret, was permanently paralysed. Although Tebbit remained a frontline minister and played a prominent part in Thatcher's last election victory in 1987, he retired from active politics in 1992 to care for his wife, and drew much sympathy for his tireless selflessness in looking after her. Iron entered his soul after the Brighton bombing, and understandably he was a fierce and unyielding enemy of appeasing terrorism in Ireland and elsewhere. A Eurosceptic, Tebbit was a Brexiteer, but privately was a critic of liberal Tories like David Cameron and Boris Johnson whom he felt had betrayed Mrs Thatcher's legacy. A hard man in public but with a privately tender side, Tebbit was like a fish out of water in the wet world of the 21st century Conservative party.
New Statesman
25-06-2025
- Entertainment
- New Statesman
Thomas Skinner's full English
Illustration by André Carrilho 'I don't plan – I just do everything on impulse.' So Thomas Skinner told the producers of The Apprentice before his television debut in 2019. And as we chatted before he spoke at the Roger Scruton Legacy Foundation's Now and England conference, I began to believe him. He was grinning at me in his bulky suit, his face ablaze with a suntan like a bank holiday weekend. I asked him what he knew about his co-panellists, the High Tory MP Danny Kruger, the Brexiteer historian Robert Tombs and the ex-Reform MP Rupert Lowe, latterly famous for calling for mass deportations. Skinner said he didn't know much about them. I asked him who had invited him to speak. 'James,' he replied, meaning James Orr, the Cambridge theology professor and close friend of JD Vance. But he said that he didn't really know James either. He'd simply accepted an invitation to talk about 'how much I love England'. Skinner's very presence here is a sign of the new strategies and gambits of the political right. His name will puzzle many otherwise switched-on, urbane readers. He started out as a pillow and mattress salesman, and then after his firing from The Apprentice – one of those decent, head-held-high firings, without the usual pleading and back-stabbing – Skinner remade himself a star of reality TV. He appeared on Celebrity MasterChef and 8 Out of 10 Cats. And, to far greater recognition, in mid 2022 he started to post videos of himself eating elaborately unhealthy meals on (then) Twitter, Instagram and TikTok. These meals are generally drawn from what I think of as the Great British, mid-week, can't-be-arsed menu: cottage pie, jacket potatoes and those domesticated exoticisms, curry, chilli con carne, Chinese. And like a Dickens character reminding you who they are after a multi-chapter absence, Skinner narrates these meals in a language of cheery catchphrases: 'Don't go home until you're proud'; 'Tough times don't last, but tough people do'; and, simply, 'Bosh!'. These videos, along with rolling footage of the Romford good life (golf, family BBQs, early-morning gym), have won Skinner an audience of 683,000 on Instagram alone. In recent months, however, something has shifted in his online persona. Skinner had always presented himself as a graduated member of the petite bourgeoisie (Ford Transit for work, red Bentley for play). But suddenly he started to post about his mates not wanting to go to church with him, about how families need more support with childcare costs, and about how 'London has fallen' with people 'too frightened to walk down their own street'. 'We need leadership that understands the streets, the markets, the working class', he wrote. 'People like me.' Dominic Cummings immediately offered his services for a London mayoral campaign. The reactionary right sniffed out a new champion in their battle against the libs. They believe Ray Parlour can be remade into their very own Hereward the Wake. And so, here is Skinner, taking his seat next to Rupert Lowe, in an Edwardian auditorium in Westminster. Around us were the Tory boys of stereotype: legions of gelled Malfoys, spotted with misshapen Crabbes and Goyles. First, though, both he and we had to endure the other speakers. Kruger kicked off. As he started speaking, Skinner spun his seat side-on and leant back a deckchair 45 degrees. Kruger talked about how England was the 'first nation', about Wycliffe, Bede and Alfred. And though we had been 'interpenetrated by foreigners', he exalted the great continuities in English history and that 'anyone can become English', a remark the man in front of me seemed to find oddly exercising. Behind me, a woman was resting her eyes. Skinner slouched and itched, swigging water directly from a large glass bottle (forgoing the tumbler provided). Subscribe to The New Statesman today from only £8.99 per month Subscribe Next up was Tombs, who was straightforwardly dull. He talked about how we should teach the history of the country we share, emphasising what we have in common. He recommended a long march through the woke institutions, making funding of public projects more accountable and regularising the national history taught in schools. By this time, Skinner was nearly horizontal, and gurning madly on a stick of chewing gum. Last of the old guard was Lowe. The most exciting part of his speech came at the start: his reading glasses hung around his neck in two halves, and when he started speaking he snapped them together at the nose with delicious emphasis. Lowe is captivating, like a public schoolmaster at chapel; indeed, he reads his own words as if they actually come from the Bible. He gave his usual scripture about the Blairite coup and government by lawyers. Skinner was completely lost to his phone, typing away, the stage lights glinting off his golden watch. But when his turn came around, he bounded to the podium. His speech was titled 'The England I Love'. England is 'the absolute guv'nor', he said, home of the rule of law, the Industrial Revolution and the World Wide Web. It is built on family, graft and community: 'The single mum up at 5am, getting her kids ready, before a long day of work, but who still finds the strength to smile.' But these people have been failed, 'left behind in [their] own country', with 'kids being taught to be ashamed of their own flag'. He advocated once again for better childcare and support for young parents, as well as more forceful police (because, 'let's be honest, they're pussies at the minute'). It was simple, stirring, populist stuff. He was the only speaker to be interrupted by applause. Throughout, Kruger was looking at Skinner warily, as though a drunk had wandered into his train carriage. Tombs was studying him intently, like the president of the Royal Society confronted with a baffling new specimen. Lowe just grinned maniacally. When Skinner had finished, he offered him an awkward, lingering but reciprocated high-five. I couldn't help but wonder what united Skinner with these three: a post-liberal party intellectual, a grandee academic and a seigneurial landowner. As the panel took questions, Lowe went further, leaning into his 'family business' (and, he neglected to say, multimillionaire) background, and championing people 'like Tom and his family'. And he was rewarded with an 'I agree with what Rupert just said', before the final 'I would literally say what Rupert just said but I'm getting hot and ready for a pint'. Skinner ultimately scrambled off the stage during the Q&A – he said he had to take a call – and it was a good time to leave. First, there was a question from Carl Benjamin, a disgraced alt-right YouTuber. And then, as Tombs was saying something anodyne about how anyone could be English, he was interrupted by a nativist heckler. 'Ridiculous!' someone said. 'You inherit Englishness, it's in your ancestry.' Tombs argued him down, but the mood had soured. Perhaps he had just meant inheritance in the sense that these things must be actively passed down. Perhaps not. In his present incarnation, Skinner is far too goofy for such talk. But, an hour after the social media star sprinted off the stage, Robert Jenrick posted a video with him (two hours from then, I see from X, Skinner was having spag bol at home). More than any other politician, Jenrick is desperate to join Skinner in the realm of the algorithmic celebrity. And here was their crossover, a discussion of tool theft and its effect on tradesmen. In his speech, Skinner confirmed he's 'thinking about giving it a go in politics'. In so many ways, he's already there. [See also: Dominic Cummings: oracle of the new British berserk] Related
