Latest news with #MarinaWheeler
The Independent
28-05-2025
- Business
- The Independent
Boris Johnson's ex-wife hits out at his Brexit deal
Marina Wheeler, Boris Johnson 's ex-wife, is releasing a book titled A More Perfect Union that critiques the Brexit deal her former husband negotiated. Ms Wheeler's book will advocate for a closer relationship between Britain and the EU, urging political leaders to acknowledge Europe's central role in Britain's future. The book's publisher, Weidenfeld & Nicolson, likens Mr Johnson's Brexit deal to a bare-minimum divorce settlement, emphasising the need for broader cooperation between Britain and Europe. Ms Wheeler, a human rights lawyer who separated from Mr Johnson in 2018, argues that the current global instability presents an opportunity to rectify past mistakes and build a stronger, more unified Europe. The announcement follows Boris Johnson's recent criticism of current Prime Minister Sir Keir Starmer 's Brexit deal, which he described as "hopelessly one-sided".
Yahoo
28-05-2025
- Business
- Yahoo
Boris Johnson's ex-wife urges Starmer to take ‘radical' steps to correct Brexit mistakes
Boris Johnson's ex-wife has urged Sir Keir Starmer to take a 'more radical' approach to Brexit in order to correct the errors made in the EU deal struck by her former husband. Marina Wheeler, a human rights lawyer, has announced she is writing a new book urging the prime minister to go much further in his Brexit reset mission and build closer relations with Brussels. The new book, titled A More Perfect Union, will call on political leaders to admit that 'Europe is once again central to Britain's future' and argue that Britain should 'build a union' with the bloc again. It comes just days after Mr Johnson launched a scathing attack on the prime minister's Brexit deal, which he claimed was 'hopelessly one-sided'. 'Starmer promised at the election that he would not go back on Brexit. He has broken that promise as he broke his promise on tax', the former prime minister posted on X. Sir Keir – who has made a Brexit reset a centrepiece of his administration – said last week's UK-EU summit marks a 'new era' of relations with the bloc, adding that it is about 'moving on from stale old debates' and 'looking forward, not backwards'. The deal - which was the first serious attempt to fix the harms caused by Brexit after Boris Johnson's flawed deal in late 2019 - was seen as a major coup for the prime minister, despite his failure to get concrete details agreed on defence and youth mobility. Ms Wheeler's publisher, Weidenfeld & Nicolson, said her book would compare her ex-husband's Brexit deal to a divorce settlement. 'Like a court order in a divorce, the Brexit deal contains our bare legal obligations', they said. 'Yet as dangerous forces gather and global technologies stoke animosity, we have a wider duty. If Britain and Europe can't work together, what chance do democracy and the rule of law have?', the publisher said. Ms Wheeler added: 'Nearly 10 years after Britain voted to leave the EU, the unstable state of the world is clear to us all. Less obvious is the extraordinary opportunity this presents to put right what went wrong before and build a Europe we can together defend." The human rights barrister was married to Mr Johnson for 25 years, separating in 2018 after having four children. The book's synopsis reads: 'Labour aims for a 'reset'. Barrister and mediator Marina Wheeler proposes something more radical: a roadmap towards a meaningful rapprochement. 'In A More Perfect Union, she tackles the political anxieties and identity crises on both sides of the Channel, and makes the case that transforming this relationship is now critical if our fundamental political liberties are to survive another generation. 'Concise, forensic, devastating, it is essential reading no matter which side you were on.' The government has been contacted for comment.
The Independent
28-05-2025
- Business
- The Independent
Boris Johnson's ex-wife urges Starmer to take ‘radical' steps to correct Brexit mistakes
Boris Johnson 's ex-wife has urged Sir Keir Starmer to take a 'more radical' approach to Brexit in order to correct the errors made in the EU deal struck by her former husband. Marina Wheeler, a human rights lawyer, has announced she is writing a new book urging the prime minister to go much further in his Brexit reset mission and build closer relations with Brussels. The new book, titled A More Perfect Union, will call on political leaders to admit that 'Europe is once again central to Britain's future' and argue that Britain should 'build a union' with the bloc again. It comes just days after Mr Johnson launched a scathing attack on the prime minister's Brexit deal, which he claimed was 'hopelessly one-sided'. 'Starmer promised at the election that he would not go back on Brexit. He has broken that promise as he broke his promise on tax', the former prime minister posted on X. Sir Keir – who has made a Brexit reset a centrepiece of his administration – said last week's UK- EU summit marks a 'new era' of relations with the bloc, adding that it is about 'moving on from stale old debates' and 'looking forward, not backwards'. The deal - which was the first serious attempt to fix the harms caused by Brexit after Boris Johnson 's flawed deal in late 2019 - was seen as a major coup for the prime minister, despite his failure to get concrete details agreed on defence and youth mobility. Ms Wheeler's publisher, Weidenfeld & Nicolson, said her book would compare her ex-husband's Brexit deal to a divorce settlement. 'Like a court order in a divorce, the Brexit deal contains our bare legal obligations', they said. 'Yet as dangerous forces gather and global technologies stoke animosity, we have a wider duty. If Britain and Europe can't work together, what chance do democracy and the rule of law have?', the publisher said. Ms Wheeler added: 'Nearly 10 years after Britain voted to leave the EU, the unstable state of the world is clear to us all. Less obvious is the extraordinary opportunity this presents to put right what went wrong before and build a Europe we can together defend." The human rights barrister was married to Mr Johnson for 25 years, separating in 2018 after having four children. The book's synopsis reads: 'Labour aims for a 'reset'. Barrister and mediator Marina Wheeler proposes something more radical: a roadmap towards a meaningful rapprochement. 'In A More Perfect Union, she tackles the political anxieties and identity crises on both sides of the Channel, and makes the case that transforming this relationship is now critical if our fundamental political liberties are to survive another generation. 'Concise, forensic, devastating, it is essential reading no matter which side you were on.'
Telegraph
28-05-2025
- Business
- Telegraph
Boris Johnson's ex-wife urges Britain to ‘put right what went wrong' with Brexit
Boris Johnson's ex-wife has urged Britain to embrace the European Union and 'put right what went wrong' in his Brexit deal. Marina Wheeler KC, a human rights lawyer, is writing a new book arguing for a closer relationship between Britain and Brussels. The book, announced on Wednesday, will demand a 'more radical' approach than Sir Keir Starmer's 'reset' and an admission that 'Europe is once again central to Britain's future'. It comes days Mr Johnson branded Sir Keir the 'orange ball-chewing manacled gimp of Brussels' over his EU deal, which gave European fishermen 12-year access to British fishing waters and reinstated the jurisdiction of the European Court of Justice over the UK on some matters. Ms Wheeler's book, which will be published in October, will instead argue that Britain should 'build a union' with the EU again. Her publisher said it would compare the Brexit agreement negotiated by her ex-husband to a marital separation, arguing: 'Like a court order in a divorce, the Brexit deal contains our bare legal obligations. 'Yet as dangerous forces gather and global technologies stoke animosity, we have a wider duty. If Britain and Europe can't work together, what chance do democracy and the rule of law have?' The book is titled A More Perfect Union: The Europe We Need and was acquired by Weidenfeld & Nicolson. Ms Wheeler said: 'Nearly 10 years after Britain voted to leave the EU, the unstable state of the world is clear to us all. 'Less obvious is the extraordinary opportunity this presents to put right what went wrong before and build a Europe we can together defend.' Ms Wheeler is a successful human rights barrister who took silk in 2016, and specialises in 'detention, mental health and national security issues', according to the website of her chambers, 1 Crown Office Row. She married Mr Johnson in 1993 and remained with him until 2018. They have four children. The couple reached a divorce settlement in early 2020, shortly before Mr Johnson's third marriage, to Carrie Symonds, who by that time lived with him in a flat above Downing Street. On Saturday, Mr and Mrs Johnson announced the birth of their fourth child, Poppy. Ms Wheeler revealed in 2021 that she had ended the marriage with Mr Johnson, telling Good Housekeeping: 'My 25-year marriage had become impossible, so I ended it, but the whole business was grim.' She was diagnosed with cervical cancer in early 2019, while their separation proceedings were ongoing. She has since recovered. Her new book follows the publication of The Lost Homestead, a biography of her Sikh mother at the time of the partition of India in 1947. The blurb of her latest book says: 'Labour aims for a 'reset'. Barrister and mediator Marina Wheeler proposes something more radical: a roadmap towards a meaningful rapprochement. 'In A More Perfect Union, she tackles the political anxieties and identity crises on both sides of the Channel, and makes the case that transforming this relationship is now critical if our fundamental political liberties are to survive another generation. 'Concise, forensic, devastating, it is essential reading no matter which side you were on.'
The Guardian
24-05-2025
- Entertainment
- The Guardian
‘We're totally smitten': Boris and Carrie Johnson welcome fourth baby
Former prime minister Boris Johnson and his wife, Carrie Johnson, have welcomed a fourth baby to the family. The former leader of the Conservative party can be seen holding his daughter, Poppy Eliza Josephine Johnson, in an Instagram post shared on Saturday. Johnson shared a carousel of photographs announcing the news, adding that their baby was born on 21 May and that they are 'totally smitten'. In the caption, Johnson wrote: 'Welcome to the world Poppy Eliza Josephine Johnson born on 21st May. 'I can't believe how pretty and tiny you are. Feel so incredibly lucky. We are all totally smitten. Not sure I've slept a minute since you were born as can't stop looking at how completely lovely you are.' The couple was married in May 2021 at Westminster Cathedral and share three children, Wilfred, Romy and Frank, with Poppy joining as the 'final gang member'. They had their first child, Wilfred, in April 2020, in the early months of the Covid-19 crisis. Carrie Johnson added: 'Wilf, Romy and Frank are utterly delighted, particularly Romy who was desperate for a little sister. Bring on the matching dresses. A final gang member. 'Back from hospital now and time for cocktails and pizza with my tiny baby snoozing on my lap. Life doesn't get any better.' Johnson, 60, also shares four children with his ex-wife, lawyer Marina Wheeler, and a child, born in 2009, as a result of an affair with art consultant Helen Macintyre. Succeeding Theresa May, Johnson was prime minister from July 2019 until his resignation in September 2022.
