AboutArticles by John Rentoul

‘Taxes will go up under Labour’ is the only way the Conservatives can fight back

26 Nov 2023

Norman Fowler is more of a lesser-sung public servant than an unsung hero. He was the health secretary who persuaded Margaret Thatcher to run a campaign to educate people about...

Rishi Sunak’s killer robots summit was a success

06 Nov 2023

We should proclaim the unsung success of Rishi Sunak’s artificial intelligence summit. It is easy to mock the prime minister’s fanboy interview with Elon Musk, and we can certainly have...

Labour would be nowhere without Rachel Reeves

15 Oct 2023

The party conference season is over, having confirmed the new power in the land. Rachel Reeves, the shadow chancellor, is now running the country. Keir Starmer, who had a successful...

No, Keir Starmer won’t be more radical in government

08 Oct 2023

Rachel Reeves, the shadow chancellor, has received unhelpful advice from both left and right. From the left, John McDonnell, her predecessor but one, says she will need a huge increase...

Is Rishi Sunak trying to lose the election?

24 Sep 2023

One of the most testing thought experiments is to assume that the opinion polls now are not what the election result will be, and to ask: “Higher or lower?” Ever...

Reeves will copy Brown’s stealth taxes

17 Sep 2023

Something has to give, and it is possible to predict what it will be. Keir Starmer and Rachel Reeves have tied themselves tightly with the bonds of fiscal responsibility. They...

Rishi Sunak and Jeremy Hunt need to be careful

03 Sep 2023

The Treasury was so surprised by the revised estimates of the British economy that it took three hours to respond after the Office for National Statistics (ONS) published its findings...

Why Keir Starmer is still waiting for Sue Gray?

27 Aug 2023

Sue Gray, the only former civil servant most people have heard of, starts work as Keir Starmer’s chief of staff next month. For some in the Labour leader’s office, “waiting...

Starmer’s reluctance to reshuffle his team shows limits of his power

20 Aug 2023

After two years of Tony Blair’s government, Martin Rowson, the cartoonist, identified what he thought was “the fundamental problem with New Labour…” He drew an adviser holding a satchel upside...

Nick Clegg is still propping up the Tory party

07 Aug 2023

If it had not been for Nick Clegg, it would be all over for Rishi Sunak by now. The former deputy prime minister, having roared mightily about constitutional reform, brought...

John Rentoul

Chief Political Commentator, The Independent; visiting professor, King's College, London.

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