The Guardian Opinion

His plan for the country is still vague, but there are clues to what he thinks, on topics from inheritance tax to welfare and social careOne week on from Keir Starmer’s resignation, Britain finds itself in a state of both certainty and ambiguity. It is almost guaranteed that Andy Burnham will be prime minister by the end of the summer, bar sudden scandal or meteorite. And yet, whether Burnham gets his expected coronation or not, the infancy of his return to Westminster coupled with the speed of

The country is dependent on the global giants that call Dublin home. Irish ministers can’t be trusted to chair vital European digital sovereignty talksOn the face of it, Ireland behaves like a good European by being a staunch advocate of human rights and a beacon of progressivism on the western edge of the continent. But there is one vital area in which its record is less than perfect – one that should cause concern when the Irish government takes over the rotating six-month presidency of the EU

A natural disaster provides unforgiving clarity in a country already reeling from years of crisis and the unlawful US seizure of Nicolás MaduroThe devastation wrought by an earthquake is shaped by what happened before and after it as much as by the shock itself. The twin tremors that hit Venezuela moments apart last Wednesday were its biggest since 1900, at 7.2 and 7.5, and were shallow temblors, which often cause more destruction than deeper ones of similar magnitude. Aftershocks continued on M

Readers respond to the findings of the Ockenden inquiry, which revealed that more than 500 mothers and babies came to harm or died as a result of inadequate care in NottinghamRhiannon Lucy Cosslett asks why women are so routinely ignored in their maternity care (Belittled, ignored or gaslit – now we know the true cost of not listening to pregnant women, 25 June). Our research on formal reports about women’s poor maternity care identifies various reasons why women are not listened to, and they al

Rob Fink reveals what happened when he spotted someone eating the Danish bøfsandwich, in response to an article on the cultural links of food The “chickpea trail”, as described by Federico De Blasi, is a wonderful example of historical cross-border cultural and trading links founded on food (Tracing one delicious snack around the Mediterranean showed me that modern borders are absurd, 26 June). But such links need not be ancient and can sometimes be newly forged.A few years ago, my family and I

Readers offer suggestions on what to do with a royal residence that won’t have a king or queenSo Buckingham Palace is no longer needed by the monarchy (Report, 25 June) and the Houses of Parliament are no longer fit for purpose. How about a temporary move for the latter into the former while waiting for a new building, ideally in Birmingham or Manchester (real devolution).In this way, taxpayers might see some benefit from the £369m spent on the former royal residence. Part of it could still be u

Tennis players’ media duties | Train services | HS2 | Night-time | Bad BunnyI’m sure I’m not the only one saddened at the news that the top tennis players have decided not to continue their protest over prize money and have agreed to carry out their media duties during Wimbledon in full (29 June). I had hoped they could be persuaded to institute a complete ban, rather than the partial one originally threatened, and thus spare us from inane and unrevealing pre- and post-match interviews.Peter Bol

His big speech showed promise, but the need is urgent. Keir Starmer failed to fix a broken economic model; Burnham must not make the same mistakeToday’s speech by Andy Burnham underlines that he represents a shift in vibes. What matters, however, is substance, and on that front we still have more questions than answers.Our soon-to-be prime minister made plenty of good noises. His speech was at the People’s History Museum in Manchester, which showcases the struggles of ordinary people – such as t

The forefronting of macho personas like Cain’s is cynical, and misses the reality of my generation’s experiencesBBC was aware of concerns over Ashley Cain’s ‘toxic masculinity’ onlineRecent weeks have not been good for Ashley Cain, the former footballer and now former presenter of BBC Three’s Ashley Cain: Into the Danger Zone. While he was once seen as a catch for a legacy broadcaster keen to win back the attention of young men, the Guardian brought to light a number of disturbing posts made by

Air conditioning can bring significant benefits but also real harms. The answer is for it to take its place alongside a comprehensive state plan for climate adaptationAs Britain reels from Europe’s worst ever heatwave, many households are, for the first time, seriously considering air conditioning. Leftists have often been critical of AC, pointing out that there are cheaper, more ecological ways to combat severe heat. But with decades of underinvestment leaving the UK dismally unprepared to hand

The court martial system for personnel on overseas airbases serves US interests – but what about those of their host nations?A British victim of crime, on British soil, might reasonably expect their assailant to be tried in the British justice system. That was not Sarah Steele’s experience. US military police quickly took charge of investigating her assault by Jacob Wulfson in late 2023, and the airman was prosecuted in a US court martial – for a crime that took place off duty and off base, in a

With a new prime minister incoming, Labour faces a fundamental question about its economic visionAs Keir Starmer stands down as prime minister and attention turns toward Andy Burnham, the current moment should not be reduced to a story of personalities. The question that matters is strategy, and the Labour party has three years left to get this right.When Labour won its landslide in July 2024, it did so on the promise of a new kind of governance: five national missions to tackle the UK’s deepest

Delegates at an ‘anti-woke’ conference disparaged Ed Miliband’s net zero policies. But even they could not ignore the sweat on their foreheadsIt was hardly a perfect film, but I keep thinking of Don’t Look Up. In its depiction of a world that stubbornly refuses to heed the warnings of an imminent planetary disaster, it was perhaps too on the nose. But these days, reality itself is too on the nose.This week served up ample evidence, on both sides of the Atlantic. In Britain, like much of Europe,

But with rumours about a certain workshy Windsor circulating this week, are we actually encouraging joblessness with an overly generous safety net?Finally, some part of our struggling state is getting a massive budget increase – and it’s not even the welfare bill, like normal. Or maybe it is? The monarchy’s core funding is going to double to £100m. Also mentioned under cover of the same info dump is the fact that the refurbishment of Buckingham Palace is currently coming in at £369m, but the Kin

He’s the only person who can keep Nigel Farage out of Downing Street, so let’s embrace his unique blend of optimism and realismAs Keir Starmer bid a brief and emotional farewell at that pillory of a lectern, there was a moment for some to ask: what have we done, and why? He’s not a bad man, not a Boris Johnson or Liz Truss rogue prime minister. How decadent, if lack of charisma has become a sacking offence.But the reason why isn’t written in Westminster. It’s there in councils up and down the co

The Makerfield MP’s surge towards No 10 is a seductive ad for the power of positive politics. How long that proves effective depends on his next movesThe creation of hope is a vital but risky part of democratic politics. Leaders or would-be leaders who arouse hope attract supporters, motivate activists, achieve momentum and win over voters – and then have a chance of holding together political parties, governments and societies in harder times. From Barack Obama to Clement Attlee, Salvador Allen

Migration and cultural exchange have always been the norm between coastal European and African nations. We should celebrate this shared historyWe are used to mapping the world by continents, dividing the globe into rigid geopolitical blocks. But to understand the complex reality behind each border, we are better off using a different, edible kind of cartography. For most of human existence, the Mediterranean has existed as an intercultural entity in its own right, where peoples and languages fro

To stay popular with the public – and his backbenchers – he’ll need to make big changes fast. That means changing the way the government borrowsA Labour leader arrives, shirt and smile ironed into place, in his hands a big idea. He has polished one slogan, prepped three anecdotes, memorised eight bullet points. He wants more cash for vital services, or workers to have a stake in their employers, or to take some utility into public control. Not so big an idea, really, but, right on cue, the attac

The outgoing prime minister’s efforts to mobilise a healthier kind of patriotism fell flat. Andy Burnham may stand a better chanceBritain is not ungovernable, but the chalice of high office has been spiked with unusually fast-acting poison. Six prime ministers down in a decade. The spectacle of the lectern planted outside No 10 for a resignation speech has acquired the familiarity of ritual.Since the Brexit referendum, the average tenure in Downing Street has been less than two years. That ballo

Despite Friday’s awful rail crash, it was the PM-in-waiting’s journey from Manchester to London that dominated the headlinesBogglingly, Andy Burnham didn’t even wait to become prime minister before organising yesterday’s ludicrous photo of him standing in Westminster Hall, backdropped by hundreds of fawning Labour MPs, like Dorothy surrounded by the munchkins. Or like the bit in Return of the Jedi where the detestably cutesy Ewoks worship C-3PO as a god. Actually, the Westminster Hall visual was