What has happened to my country? I have been a student, activist, MP, minister and writer in its political life for five decades. Never has it been so broken, divided, confused, uncertain about its future. The Queen’s death marked the last moment when the United Kingdom was briefly itself. Britain [...]
In this Federal Trust video, the former European Editor of The Guardian John Palmer speaks about the apparent pragmatism of the new Conservative government in discussing the Northern Ireland Protocol. Differences about the implementation of the Protocol remain, but the UK and the EU seem eager to find a solution [...]
Joint Conference by The James Madison Charitable Trust and The Federal Trust for Education and Research 29th October 2022 The union holding together the nations of the United Kingdom has come under strain. Challenges include the announcement of a referendum on independence in Scotland, the constitutional review by the Commission [...]
The Director of the Federal Trust, Brendan Donnelly, argues that Kwasi Kwarteng's budget reflects all the problems of Brexit. It is reckless, it is based on fantasy and it will help the minority at the expense of the majority. It is a giant step towards "Singapore on Thames." The reactions [...]
As the damage from leaving the European Union became increasingly clear, it was confidently predicted by many Remainers that the country would eventually ‘wake up’ to the fact that it was a mistake. However, there has been no sudden dawning of this sort and the country remains bitterly divided. So how might [...]
In this new Federal Trust video, the Trust's Chairman John Stevens argues that the new British Prime Minister, Liz Truss, is taking a dangerous gamble with the economic future of the United Kingdom, particularly in the context of the ongoing Brexit crisis. The UK is already facing a severe energy [...]
All the evidence - from shrinking trade, to relative economic performance, to the Northern Ireland protocol, to the rotting queues at Dover - indicate that Brexit has failed. It has not only been the disaster that Remainers warned, but has also failed to achieve the wild outcomes promised by the [...]
This article was first published by Global Policy Institute (London). Despite the apparent acceptance at international level of several linked, though in some cases contradictory, norms, namely the (civic) nation-state sovereignty, the territorial integrity of nations-states, unitary and federal governance structures, and the right of self-determination, these norms are frequently [...]
In this Federal Trust video, our Director Brendan Donnelly analyses the new initiative of Rishi Sunak to “deliver” Brexit and to keep it “safe.” His conclusion is that Brexit can never be delivered to the satisfaction of its supporters; and that Brexit is much less safe than its supporters might wish. [...]
In this video, our Director Brendan Donnelly discusses the role of Brexit in the Conservative leadership contest. He argues that the confused debate on European issues between Truss and Sunak reflects the incoherence of Brexit as a political project. He concludes that the Conservative Party is currently unable to discuss [...]
