Markus Andrews

Sign up for the View from Westminster email for expert analysis straight to your inboxGet our free View from Westminster email“If you want politics as pantomime,” Sir Keir Starmer said at his party’s manifesto launch last week, “I hear Clacton is nice this time of year.”The Labour leader’s remarks were a not-so-subtle barb at Nigel Farage, the Reform UK leader, who has launched his return to politics in the Essex seat.But Jovan Owusu-Nepaul, Labour’s candidate, will be hoping he can convince voters in the seat to call curtains on Mr Farage’s eighth attempt to become an MP.A recent poll by Electoral Calculus suggests Mr Farage is likely to win the constituency relatively comfortably, securing 39 per cent of the vote.Labour candidate Jovan Owusu-Nepaul pictured with Reform leader Nigel Farage More

Sign up for the View from Westminster email for expert analysis straight to your inboxGet our free View from Westminster emailWatch as Nigel Farage launches Reform UK’s election manifesto on Monday 17 June.Farage is set to unveil the manifesto, which the party dubs a “contract” with voters, in Wales.Speaking ahead of the event, the Reform leader said he is “launching a crusade to defend British values” and that the location was chosen “because it shows everyone exactly what happens to a country when Labour is in charge”.He will set out Reform’s policies in Merthyr Tydfil, South Wales, at 1pm before taking questions.The party will fight the election on immigration, with policies already announced including an “employer immigration tax” on companies who choose to employ overseas workers instead of British citizens.Reform has vowed to freeze lawful immigration with the exception of healthcare workers and leave the European Convention on Human Rights.On the economy, the party has set out an ambition to slash £91 billion off public spending by stopping the Bank of England paying interest on quantitative easing reserves and finding £50 billion of wasteful spending in Whitehall.It has promised there would be no tax on earnings under £20,000 a year, that it would abolish the government’s net-zero targets and “stand up for British culture, identity and values”. More

Nigel Farage has acknowledged that Reform UK would not form the government after the general election – but he said it was the first step on the road to the next contest which could be in 2029.Speaking in Merthyr Tydfil as he launched the party’s manifesto, Mr Farage said: “We are not pretending that we are going to win this general election, we are a very, very new political party.”“Our ambition is to establish a bridgehead in parliament, and to become a real opposition to a Labour government,” he added.Mr Farage went on to say that the Tories would not be able to provide opposition because “they spend most of their days arguing among themselves”. More

Sign up for the View from Westminster email for expert analysis straight to your inboxGet our free View from Westminster emailGrant Shapps has admitted the Conservatives are unlikely to win the general election, saying he is a realist and pleading with voters to help prevent a massive Labour majority instead.The defence secretary said he would not “pretend black is white” by claiming Rishi Sunak is on course to remain prime minister, adding it is “not the most likely outcome”.And while he said a Tory win is still possible, he said he lives “in the real world” and warned of “the dangers of Labour” if Sir Keir Starmer enters Downing Street with what he called a supermajority.Defence Secretary Grant Shapps said he ‘lives in the real world’ More

Sign up for the View from Westminster email for expert analysis straight to your inboxGet our free View from Westminster emailSuella Braverman’s new TikTok video described as “cringey” has left many viewers confused about whether it is just a parody.The former home secretary was filmed doing a swaggering dance to the soundtrack of Fedde Le Grand and Ida Corr’s 2006 hit ‘Let Me Think About It’.She launched the new account on the social media platform last week with a handful of videos as part of her general election campaign, and it has already received tens of thousands of views.Wearing dark sunglasses and green trousers, the Conservative candidate for Fareham and Waterlooville does not speak during the 15-second clip.Instead, a caption appears asking whether voters will support her at the upcoming general election on 4 July, while a remix of the popular song plays in the background.Ms Braverman tries to capitalise on a viral trend on TikTok More

A Conservative general election victory will be “tough”, a cabinet minister has acknowledged, in the latest sign that the Tory campaign is now focused on saving as many seats as possible to form an effective opposition.Grant Shapps said on Monday 17 June that he is a “realist” and would not “try and pretend black is white” by claiming his party is on course for victory.He did, however, insist they are “fighting for every single last vote”.“I am entirely realistic about this, I know that we are the underdogs,” Mr Shapps told BBC Breakfast. More

Sign up to our free Brexit and beyond email for the latest headlines on what Brexit is meaning for the UKSign up to our Brexit email for the latest insightNewly-crowned Reform UK leader Nigel Farage is set to unveil his party’s manifesto on Monday.It comes after a buoyant week for the former Ukip leader, with an explosive poll placing Mr Farage’s party ahead of the Tories for the first time in history.However, with only three weeks before election day, Prime Minister Rishi Sunak insisted the Conservatives would not come third at the general election and said they are “still fighting hard for every vote”.Meanwhile, Mr Farage has declared himself and his party the “new opposition” following the groundbreaking YouGov pollSpeaking during a press conference in London on Friday, the staunch Brexiteer called on Labour leader Sir Keir Starmer to face him in a head-to-head televised debate on migration.So what’s Mr Farage’s plan? Does he intend to take over the Conservative Party from the outside? Or will he attempt to usurp them completely as Reform’s popularity grows?What could Mr Farage’s victory mean for the future of UK politics? And what can we expect from a Reform manifesto?If you have a question on Mr Farage’s explosive return to frontline politics submit it now, or when I join you live at 12pm on Tuesday 18 June for the “Ask Me Anything” event.Register to submit your question in the comments box under this article.Scroll down or click here to leave your comment.If you’re not already a member, click “sign up” in the comments section to leave your question. For a full guide on how to comment click here.Don’t worry if you can’t see your question – they may be hidden until I join the conversation to answer them. Then join us live on this page at 12pm as I tackle as many questions as I can. More

A former subpostmaster who lost his livelihood in the Horizon IT scandal has accused Liberal Democrat leader Sir Ed Davey of “buffoonery” for his stunt-laden election campaign.Lee Castleton compared Sir Ed’s actions to those of former Tory prime minister Boris Johnson, adding that trust is “never going to be built” by “paddleboarding in Cumbria”.Sir Ed has come under fire for not doing more to help wrongly-convicted subpostmasters between 2010 and 2012 when he served as postal affairs minister in the coalition government.He has previously apologised for failing to see through the Post Office’s “lies” and insisted he is taking voters’ concerns seriously during a campaign in which he has visited a theme park and an assault course. More