But Keir Starmer needs his government to show an organising purpose that has been absent so far
As the international order cracks, the nation’s capabilities must adjust to a new world
Diarmaid Ferriter’s history of modern Ireland chronicles the dramatic social, political and economic shifts that have taken place within a generation
Whatever the outcome in November, governments will have to take more responsibility for their own security
The new prime minister will need to use the political capital that comes from a huge majority if he is to keep populism at bay
Tory radicals see a revolution as the path back to power but the pattern has been firmly set since 1922
Realism is not defeatism — Britain has plenty to offer when it concentrates its resources
The old rules were rewritten by the Good Friday peace agreement of 1998 and the global financial crash
Politics in the province cannot be forced into straight lines — this week’s deal follows the lessons of its history
They should give up abstentionism and try persuasion instead
EU governments could once claim to be players in the Middle East — no longer
Contrary to some expectations, the forces of change in Europe have been centripetal rather than centrifugal
An intricate account brings out the contrasts and commonalities in the lives of John Dillon and Charles Stewart Parnell
The legacy of privatisation reaches way beyond the water industry. Now, a rebalancing of market and state is needed
The fourth volume of the former Labour politician’s diaries skilfully weaves the personal with the political
Recent history demonstrates the need for Sunak’s Conservatives to rediscover moderation in time for polling day
Official spokesman and staunch loyalist of prime minister Margaret Thatcher
The prime minister must refurbish damaged relations with Britain’s allies — including opponents in the Brexit wrangles
Isolationist superpower or still ‘the world’s policeman’? Two books explore the competing impulses in US politics
The UK’s record means Labour’s leader is right not to seek a fast track back to the EU
Unionist intransigence over the Irish Sea border rests on insecurity
Ian Kershaw’s essays explore whether 20th-century leaders seized power through sheer force of personality or were mere opportunists
As political leaders came and went, the Queen held the nation together
The uncomfortable truth is that Britain is now a rule-taker, not a rule-maker
Ideological obsessions with Brexit and low tax are dragging the leadership hopefuls away from successful traditions
