Duncan Robinson

London

Columnist and Political Editor at The Economist

Bagehot columnist and political editor at The Economist. https://t.co/HXfxlXzJCg

Articles

Gainsborough in London

Feb 11, 2025 | dialnet.unirioja.es | Duncan Robinson

Ayuda Buscar en la ayuda Buscar en la ayuda
Must Leeds always lose?

Feb 5, 2025 | economist.com | Duncan Robinson

Too prosperous to pity. Too poor to thriveAttendees heading to Leeds Dock for the “Real Estate Investment and Infrastructure Forum” in May are in for a treat. Infrastructure-lovers arriving in the northern city by train should head down into the bowels of the station, ignoring the whiff of damp from its position on arches above the River Aire. Cut through the quayside new-builds towards a crumbling stone jetty. A tram was supposed to link the dock to the station. It was never built.
Labour will spend 2025 doing what it loves: fighting itself

Nov 20, 2024 | economist.com | Duncan Robinson

But it can afford to, because the Conservatives will be fighting everyone elseBy Duncan Robinson, Political editor and Bagehot columnist, The Economist The Labour Party hates two things, runs the old joke: getting its own way, and each other. In 2025, Sir Keir Starmer’s government may have a majority of 154 in the House of Commons; it may sit atop the world’s least constrained executive; it may have four clear years to bend the country to its will. Is it happy? Not really.
Inside the chaos machine of British politics

Sep 25, 2024 | economist.com | Duncan Robinson

Politicians often promise what they cannot achieve. Usually it is the prospect of national glory or prosperity without pain. But even the most prosaic pledge can sometimes fail. Sir Keir Starmer, the prime minister, entered office with an offer to bring “calm” to a country fed up after a decade of political ructions. Sadly for Sir Keir, it is not in his gift. British politics is built for chaos.
What now for Britain’s right-wing parties?

Jul 5, 2024 | economist.com | Duncan Robinson

Britain | BagehotThe Conservatives, Reform UK and the regressive dilemma Photograph: Getty Images Jul 5th 2024Britain is, in general, ruled by the Conservative Party for a simple reason: small-“c” conservative voters unite behind one party, whereas progressive voters split themselves across many parties. Thinkers labelled this the “progressive dilemma”: until progressives learned to work together, they would be locked out of power.
The Liberal Democrats could become the main opposition in Britain

Jul 2, 2024 | economist.com | Duncan Robinson

Britain | Stranger thingsA small but significant chance of an absurd outcomePhotograph: Alamy Jul 2nd 2024On July 1st Sir Ed Davey, the leader of the Liberal Democrats, performed another publicity-seeking stunt in a campaign full of them—bungee jumping.
Britain’s Conservative Party faces up to its own mortality

Jun 28, 2024 | economist.com | Duncan Robinson

Britain | BagehotDulce et decorum est pro parte moriIllustration: Nate Kitch Jun 28th 2024Open a history book about Britain at random and you will probably come across a distant relative of Jeremy Hunt, the chancellor of the exchequer, being shot at. Mr Hunt comes from a long line of brigadiers, admirals and colonial administrators (along with the occasional vicar), the types of people who have long made up England’s elite.
Bootlicking: a guide to pre-election British politics

Apr 10, 2024 | economist.com | Duncan Robinson

Apr 10th 2024Daytime television is a surprisingly dangerous place for a politician. During the 2019 general-election campaign, Boris Johnson was chased into an industrial fridge by an intrepid reporter from “Good Morning Britain”, a chatty breakfast show. In 2012, during a live interview on “This Morning”, a usually lightweight late-morning show, a presenter handed David Cameron, then the prime minister, a list of politicians suspected of paedophilia.