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Politics + Society

Keir Starmer in the House of Commons

Labour’s disability cuts rebellion: a former government whip asks, how did Keir Starmer not see this coming?

Tony McNulty, Queen Mary University of London

Labour is divided over disability cuts – here’s what the public thinks

John Curtice, National Centre for Social Research

Keir Starmer speaking in parliament with MPs sitting behind him.
Survey shows support for electoral reform now at 60% – so could it happen?

Alan Renwick, UCL

Election officials monitoring a vote count.
Nigel Farage

How Britain’s new political divide delivers voters to Reform and the Greens

John Curtice, National Centre for Social Research

Protesters near the National Gallery carrying Palestinian flags

Palestine Action: what it means to proscribe a group, and what the effects could be

Brian J. Phillips, University of Essex

View from behind of a young boy in a school uniform, carrying a backpack and sports bag and walking up a set of concrete outdoor stairs up to a bridge

Join us in Newcastle to discuss youth, masculinity and the political divide

Grace Allen, The Conversation

Attractive man driving a boat in bright blue waters, with an attractive woman on his arm

What is an ‘alpha’ male?

Jwana Aziz, University of Birmingham and Anna Lavis, University of Birmingham

Peers debating in the House of Lords.

Assisted dying: what happens now the House of Lords has the bill?

Daniel Gover, Queen Mary University of London

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A young girl in a sweater with a hood up looks sadly out of a window

The UK failed grooming gang victims by not seeing ‘children as children’

Michelle McManus, Manchester Metropolitan University

Police in England and Wales to get more money – but increasing funding won’t necessarily mean less crime

Graham Farrell, University of Leeds

View from behind of three met police officers in high-vis jackets, looking at a busy public street
Another public inquiry into institutional abuses – why they so often fail to deliver justice for victims

Anne Marie McAlinden, Queen's University Belfast

The home secretary, Yvette Cooper, speaking to the House of Commons
What the new grooming gangs inquiry must do to put victims before politics

William Tantam, University of Bristol and Daniel Taggart, University of Essex

Kemi Badenoch speaking and pointing in the House of Commons
How to make sure the new grooming gangs inquiry is the last

Aisha K. Gill, University of Bristol

Silhouettes of two people behind glass door
Britain’s plan for defence AI risks the ethical and legal integrity of the military

Elke Schwarz, Queen Mary University of London

Photo illustration of a soldier wearing VR goggles and operating a screen in the air
Assisted dying: 56 MPs switched their vote between rounds – here’s how religion affected their choices

David Jeffery, University of Liverpool

Two pro-assisted dying campaigners crying with joy.
Worshippers with their hands raised during a service

Is there really a religious revival in England? Why I’m sceptical of a new report

David Voas, UCL

Rough sleeping to be decriminalised: what is the Vagrancy Act?

Emily Wertans, University of Leicester

Close up of feet of a man sleeping rough, with trainers placed beside him
The deteriorating justice system in England and Wales is hindering economic growth

Diane Coyle, University of Cambridge

View from below of the Justice statue atop the Old Bailey
Keir Starmer says migrants should learn English to integrate. Is he being fair?

Huw Lewis, Aberystwyth University; Gwennan Higham, Swansea University, and Leigh Oakes, Queen Mary University of London

Diverse group of adults in English language class

Glow-up course

Woman with pen looking at laptop

How to make a change in your life – and stick to it

Abigail Parrish, University of Sheffield

How to argue without falling out – an expert guide

Jessica Robles, Loughborough University

Two people sat on a sofa after an argument.
Feel like you’re in a funk? Here’s what you can do to get out of it – and how you can prevent it from happening in the future

Jolanta Burke, RCSI University of Medicine and Health Sciences

A cartoon man and woman looking worn out and sad.
How to get control of your time

Boróka Bó, University College Dublin and Kamila Kolpashnikova, Western University

Illustration of a young, overwhelmed woman leaning over a massive to-do list

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Class and politics

Nigel Farage speaking.

Nigel Farage, AI and the revolt of the squeezed middle: class politics is about to get messier than ever

Laura Hood, The Conversation

The true class divide in British politics is not which party people choose, but whether they vote at all

Oliver Heath, Royal Holloway University of London and Laura Serra, London School of Economics and Political Science

A row of terraced homes above shops and restaurants.
Class identity: why fancy freebies are a bigger political problem for this Labour government than its Tory predecessors

Vladimir Bortun, University of Oxford

Angela Rayner and Keir Starmer
What does class mean today in Britain? Podcast

Laura Hood, The Conversation

A man on his phone in an alleyway, next to two delivery cyclists taking a break on their phones.
Thatcher, Blair and a brief history of class in British politics – podcast

Laura Hood, The Conversation

Tony and Cherie Blair shake hands of supportes outside Downing Street.
Kemi Badenoch dressed in a McDonald's uniform standing at a chip fryer putting chips in a McDonald's box.

Can Kemi Badenoch claim to have ‘become working class’ while working in McDonald’s – and why would she want to?

Michael Rees, Nottingham Trent University

Boris Johnson stands in front of a blow-up version of himself.

When did class stop predicting who people vote for in Britain? Know Your Place podcast

Laura Hood, The Conversation

Check out our new podcast on class and politics in Britain

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Most read this week

Editors' picks

Tories get ghosted: new study shows dating app users are more likely to swipe right on Reform voters

Stuart J. Turnbull-Dugarte, University of Southampton

Nigel Farage kissing a woman on the cheek.
Hyper-individualistic and focused on worth, the manosphere is a product of neoliberalism

Sophie Lively, Newcastle University

Man in hammock on yacht working on laptop
What I’ve learned from teaching philosophy in prisons

Jim Chamberlain, University of Sheffield

Shadow on a concrete wall of a thinking man statue behind locked bars
What interviews with ordinary Germans living under the Nazis can teach us about our current politics

Melissa Butcher, Royal Holloway University of London

A black and white photo of tourists lying on chairs in the sun while two Nazis pass through the crowd

Cities

A young woman walking alone along a lit path in a park at night

Women are three times as likely as men to feel unsafe in parks – here’s how we can design them better

Anna Barker, University of Leeds; Jennie Gray, University of Leeds, and Vikki Houlden, University of Leeds

Five ways you might already encounter AI in cities (and not realise it)

Noortje Marres, University of Warwick

People walking in a crowd, with blue facial recognition squares over their faces
Thirty-five years since the wall fell, Berlin is divided – over what to do with crumbling communist buildings

Katrin Schreiter, King's College London

A historical photo of people standing and sitting on the Berlin wall as it is about to be torn down.

Women

Why thinking about ageing is so complex when you’re a woman in your 20s today

Nadine Shanahan, University of Liverpool

A young woman closely scrutinising her face in a mirror
Men’s concerns are real but backlash is not inevitable – the new rules guiding feminism

Heejung Chung, King's College London

An illustration of men and women following twisting paths.
The Pelicot rape case revealed not a group of monsters but a culture that enables the abuse of women

Vanita Sundaram, University of York

Gisele Pelicot speaking into microphones with a crowd of supporters behind her.
Why are female politicians more often targeted with violence? New findings confirm depressing suspicions

Gianmarco Daniele, Bocconi University

An illustration of a woman standing with her back to a ball of messy squiggles and lightening bolts, suggesting chaos.