Three weeks after Nigel Farage posed with winning Reform UK councillors outside Havering Town Hall on 8 May, the political map of England has visibly shifted. Reform UK is consistently polling first nationally, taking control of councils across the Midlands and the North, and posing a structural challenge to both Labour and the Conservatives ahead of the next general election.
Between 26 May and 1 June 2026, the EU institutional agenda intensifies ahead of the June European Council, with foreign ministers gathering for the informal Gymnich meeting on 27-28 May, the Competitiveness Council debating the Industrial Accelerator Act on 28-29 May, and the EU-Western Balkans summit setting strategic enlargement direction.
The UK government has published the implementation timeline for the landmark Sanitary and Phytosanitary agreement signed with the European Union last week, setting out a clear roadmap for reducing friction at the border for food and agricultural products between Britain and the continent. The Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs released the detailed schedule…
EU foreign ministers concluded a critical Foreign Affairs Council meeting on 24 May with agreements spanning Ukraine military assistance, continental defence preparedness, and Middle East security, as the bloc seeks to address an increasingly volatile geopolitical landscape ahead of the 2030 strategic horizon. The Council’s deliberations, which brought together defence and foreign policy chiefs from…
The United Kingdom and European Union signed a landmark veterinary agreement on 23 May 2026, marking the first tangible achievement of the post-Brexit “reset” initiated at last year’s summit and delivering substantial relief to food exporters who have faced costly border checks since Britain’s departure from the single market. The Sanitary and Phytosanitary (SPS) agreement…
The European Union has pledged to strengthen its global partnerships and scale up strategic investments in key regions as it adapts its external action to an increasingly fragmented international landscape, following the Foreign Affairs Council’s Development configuration meeting on 23 May. High Representative Kaja Kallas presented member states with a comprehensive strategic review that places…
The European Union and Mexico have taken a significant step in strengthening transatlantic ties with the signing of a modernised Global Agreement during the 8th EU-Mexico summit in Mexico City on 22 May 2026, marking the culmination of years of negotiations to update a relationship first established at the turn of the century. European Council…
Greater Manchester Mayor Andy Burnham has emerged as the frontrunner to succeed Sir Keir Starmer as Labour leader, according to a new poll of party members that underscores growing unease with the current leadership just months after Labour’s general election victory. The Survation poll, released on 22 May, shows Burnham commanding 34% support among Labour…
Andy Burnham remains the most popular potential successor to Sir Keir Starmer among the British public, with a net favourability score of +4 — the only major political figure currently in positive territory. His Manchester mayoralty makes him a viable but procedurally complicated candidate in any Labour leadership contest.
High Representative Kaja Kallas faces Members of the European Parliament in Strasbourg this week for the first Question Time since a lengthy pause, with the EU’s strategy on the crises in the Middle East at the heart of the debate – the situations in Iran, Israel and Syria all on the agenda.
