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    Robert Shrimsley

    UK chief political commentator and executive editor

    Robert Shrimsley is UK chief political commentator and executive editor of the Financial Times. He writes a weekly column on British politics and for the FT weekend magazine. Before this, he served as the FT’s chief political correspondent, news editor, managing editor of FT.com and editorial director.
    Email Robert Shrimsley @robertshrimsley  on Twitter (link opens in a new browser window)

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    • Wednesday, 27 September, 2023
      UK politics
      Rishi Sunak’s new strategy exposes 13 years of Tory failure

      Any attempts at reinvention are hampered by a governing record the prime minister can’t escape

      Illustration of Rishi Sunak, Boris Johnson, Theresa May and David Cameron sat on a tiny train
    • Friday, 22 September, 2023
      FT MagazineLife & Arts
      Living next door to a jailbreak

      A recent high-profile prison escape hit closer to home than anticipated

    • Thursday, 21 September, 2023
      The best books of the week
      The Abuse of Power — Theresa May points the finger of blame

      Unreflective of her own failings, the former PM is big on public duty but weak on solutions

      A woman in blue walks towards a podium
    • Wednesday, 20 September, 2023
      UK politics
      Sunak’s Conservatives are betting against the future

      There has been a breakdown in the economic promise that previously swung voters to the right as they got older

      Illustration of a chart line which is mostly red with a short section of blue. Above the red line is a crawling baby, then a child, then an adult and an older adult. Above the blue line is a very old person and a grave
    • Friday, 15 September, 2023
      FT MagazineSocial Media
      How social media killed the protest

      For a certain kind of activist, politics has been reduced to pure performance

    • Wednesday, 13 September, 2023
      Conservative Party UK
      The plot to smash the Conservative party

      Either by starting a new party, or seeking to steer the existing Tories to the right, the populists are on the move

      Illustration of the Conservative tree logo with two people taking axes to its trunk
    • Tuesday, 12 September, 2023
      Politics39 min
      Sketchy Politics: Are all the pieces in place for Starmer?

      UK political commentator Robert Shrimsley and deputy opinion editor Miranda Green sketch out Labour's possible paths to power

      Sketchy Politics: Political Bingo
    • Friday, 8 September, 2023
      FT MagazineLife & Arts
      Weight-loss jabs and other drugs to save me from myself

      The new anti-obesity drug Wegovy presents an exciting opportunity to get healthy without any effort

    • Wednesday, 6 September, 2023
      Rishi Sunak
      Sunak’s problem is that Britain has stopped listening to the Tories

      The impression is of a country that does not work as it should and a government which has run out of answers

      Ewan White illustration of a food can painted with a union jack flag and with a fuse that forms the outline of Rishi Sunak’s face
    • Tuesday, 5 September, 2023
      UK politics13 min
      Why Labour rejects a wealth tax | FT Interview

      The FT's Robert Shrimsley interviews Rachel Reeves, the shadow chancellor, and John McTernan, a former senior aide to last Labour prime minister Tony Blair

      FT Interview: Rachel Reeves
    • Friday, 1 September, 2023
      FT MagazineLife & Arts
      Surrendering to the joy of sensory underload

      What I learnt from 90 minutes with almost no distractions

    • Wednesday, 30 August, 2023
      Brexit
      Rejoining the EU remains a very distant dream

      Even returning to the single market or customs union is a hard argument for an electorate queasy about reopening divisions

      Ellie Foreman-Peck illustration of an EU star as shooting star out of the reach of grasping hands
    • Friday, 11 August, 2023
      FT MagazineLife & Arts
      Trump case shows America needs some special verdict options

      Too dangerous? Not convenient? Sometimes a simple conviction would just cause too many problems

    • Wednesday, 9 August, 2023
      Keir Starmer
      Starmer won’t give the Tories an opportunity — that’s their opportunity

      Labour’s caution has drawn the opposition on to Conservative territory

      Keir Starmer walks away from the spotlight holding a single-stemmed rose as it drops red petals on the floor behind him
    • Friday, 4 August, 2023
      FT MagazineLife & Arts
      Graduation days are all about the parents, stupid

      The ceremony should be seen as a thank you for two decades of parenting

    • Thursday, 3 August, 2023
      Political Fix podcast35 min listen
      Rishi Sunak’s dash for oil and gas

      The PM says he’s on the side of motorists. Plus, Labour’s upcoming Scottish test

    • Wednesday, 2 August, 2023
      UK politics
      The myth of the motorist in politics

      Today’s equivalents of ‘Mondeo man’ care less about their cars than about the stalled economy.

      Illustration of three voting booths with the back end of a Mondeo, white van and Galaxy sticking out under the blue curtain in each
    • Friday, 28 July, 2023
      FT MagazineLife & Arts
      We regret to say that this column has been delayed by rain

      No one is more disappointed than the author. But he blames the cricket

    • Wednesday, 26 July, 2023
      UK politics
      The Conservative war on Big Everything

      Opposing costly green policies could be the strategy the Tories need in their fight against liberal orthodoxy

      Illustration of Rishi Sunak in armour and on a horse. He is driving a spear into a Ulez sign
    • Friday, 21 July, 2023
      FT MagazineRobert Jenrick
      The Robert Jenrick guide to interior design

      If it’s something austere but age-appropriate you’re after, the Tory immigration minister is your man

      An illustration of Robert Jenrick painting over a mural of Mickey Mouse with a roller
    • Wednesday, 19 July, 2023
      UK tax
      There is no low-tax option at the next UK election

      Both major parties have yet to be totally honest with the electorate

      A man in a suit and bowler hat rides a hot air balloon with word tax written across it
    • Friday, 14 July, 2023
      FT MagazineLife & Arts
      Tony Blair still defines the UK political playbook

      George Osborne’s wedding guests aren’t the only ones still dancing to New Labour’s tune

    • Wednesday, 12 July, 2023
      Conservative Party UK
      The Conservative crisis of capitalism

      As schisms in the party emerge over the right model for growth, the upshot is an inconsistent mess

      Illustration of piles of coins with a picture of Margaret Thatcher’s face and the words ‘Margaret Thatcher, Iron Lady’ on each coin
    • Friday, 7 July, 2023
      FT MagazineLife & Arts
      Is this self-referential enough for you, Wes Anderson?

      Robert Shrimsley, 58, made the decision to see ‘Asteroid City’. It left him mired in existential questions  

    • Wednesday, 5 July, 2023
      UK politics
      Badly run Britain needs lessons in management

      Our public services are not the envy of the world and Whitehall reform is desperately needed

      Illustration of the UK as a machine made of cogs, about to blow, with puffs cogs flying off.
    Previous page You are on page 1 Next page

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