By: Eliot Wilson

Eliot Wilson is a writer, commentator and contributing editor at Defence On The Brink. He was formerly a clerk in the House of Commons and writes regularly on politics, defence and international security, and Parliament and the constitution, including for The Spectator, The Hill, The i Paper and CapX

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On This Day: Britain asks the IMF for a loan

September 30, 2025

49 years ago today, sterling crashed to its lowest ever point against the dollar. Denis Healey stared down his socialist opponents and asked the IMF for a loan – paving the way for Margaret Thatcher’s election victory, writes Eliot Wilson Denis Winston Healey, chancellor of the Exchequer (1974-79) and Labour’s indomitable intellectual brawler, soaked up [...]
On this day: The Bill of Rights is set in motion

September 29, 2025

On this day in 1789, the Bill of Rights was sent to the states for ratification. With the right to free speech still hotly contested 300 years later, Eliot Wilson goes back to the start.
Could Andy Burnham actually unseat Keir Starmer?

September 29, 2025

Andy Burnham has made a bold threat to Keir Starmer, but could he actually unseat the Prime Minister? Eliot Wilson takes a look.
On this day: Profumo proves the cover up is always worse than the crime

September 26, 2025

62 years ago today, Lord Denning published his verdict on the Profumo affair – a minor sex scandal made far worse by subsequent lies. What lessons does the ensuing collapse of Harold Macmillan’s government have for politicians today? Asks Eliot Wilson Today in 1963, the Master of the Rolls, Lord Denning, published his 70,000-word report [...]
End of Trump’s state visit is no time for Britain to relax

September 22, 2025

Donald Trump’s state seemed a success and brought inward investment with it, but steel tariffs are still on the table and political chaos reigns at home, says Eliot Wilson The Eagle has flown. President Donald Trump undertook his unprecedented second state visit to the United Kingdom last week – unprecedented for a US president, anyway, [...]
Siddiq, Rayner, Mandelson: Starmer has proven himself a disastrous judge of character

September 15, 2025

Angela Rayner and Lord Mandelson are just the latest examples of Starmer's erring judgement when it comes to character, writes Eliot Wilson.
Will Trump trip up Nigel Farage?

September 8, 2025

Nigel Farage’s open admiration for Donald Trump may boost his profile abroad but risks alienating British voters, for whom Trump remains deeply unpopular, says Eliot Wilson If it is true that there’s no such thing as bad publicity, then Nigel Farage can mark last week down as an unalloyed success. He travelled to Washington DC [...]
On this day in 1888: The Football League kicks off

September 8, 2025

Today in 1888, Aston Villa came to an anticlimactic 1-1 draw against Wolverhampton Wanderers as the Football League’s first season began.
On this day: The worst blazes of the Great Fire of London

September 4, 2025

On this day in 1666, the worst blazes of the Great Fire of London engulfed the City. Eliot Wilson tells us more.
A Treasury reshuffle on the eve of a Budget is a bad sign for Reeves

September 1, 2025

Handing responsibility for the economy to a man who was director of policy for Ed Miliband is a sign of desperation from Rachel Reeves, says Eliot Wilson Every time I see a new announcement from Rachel Reeves at the Treasury now, it puts me in mind of the poet Stevie Smith: “I was much further [...]

Europe has made a ‘major mistake’ on slow electrification, IEA chief warns

Will the Nations Championship financially underdeliver for in-need Fiji?

I was on the Goodyear blimp above London – here’s what it was like

By: Eliot Wilson

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