Europe’s race against the ballot box Opinion As elections approach across the continent, European leaders are rushing to settle the multi-trillion euro budget and European Central Bank leadership before potential changes in government alter the political landscape, says Helen Thomas Europe is racing to settle its future before its voters have their say. Negotiations over its next seven-year budget coincide with manoeuvring [...]
The search for Nigel Farage’s elusive wristwatch Life&Style We investigate the mystery of Nigel Farage’s wristwatch. Could the so-called man of the people really wear a £40,000 Patek Philippe Calatrava? Andy Blackmore starts digging and finds a surprising answer… Sometimes the watch we wear tells more about us than we would care to admit, far more than any session with a psychologist. With that [...]
G7 agrees to release diesel reserves after crisis meeting Energy Leaders from the G7 have agreed to tap into 100m of diesel and oil from their reserves in a bid to stave off a soaring supply crisis and end an escalating feud between the Euope and the US. The club of wealthy democracies said on Friday that they would work with the International Energy Agency [...]
Is the consensus on central bank independence starting to fray? December 18, 2025 Across the globe, leaders like Donald Trump and Emmanuel Macron are challenging institutional independence and exerting their influence over monetary policy – but they could come to regret it, says Helen Thomas For much of the past three decades, central bank independence has been treated as a settled question. Monetary policy was best left to [...]
What would a far-right leader in France mean for Europe? October 14, 2025 Despite growing economic strains and political turbulence in both countries, a potential alignment between Germany’s centre-right Chancellor Friedrich Merz and a far-right French president could temporarily steady Europe’s core — but deep fiscal and ideological divides between Paris and Berlin still threaten the long-term stability of the European Union and its single currency, says David [...]
In Tokyo, Paris and London, political risk is on the rise October 9, 2025 Instability in Japan, France and the UK will have global consequences for the bond markets, says Helen Thomas For investors, the message is simple: political risk is rising. From Tokyo to Paris to London, governments face competing imperatives – fiscal credibility, economic stimulus and electoral survival. Sanae Takaichi, the new leader of Japan’s ruling LDP, [...]
French borrowing costs surge as political crisis deepens October 6, 2025 French assets suffered at the hands of a brutal sell-off on Monday, after the country’s latest prime minister resigned just a month into the role, exacerbating an already grave political crisis. French stocks tumbled across the board while government borrowing costs climbed sharply to their highest since 2011, after newly appointed prime minister Sebastien Lecornu [...]
Starmer and Macron face a shared Waterloo September 18, 2025 Facing crippling national debt and a politically divided public, both Keir Starmer and Emmanuel Macron have proved unable to implement necessary economic reforms, and both are heading for a downfall driven by market forces, says Helen Thomas A country gripped by the highest debt levels since the Second World War; an unpopular leader facing a [...]
Ukraine War: Trump says Zelensky and Putin to meet after ‘very good’ summit August 19, 2025 Presidents Vladimir Putin and Volodymyr Zelensky will meet, Donald Trump has said following a White House summit with European leaders aimed at bringing an end to the war in Ukraine. The US president spoke directly with the Russian president to begin planning a meeting between the two warring leaders, which will then be followed by a [...]
Crunch summit: Starmer, Zelensky and European leaders to meet Trump in DC August 18, 2025 Sir Keir Starmer will join European leaders in presenting a united front with Volodymyr Zelensky at his crunch meeting at the White House with Donald Trump. The Prime Minister and six other political leaders will travel to Washington DC on Monday, with the aim of protecting Ukraine from having to submit to Russian land grabs [...]