John Rentoul Theresa May has made a huge mistake sacking Lord Heseltine
Discipline is one thing, but the Prime Minister seems to have a vindictive streak that could be counter-productive as we prepare to leave the European Union
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John Rentoul
- Bio
- John Rentoul is Chief Political Commentator for The Independent, and visiting professor at King's College, London. Author of The Banned List, Questions To Which The Answer Is No, Listellany and a biography of Tony Blair, whom he admired more at the end of his time in office than he did at the beginning. Sign up here to receive his daily "Catch-Up Service" email.
John Rentoul Losing both by-elections is the best thing that could happen to Labour
Recent events make it likely that Labour will win both seats in the by-elections next week, meaning Jeremy Corbyn will remain leader – a disaster for the Labour Party
John Rentoul Top 10 fictional pubs
From the Three Broomsticks and the Prancing Pony to the bar in Star Wars with all the aliens
John Rentoul Mea Culpa: hearken to the President’s man condemning fake news
Old English, double negatives and the confusion of similar words in this week’s Independent
John Rentoul Why inequality feels like it's increasing when numbers say it's not
A new study by the respected Joseph Rowntree Foundation says millions more are in poverty, while income figures show no change. What is going on?
John Rentoul How exactly does Jeremy Hunt hold onto his job?
The Health Secretary's long tenure is a mystery, but it isn’t the most important question for the future of the health service
John Rentoul Mea Culpa: Railways return to a golden age of not answering questions
The right word eluded us this week – and other style glitches in The Independent
John Rentoul Corbyn shows true followership as (most) Labour MPs back Brexit
The Labour leader lost only one more member of the shadow Cabinet (bringing the total to four) as he instructed his MPs to vote in the same lobby as the Government to pass the EU withdrawal bill
John Rentoul Labour forced the Government to concede as much as possible on Brexit
EU leaders are not going to negotiate with Theresa May thinking that she might come back for more. Whatever deal is agreed – if a deal can be agreed at all – can only be agreed as a 'take it or leave it' proposal
John Rentoul Theresa May will fail to bridge the gap between Europe and America
Why would they need the British Prime Minister, who is already excluded from the meetings in which they really decide things, to act as a communication channel with a US president who is fantastically unpopular with their voters?
John Rentoul Mea Culpa: Pyrrhus and his ruinously winning ways
After Ancient Greek and Middle English, our chief pedant finally gives up over the names of European courts
White Paper sets out 12 key Brexit goals. Now for the 12 key questions
The Government has laid out its plans for leaving the EU, but the much-anticipated document is unlikely to appease critics. Sean O’Grady and John Rentoul decode the spin
John Rentoul What is Theresa May hiding? The White Paper tells us nothing new
Many MPs had assumed that, although most of the White Paper would be a padded-out version of the Prime Minister’s Lancaster House speech, it would contain a rationed nugget of new policy, so that it wouldn’t just look like the speech rewritten as if by a student trying to defeat anti-plagiarism software
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John Rentoul Top 10 monarchs who reigned twice
Ethelred, who wasn’t Unready; Haile Selassie; the last emperor of China; and seven more
John Rentoul PM and President: what they said – and what they really meant
Our instant translation service for the joint news conference held in the White House by Theresa May and Donald Trump
John Rentoul Corbyn faces more resignations, but even Blairites back him on Brexit
The Conservatives used to be divided over Europe. Now it is Labour. Any leader would struggle to contain the party’s differences
John Rentoul Mea Culpa: Smite those words that sound alike
Parameter, perimeter; formerly, formally; queue and cue: confusions and literary heroics in this week’s Independent