Navigating Political Complexity in a Shifting Landscape

Santa will have had a tricky time this year fulfilling all the Christmas wish lists in Westminster. Keir Starmer is desperately hoping for a change in the political weather, and Kemi Badenoch would like an in with Donald Trump. Ed Davey dreams that Labour’s electoral troubles will get so bad that proportional representation starts to look appealing. Nigel Farage, meanwhile, wants to avoid what usually happens with him and keep his party from falling out – or perhaps Elon Musk will give him a Christmas bonus in the form of a generous donation.

What’s certain is that 2025 will prove to be one of the most defining in recent political memory: with Starmer choosing mission-led government; Reform circling the local elections in May; hushed talk of Jeremy Corbyn forming a new party on the hard left; and Donald Trump in the White House. It’s extraordinary that so much could be up for grabs so early after Starmer’s supermajority. What might 2025 bring?

James Heale speaks to Katy Balls and Patrick Maguire, political columnist for the Times.

Produced by Oscar Edmondson.