The state transformed
New Statesman contributors from around the world reflect on how the coronavirus pandemic is transforming the ways in which…
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The crisis chancellor
The state transformed: For all the talk of solidarity, the US government is falling short
The wealthy and powerful without symptoms are able to get tested; others, even medical professionals, are told there are…
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The state transformed: The coronavirus crisis has buttressed Italy’s democratic state – for now
Virtually overnight, Italians have shifted from dismissive cynicism of their national government to a blind and trusting devotion –…
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The state transformed: The crisis has turbocharged China’s intrusive state capitalism
China’s outbreak has been brought under control thanks to an Orwellian system, from personal QR codes to a flourishing of new…
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The state transformed: Coronavirus will change the British state in ten crucial ways
Certain aspects of the way our government works will change fundamentally, and not all for the better.
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The state transformed: Coronavirus is testing Georgian libertarianism to the limit
Overnight, the Caucasus country has been transformed from one of Europe’s most open states to among its most reclusive.
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The state transformed: Singapore has become a model for battling coronavirus
Thanks to fast action from the government, much of everyday life continues in Singapore. Schools, universities, shops and restaurants…
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The rise of the bio-surveillance state
A grim choice faces 21st-century societies: panopticons or pandemics?
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The crisis chancellor trying to save Britain from economic cataclysm
Rishi Sunak has lived a gilded life and risen rapidly in politics, but now he is grappling with a…
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The Great Coming Apart – and the chance to build something better
Even before the coronavirus pandemic, the global order was unravelling, but now the crisis provides a historic opportunity.
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The rules of attraction
Two surveys of sex and seduction show that not much has changed.
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Frances Leviston’s The Voice in My Ear: a sharp, insightful story collection
The ten stories all centre around a different protagonist named Claire, each clouded by a difficult mother – whether…
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Martin MacInnes’s Gathering Evidence explores what it means to be human
MacInnes’s intriguing second novel deserves to cement his reputation as a bold and curious writer.
By
Why we are fatally unprepared when crises strike
Oliver Letwin’s Apocalypse How? Explains why we fail to anticipate catastrophe
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David Lammy’s search for meaning
The Labour MP’s new book, Tribes, is half-memoir, half an account of the world’s problems and how they can be…
By
Letter of the Week: The oldest hath borne most
A selection of the best letters received from our readers this week. Email [email protected] to have your thoughts voiced…
By
Leader: The return of the protective state
To honour his pledge of doing “whatever it takes”, the Chancellor has been forced to adopt progressively more radical…
By
Why coronavirus might save the BBC
It seems the distant past now, but just a few weeks ago there was very real talk of the…
By
Nora Fingscheidt’s System Crasher: an absorbing, frenetic piece of film-making
This smart film has turbo-boosted the careers of both its main actor and director.
By
Mae Martin’s quietly charming comedy Feel Good
A comedy tackling drug addiction and coming out, Feel Good is neither patronising nor fluffy.
By
Why This Country is one of the most radical TV shows ever written
The pitch-perfect mockumentary began, three series ago, by being hilariously funny. But by the time it ended, it had turned into something…
By
Arizona’s Organ Pipe Cactus National Monument is beautiful and unique – and being irrevocably degraded in the name of Trump’s wall
An apparent loathing for all that is grand or awe-inspiring in the environment has caused Trump to begin work…
By
The loo rolls, the food grabbing, as Flanders and Swann sang: “Pee po belly bum drawers”
What is it with the bog roll? Food, yes, we can all understand that, but Andrex?
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My world grows smaller, and I am drawn to the video game I played incessantly as a child: The Sims
Rosie and Jacob’s world is pristine and romantic: everything is beautiful and nothing hurts.
By
“Look boys,“ I explain as the schools begin to close. “We’re not talking summer holidays, here“
“If you carry on like this, I am going to go completely insane. And I don’t think you want…
By
Sinéad Gleeson Q&A: “It’s enough to get regular jolts of happiness“
The author on Princess Leia, Frida Kahlo and unfulfilled football dreams.
By
First Thoughts: The charms of St Petersburg, stockpiling and the dangerous urge to cough
In Russia, we found a country where coronavirus was still a distant rumour. Palaces, churches and restaurants were packed. Bars…
By
“With this newspaper, you exist”: The Big Issue alternative thriving on Britain’s streets
The anarchist collective on the surprising success of their new publication, Dope, as a response to the rough sleeping…
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Commons Confidential: Classic Dom goes strangely quiet
Your weekly dose of gossip from around Westminster.
By
Coronavirus and the changing perceptions of public service
Official recognition that many private businesses, such as supermarkets, provide public services is long overdue.
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Coronavirus is the greatest challenge capitalism has ever faced: will a new system result?
A world constrained by pandemics is one in which the balance of power could shift dramatically back in favour of workers.
By
Society rewards bluffers, but now is the time to admit we don’t know what we’re talking about
Unearned confidence can infect anyone, though some individuals are more vulnerable to it than others.
By
Allow me to introduce you to the wonderful, ridiculous, inexplicable world of nonsense on YouTube
As an authority on Online Weird Stuff, I wanted to recommend some lesser-known channels that delight and distract me.
By
The government has ripped up its coronavirus Plan A, but why did it get it so wrong in the first place?
The government’s advisers initially underestimated the spread of the disease and the consequences for the NHS.
By
Governments have shut down supply and destroyed demand: the past is no guide to this crisis
Nothing quite like this has happened before in the modern world.
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Dr Phil Whitaker: Even at our provincial surgery, the reality of the coronavirus crisis is affecting us deeply
In less than a week, we converted the practice to a “triage” model.
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Boris Johnson struggles to find an authentic voice to speak to and for the nation
A national government may become inevitable.
By The government has ripped up its coronavirus Plan A, but why did it get it so wrong in the first place?
The government’s advisers initially underestimated the spread of the disease and the consequences for the NHS.
By Governments have shut down supply and destroyed demand: the past is no guide to this crisis
Nothing quite like this has happened before in the modern world.
By First Thoughts: The charms of St Petersburg, stockpiling and the dangerous urge to cough
In Russia, we found a country where coronavirus was still a distant rumour. Palaces, churches and restaurants were packed. Bars…
By Allow me to introduce you to the wonderful, ridiculous, inexplicable world of nonsense on YouTube
As an authority on Online Weird Stuff, I wanted to recommend some lesser-known channels that delight and distract me.
By “With this newspaper, you exist”: The Big Issue alternative thriving on Britain’s streets
The anarchist collective on the surprising success of their new publication, Dope, as a response to the rough sleeping…
By Commons Confidential: Classic Dom goes strangely quiet
Your weekly dose of gossip from around Westminster.
By Coronavirus and the changing perceptions of public service
Official recognition that many private businesses, such as supermarkets, provide public services is long overdue.
By Society rewards bluffers, but now is the time to admit we don’t know what we’re talking about
Unearned confidence can infect anyone, though some individuals are more vulnerable to it than others.
By Mae Martin’s quietly charming comedy Feel Good
A comedy tackling drug addiction and coming out, Feel Good is neither patronising nor fluffy.
By Letter of the Week: The oldest hath borne most
A selection of the best letters received from our readers this week. Email [email protected] to have your thoughts voiced…
By Martin MacInnes’s Gathering Evidence explores what it means to be human
MacInnes’s intriguing second novel deserves to cement his reputation as a bold and curious writer.
By Why we are fatally unprepared when crises strike
Oliver Letwin’s Apocalypse How? Explains why we fail to anticipate catastrophe
By Dr Phil Whitaker: Even at our provincial surgery, the reality of the coronavirus crisis is affecting us deeply
In less than a week, we converted the practice to a “triage” model.
By David Lammy’s search for meaning
The Labour MP’s new book, Tribes, is half-memoir, half an account of the world’s problems and how they can be…
By Frances Leviston’s The Voice in My Ear: a sharp, insightful story collection
The ten stories all centre around a different protagonist named Claire, each clouded by a difficult mother – whether…
By Why coronavirus might save the BBC
It seems the distant past now, but just a few weeks ago there was very real talk of the…
By Leader: The return of the protective state
To honour his pledge of doing “whatever it takes”, the Chancellor has been forced to adopt progressively more radical…
By Nora Fingscheidt’s System Crasher: an absorbing, frenetic piece of film-making
This smart film has turbo-boosted the careers of both its main actor and director.
By Arizona’s Organ Pipe Cactus National Monument is beautiful and unique – and being irrevocably degraded in the name of Trump’s wall
An apparent loathing for all that is grand or awe-inspiring in the environment has caused Trump to begin work…
By The loo rolls, the food grabbing, as Flanders and Swann sang: “Pee po belly bum drawers”
What is it with the bog roll? Food, yes, we can all understand that, but Andrex?
By My world grows smaller, and I am drawn to the video game I played incessantly as a child: The Sims
Rosie and Jacob’s world is pristine and romantic: everything is beautiful and nothing hurts.
By “Look boys,“ I explain as the schools begin to close. “We’re not talking summer holidays, here“
“If you carry on like this, I am going to go completely insane. And I don’t think you want…
By Sinéad Gleeson Q&A: “It’s enough to get regular jolts of happiness“
The author on Princess Leia, Frida Kahlo and unfulfilled football dreams.
By Boris Johnson struggles to find an authentic voice to speak to and for the nation
A national government may become inevitable.
By Why This Country is one of the most radical TV shows ever written
The pitch-perfect mockumentary began, three series ago, by being hilariously funny. But by the time it ended, it had turned into something…
By Coronavirus is the greatest challenge capitalism has ever faced: will a new system result?
A world constrained by pandemics is one in which the balance of power could shift dramatically back in favour of workers.
By