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Life’s a gas: Nigel Farage enjoying UKIP’s success in the local council elections. Chris Radburn/PA Wire

The not-so-secret agenda of UKIP voters

Robert Ford, University of Manchester

On the surface, the recent surge in support for the UK Independence Party (UKIP) suggests an urgent need to reform Britain’s relations with the European Union. But polls tell a different story. The best…

I’ve seen the future Nick, and it’s behind us. Stefan Wermuth

For Cameron and Clegg the cost of compromise is high

Tim Bale, Queen Mary University of London

Compromise. It’s one of those Jekyll and Hyde verbs. Used actively, it’s a good thing - you want something; I want something different; we talk it over; we come to an arrangement; we compromise. Used passively…

On the noes: more than 100 Tory MPs voted for an amendment to the Queen’s Speech last night in a huge rebuff to the PM on Europe. PA Wire

Cameron in crisis as Tories’ glass jaw exposed again by huge Commons rebellion

Philip Cowley, University of Nottingham

When more than 100 Conservative MPs vote for an amendment to their own government’s Queen’s Speech, it is more than a rebellion - it is historically unprecedented. And despite David Cameron’s insistence…