Are you ok, UK?

The United Kingdom After the Elections - Between Election Shock, Government Crisis, and EU Accession - An event in cooperation with the German-British Society Elections will be held again on May 7, 2026 – and the results are likely to significantly shift the political landscape of the island: Local elections in England, the Scottish Parliament in Holyrood, and the Welsh Senedd will be voted on simultaneously. All forecasts pointed to historic losses for Labour and massive gains for Nigel Farage's Reform UK. Four days after election day, we take stock. Domestically, Prime Minister Keir Starmer is under unprecedented pressure. Record-low approval ratings, a lost by-election in a 100-year-old constituency in Manchester, an open Labour revolt against social spending cuts, and the Mandelson-Epstein scandal have put the government on the defensive. The question is no longer just how Labour can win the next election – but whether Starmer will be in office as party leader. In foreign policy, the United Kingdom is navigating a dangerously tense situation: The Iran-Iraq War has put the special relationship to a test unlike any seen in years. Washington threatened to terminate the bilateral trade agreement, and a military deal is stalled because Trump has refused to give his approval. At the same time, London is seeking closer ties with Brussels: A second EU-UK summit is planned for the summer of 2026, and negotiations are underway on issues such as the energy market and youth mobility. But how far will this "reset" really go? We will discuss the latest developments with our trusted experts Dr. Birgit Bujard and Thomas Sparrow, as well as with our guest Baroness Julie Smith of Newnham, Professor of European Politics at the University of Cambridge, Member of the House of Lords, and Defense Spokesperson for the Liberal Democrats. The event will be moderated, as usual, by Andreas Christ (Managing Director of edu:impact and member of the EUROPE DIRECT team). We cordially invite you to join us. ... Guests Professor Julie Smith (Baroness Smith of Newnham) is Professor of European Politics at the University of Cambridge, a Fellow at Robinson College, Cambridge, and a Member of the House of Lords. Her research focuses on the history and politics of the European Union, democracy in Europe, and the United Kingdom's relations with the EU, with a particular interest in defense. She is the Liberal Democrats' spokesperson on defense policy in the House of Lords. Dr. Birgit Bujard received her PhD in Political Science from the Bundeswehr University in Munich, specializing in European integration. She is currently Managing Director of the Department of Political Science and a Senior Research Fellow at the Center for Turkish and EU Studies – CETEUS, both at the University of Cologne. Thomas Sparrow has lived in Berlin as a British citizen since 2015. He is a freelance correspondent, primarily for Deutsche Welle and France 24, reporting in English and Spanish. Previously, he worked as a correspondent for the BBC in the USA.