Overview:
The Global Affairs team share some of the most important weekly headlines that you may otherwise have missed.
A note from the editor
This week, Katarina Harrison-Gaze covers the latest controversy on the US campaign trail while Laura van Heijnsbergen writes about the controversial debate about reparations that engulfed the Commonwealth summit.
Meanwhile, there’s even more debate in the UK as the Chancellor of the Exchequer, Rachel Reeves, unveiled a tax-rising budget. Nick Marshall also explains what’s going on in Bolivia, where former President Evo Morales has claim there was a state-sponsored assassination attempt on his life (something that the Bolivian Government heavily disputes).
As usual, a lot goes on outside of OX1, and we hope this week’s Outside OX1 helps to explain some of them!
Controversy surrounds Trump’s campaign after comedian makes ‘racist’ remarks at rally
Katarina Harrison-Gaze
Comedian Tony Hinchcliffe has come under fire from politicians and celebrities alike after labelling Puerto Rico “a floating island of garbage” at Donald Trump’s rally in New York on Oct. 28, ahead of the U.S. election on Nov. 5.
Puerto Rico has been a U.S. territory since 1898, meaning its residents are citizens of the United States, however, they cannot vote in U.S. elections. Despite this, there are an estimated 5.9 million Puerto Ricans living stateside and around 36 million Hispanic eligible voters.
Vice President Kamala Harris criticised Hinchcliffe’s comments as “nonsense”, adding that it exemplified Trump’s fixation on “dividing the country.” She later added that when she was a senator, she was aware that Puerto Rico does not have a United States senator and tried to “do what [she] could” for Puerto Rico. Democratic vice-presidential nominee Tim Walz, defended Puerto Ricans by saying “they are citizens, they pay taxes, they serve in the military.” Vice President Harris has since been endorsed by several celebrities who are Puerto Rican or of Puerto Rican descent, including musicians Bad Bunny, Jennifer Lopez and Ricky Martin, the latter of whom told voters “this is what they [the Republicans] think of us.” Both Republican and Democratic senators criticised Hinchcliffe for these comments, with Democratic congresswoman Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez, who is of Puerto Rican descent, calling the comments “super upsetting.” Republican congresswoman Maria Elvira Salazar posted a statement on X, formerly Twitter, in which she said she was “disgusted” by the “racist comment”. She also added that Hinchcliffe’s comments did not “reflect the GOP’s values.”
At the rally, Hinchcliffe also made derogatory comments about African Americans, Palestinians and Jewish people, as well as calling for mass deportation of illegal immigrants who he called “bloodthirsty criminals.” Responding to criticism on X, formerly known as Twitter, he said “people have no sense of humour.”
Although Donald Trump has not personally condemned the remarks, one of his senior advisors Danielle Alvarez said in a statement that Hinchcliffe’s “jokes” did “not reflect the views of President Trump or the campaign.” However, speaking at a rally in Wisconsin, Republican vice-presidential nominee JD Vance said people should “take a chill pill”, adding that people were “so offended at every little thing.”
Trump previously faced criticism from Puerto Ricans for his handling of Hurricane Maria in 2017, which killed nearly 3,000 people in Puerto Rico.
Rachel Reeves announces £40 billion worth of tax hikes in recent budget
Eric Balonwu
On Oct. 30 Rachel Reeves, the Chancellor of the Exchequer, announced the new Government’s budget for 2024 to the House of Commons. This is Labour’s first budget since 2010, after winning the general election in July.
Reeves announced £40 billion of tax increases, the second biggest increase in taxes in UK history, mainly thanks to a £25 billion rise in Employer National Insurance as well as other tax measures. The OBR estimates that about 76% of the tax rises would be passed through to employers in the form of lower wages. Other tax changes include increasing the rate of capital gains tax and stamp duty on second homes. Moreover, Reeves also committed to manifesto pledges on taxing private school fees and ‘non domiciled residents’ (UK residents who for tax purposes claim that their permanent home is outside the UK). A tax on draught drinks is also being cut by 1.7%. Overall, these measures will increase the total tax burden to a record post-war high of 38.2% of GDP,though this is still relatively lower than other comparable Western European countries.
The Chancellor also confirmed changes to how the Government measures debt. These changes allow the Government to borrow more while still meeting its fiscal rule: a self-imposed limit that debt as a proportion of GDP should be falling in 5 years time.
These changes allowed the Government to increase public investment spending by £100 billion over the parliament (an average of 2.6% of GDP). Investment had been forecast to drop to 1.7% by 2028-2029. The Government also increased day-to-day NHS spending by £22 billion and increased the NHS Capital budget by £3 billion. Generally, the budget has increased spending by £70 billion in 2026-7, equal to 2% of GDP.
CHOGM: controversial questions about reparations left unresolved
Laura van Heijnsbergen
The biennial Commonwealth Heads of Government Meeting ended last Saturday on the 26th of October in Samoa, with the issue of reparations to Commonwealth countries by Britain still up in the air. Proponents of reparations argue that they are necessary to compensate Commonwealth countries for the harm caused by historic British colonialism, in particular, the trans-Atlantic slave trade. The idea of reparations has been much more widely debated in recent years, especially in the wake of widespread Black Lives Matter protests since 2020. The British government, however, remains opposed to the notion of financial reparations for now., Rachel Reeves recently told the BBC that the UK Government cannot commit to full financial reparations for the slave trade. Reparations were not the only issue discussed at the summit – the environment, women’s rights and physical and mental ill health in the Commonwealth all came up for discussion. – The appearance of King Charles at the summit, mere days after he was heckled on the issue of British colonialism in the Australian Parliament, will have put reparations at the forefront of many people’s minds.
It is important to note that the British government’s current rejection of purely financial reparations does not mean a complete rejection of any other kind of reparations. Suggestions have also been made that Britain could use its development budget to fund public infrastructure (such as health or education) in Commonwealth countries. Alternatively, Britain could issue a public acknowledgement of and apology for the impacts of colonialism in the Commonwealth.
Furthermore, reparations are not only an issue in the United Kingdom – the US has equally seen a widespread debate in recent years on the issue of paying reparations to black Americans due to the legacy of the slave trade. The issue, however, is a contentious one – many in both the United States and Great Britain oppose the idea., Both because of the massive costs they would incur and because of possible practical issues with enacting them and ensuring they reach the right people.
Bolivian Ex-President Evo Morales claims attempted assassination was carried out by the government
Nick Marshall
Former President of Bolivia, Evo Morales, has claimed that he was the victim of an assassination attempt as his car came under gunfire on Sunday night (October 27th) whilst driving through the Cochabamba region.
Morales posted a video on the website of his radio station which appeared to show bullet holes in the windscreen of the car in front of where he was sitting. The Morales-aligned bloc of his party, the Movement Towards Socialism (MAS), released a statement declaring two vehicles with heavily armed men dressed in black ambushed the convoy, with bullets passing “centimetres” from Morales. He added on X that he had been shot at “more than 18 times” and had shot back after the police opened fire.
The Bolivian government disputes Morales’ claim that he was targeted by the police acting on its behalf, instead stating that Morales staged the event to gain traction for his political cause. Minister of the Interior, Eduardo del Castillo, when asked about the alleged assassination attempt, stated that anti-narcotics units were carrying out standard highway patrols when the convoy containing Morales shot at the police and ran over an officer. He denied that Morales was a deliberate target, telling reporters “Mr Morales, nobody believes the theatre you have staged.” Del Castillo further remarked that Morales had instructed for any evidence of the alleged assassination to be destroyed, including the incineration of the convoy he was in. “If he had really been a victim of an assassination attempt, it would have been in his interest to leave them intact,” del Castillo remarked.
This marks the latest incident heightening tensions between Morales and former protégé, President Luis Arce, over who should lead the MAS party in Bolivia’s 2025 election. On Saturday, the government slated Morales, the first Indigenous President of Bolivia, for “destabilising” the government as his supporters have caused two weeks of road blockades that have caused national disruption to food and fuel supplies.
Morales, a former coca grower, has retained significant support amongst the poor and Indigenous population of Bolivia, despite resigning from the role in 2019 due to mass protests over his disputed re-election. Protests have been ongoing for months in the lead-up to the next election, including the 190-kilometre “March to Save Bolivia” in support of Morales on September 17th, marking the largest protest against the current government since it took office.
Bolivia’s politics has long been associated with unrest and violence dating back to its independence from Spain in 1825. Recent tensions have been fuelled by a post-pandemic economic crisis that has seen Bolivia’s foreign reserves dwindle; an attempted coup by a rogue general; and rising hesitancy towards the transparency of the current political system, making violent clashes and blockades a common occurrence.