Who runs Britain’s foreign policy? Not the government, that’s clear. At PMQs, Sir Keir Starmer got a monumental roasting from Rishi Sunak whose patience seems to be wearing thin.
Technically, Rishi was asking questions but in fact he was correcting Labour’s latest raft of blunders. He began by urging the PM to have a discreet word with his foreign secretary, David Lammy, who appears to be learning on the job. Rishi suggested that Lammy should give China a rap over the knuckles for its ‘dangerous escalatory acts in the Taiwan Strait.’
Sir Keir nodded along. He agreed to ‘co-operate as a permanent member of the Security Council’ and he promised to ‘challenge on the point he makes where it’s needed.’
His failure take responsibility is simply embarrassing
Rishi then asked about a regime of sanctions including, ‘secondary sanctions on financial institutions.’ Another ‘yes’ from the PM. After this he floundered badly. Rishi mentioned a Tory initiative, the Foreign Influence Registration Scheme, which protects Britain against attempts by China, Russia and Iran to interfere in our democracy. Sir Keir seems to have abandoned it.
‘He has halted its implementation,’ asked Rishi. ‘Why?’
Sir Keir gave the briefest of answers. ‘That’s not correct,’ he said, not even trying to waffle his way out of trouble. Rishi stood up and contradicted the PM.
‘That is very clearly what the government has said.’
Rishi mentioned another oversight. ‘The parliamentary Intelligence and Security committee has warned that British universities are increasingly a rich feeding-ground for China to exert political influence.’ He added that his Freedom of Speech Act gives universities new powers to defend themselves against the threat of China. ‘But the new education secretary has blocked it,’ said Rishi.
Sir Keir clearly hadn’t the foggiest what Rishi was on about. So he attacked his motives not his arguments.
‘I really don’t think that party political points on security matters…’ he began, as a wave of supportive cheering rose from the back benches. The rest of his sentence was drowned out by a riotous hubbub which effectively neutralised Rishi’s question. Then Sir Keir boasted about how important he used to be before he entered parliament.
‘I worked with the security and intelligence services for five years,’ he said, irrelevantly. ‘I know at first hand the work they do, as a lawyer. I’ve known at first hand the work they do, as prime minister.’
This was pure bilge. Nothing to do with universities, free speech or China. Had Sir Keir understood the issues he’d have given salient answers. Instead he threw out a smokescreen of absurdities like a panicking kid at a new school. ‘My dad could beat up your dad.’
Rishi brought up China’s record of ‘abuse and surveillance’ directed at members of parliament. He asked Sir Keir to pass on another request to his apprentice foreign secretary. ‘Tell the Chinese to lift those sanctions on our colleagues.’
The prime minister stood up. ‘Uh, yes,’ he said. That was all. Nothing to add. An astonishing sight. A serving prime minister accepting orders from his predecessor. Rishi Sunak is effectively Britain’s foreign secretary. Starmer and Lammy can’t manage the job.
Sir Keir was still on his feet, however, and he wanted to keep rabbiting away so he switched from China to his favourite subject: Tory policies.
‘Their record was 14 years of failure,’ he said.
He kept this going for the entire session. Asked about children’s teeth, he said, ‘I was shocked’ by the state of dentistry under the Tories. When Cat Smith mentioned poverty in her constituency, Sir Keir pointed the finger at his vanquished foes. ‘The party opposite want to get rid of maternity pay but keep hereditary peers. Same old Tories.’
He even blamed ecological hoaxers on the last government. Jen Craft, of Thurrock, complained that her council had wasted millions on a solar farm ‘run by a conman.’
‘Fourteen years is a long time to destroy local services,’ said Sir Keir.
His failure take responsibility is simply embarrassing. But today we learned that it may also be dangerous.
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