Steerpike is The Spectator's gossip columnist, serving up the latest tittle tattle from Westminster and beyond. Email tips to steerpike@spectator.co.uk or message @MrSteerpike
During his regular LBC phone-in, Keir Starmer was asked by one listener for his thoughts on the latest free speech saga. According to reports in the Telegraph, the Brexit activist Darren Grimes has been called in for questioning by the Met police over comments David Starkey made on his podcast. Starmer responded with characteristic indecision when asked whether Starkey’s
Matt Hancock broke his own 10 p.m curfew to continue drinking at a parliamentary bar, according to reports in the Mail on Sunday. A senior Tory MP told the paper that the Health Secretary continued to nurse a large glass of white wine until at least 10.25 p.m. during a late night tipple that saw Hancock mock the government’s
Rishi Sunak received a fair amount of flak this week, after ITV reported that he’d told struggling musicians to retrain and find other jobs. The Chancellor appeared to actually be speaking more generally to the broadcaster about job losses when he said that ‘I can’t pretend that everyone can do exactly the same job that
Boris Johnson had a strong message today during his Tory conference speech, for those who believe he lost his mojo after contracting Covid and being hospitalised. The Prime Minister described claims he has lost his lustre as ‘nonsense’, ‘self-evident drivel’, and even ‘seditious propaganda’ from the kind of people who wanted to stop Brexit being
It’s hard to overstate the recklessness of the SNP MP Margaret Ferrier, who last week admitted travelling down to London, after having developed Covid symptoms. Not only did the MP fail to stay at home to prevent potentially spending the disease, she also decided to speak in Parliament, and then decided to travel back to Scotland
Oh dear. It’s fair to say Matt Hancock isn’t exactly flavour of the month in Westminster. There are plenty of MPs on both sides of the House who blame the Health Secretary for tough restrictions and failures on testing. Matters have only been made worse with the revelation that 16,000 cases of coronavirus went unreported as
You do have to wonder what liberal America must think of Britain. We are, according to its paper of record, swamp-dwelling, boiled mutton munching, insular little Englanders. Indeed, the New York Times’s latest profile of Covid Britain only serves to compound this mythical vision of a floundering, backwards country. The report in question presents a country unable to conform
‘I don’t want a Home Secretary who can’t pronounce a G at the end of a word,’ said Alastair Campbell earlier this month after listening to Priti Patel. Today it was the Home Secretary’s turn to hit back at Tony Blair’s former spin doctor. In her speech at Tory conference, Patel had a message for
Things have gone from bad to pretty much as grim as things can get for an MP — isolating back in Scotland, Margaret Ferrier has been told to resign from parliament by her (now former) party leader Nicola Sturgeon. The interjection comes following a torrid night for the Rutherglen and Hamilton West MP. Yesterday evening she
The SNP’s Margaret Ferrier has released a statement admitted that she travelled down to London after suffering from Covid symptoms. She then returned to Scotland by train after receiving a positive test result… The MP for Rutherglen and Hamilton West apologised for failing to follow the guidance, set down by her own party leader in Scotland
In what is already a classic of a peculiarly modern genre (remember ‘female leaders dealt with Covid’ better, anyone?), online comedienne Sarah Cooper has blasted the two players in the presidential debate. The savagery of Tuesday night’s showdown was not the culmination of a bitter struggle for America’s increasingly fractious soul. No, the problem is (you guessed
When former Tory MP Charlie Elphicke was found guilty of sexual assaulting two women, his wife Natalie – who has succeeded him as MP in his Dover seat – immediately announced the end of their marriage. Three days later, Natalie then gave a tell-all interview to the Sun, in which she explained why she had to
When Jeremy Corbyn was battling to retain the Labour leadership back in 2016, Corbyn was given a helping hand from Momentum. The pro-Corbyn group handed Jez’s campaign a £50,000 loan to help in his bid to fight off Owen Smith’s challenge. With Corbyn’s time at the top now over, however, it seems that Corbyn will
Back when John Bercow was in the Commons’ hot seat, a Tory telling-off was part of the daily run of events. Things have changed under his replacement Lindsay Hoyle. But today the speaker took no prisoners as he berated the government over its use of emergency coronavirus powers. At the start of PMQs today, Hoyle accused
The Prime Minister has never been known as a details man — and he shows no sign of changing his style anytime soon. Boris Johnson was unable to explain the details of his newly announced lockdown rules in North East England. During a Q&A after a speech in Exeter this morning, the PM was asked about the new
Tim Davie has this month taken on the role of BBC director-general in spectacular fashion, announcing plans today for auntie to be given the authority to strip its stars of their Twitter accounts if they breach impartiality guidelines. This will no doubt come as a shock to some. Gary Lineker, a staunch Boris Johnson critic, has been regularly
The Times reports today that parliament’s bars are exempt from the 10 p.m. curfew as well as from mask-wearing on the grounds that they are formally considered ‘workplace canteens’ — providing what some see as a legal get out for MPs and Lords hoping to enjoy privileges denied to the rest of the country. But
Steve Baker is well-known for his rebellious streak, famously causing Theresa May major problems with her Brexit negotiations. It now appears Baker has found another PM that he can rail against. Speaking to Ross Kempsell this morning on Times Radio, the MP for Wycombe said: People have got a great deal of faith in Boris
Former editor of The Spectator and Daily Telegraph Charles Moore is tipped to become chairman of the BBC. Despite being proactively encouraged to put himself forward for the job of director-general earlier this year, Moore made clear he would not be applying for the role. Firstly, he didn’t think he’d get it, writing in his Spectator notebook
There will be cheers in Labour HQ today as an Opinium poll has given Labour its first poll lead since Boris Johnson became Prime Minister. In some quarters this has been heralded as a party conference boost – even if the whole event was online this year. Starmer used that conference speech to claim Labour is becoming a