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
As the government’s fortunes continue to worsen, Reform UK only seems to be on the up. It now transpires that former Conservative donor and luxury property developer Nick Candy has defected from the party to join Nigel Farage’s start-up – to become Reform’s new chief fundraiser. Another Tory bites the dust… Speaking to the Sun,
It’s a gaffe a day with Sir Keir Starmer’s Labour lot – and this time David Lammy is in the spotlight. Addressing parliament on Monday over the fall of President Bashar al-Assad in Syria, the Foreign Secretary seemed to be a little confused on the detail – specifically the, er, geography of the Middle East.
With a change of government, you might have thought 4 July would see a lot of new brooms in Whitehall. Yet, for some mandarins, the dissolution of the last parliament seems to have been the cue to get all the paint brushes and toolkits out. Since the end of May, more than £130,000 was spent
The wind of change is sweeping through the Upper House. What with Labour’s plans to expel the last hereditaries and Gavin Williamson’s effort to boot the bishops too, soon the House of Lords will be devoid of any colour. How will the sketch writers cope eh? Today brings more bad news for traditionalist lovers of
Well, well, well. In a rather curious turn of events, it now transpires that Rael Braverman – husband of former Home Secretary Suella Braverman – has started campaigning for Nigel Farage’s Reform UK. How very interesting… Farage took to Twitter to announce that Braverman had not only been canvassing for the party on the streets
Justin Welby can’t seem to get anything right these days – not even his own leaving speech. Now the outgoing Archbishop of Canterbury has been forced to apologise for the gag-filled monologue he delivered to the House of Lords on Thursday after causing a rather lot of offence with his choice of language. Dear oh
Welcome to Labour’s Britain, where failure is lauded and incompetence rewarded. According to reports in the Financial Times, it appears that Sadiq Khan, mayor of London, has ended up on the draft list for the New Years honours. Also thought to be receiving a gong is Labour lefty Emily Thornberry, chair of the foreign affairs
It’s not been a good week for Sir Keir’s lefty lot. In the last few days alone, Starmer’s army has been hit with the revelation that over half of all Brits feel disappointed by Labour’s achievements in government so far – while just hours ago, a new survey by FindOutNow saw Nigel Farage’s Reform party surge to second place,
‘More bobbies on the beat’, cried Keir Starmer in his definitely-not-a-reset speech earlier today. But even when there are coppers out on patrol, are they doing enough to strike fear into lawless criminals? Just a stone’s throw away from The Spectator offices in Westminster is the Brutalist monstrosity of the Ministry of Justice’s headquarters. Known
It’s a simple question: how much is the Chagos Islands’ handover going to cost British taxpayers? Yet for weeks now, Labour ministers have been stonewalling and squirming in their efforts to avoid giving a clear straight answer. Shortly after the deal was announced on 3 October, Foreign Secretary David Lammy told MPs that ‘the agreement
When it rains for Sir Keir Starmer’s Labour lot, it pours. In the same week an Ipsos poll revealed that over half of all Brits feel disappointed by Labour’s achievements so far, now another poll brings more bad news for Starmer’s army. The FindOutNow voting intention poll has demoted Sir Keir’s crowd to third place
While all eyes were on the Prime Minister’s big ‘plan for change’ announcement today, the government also chose this morning to release some new data to the public. One of the reports published today includes the latest Prevent stats – and they paint a rather interesting picture. Between March 2023 and 2024, there were a
Once the popularity of politicians was judged by how many babies they were asked to kiss – now it’s by how many kids are named after them. The Office for National Statistics has today revealed the most popular baby names for last year, with Olivia remaining the top girls’ name and Muhammad overtaking Noah to
Another day, another round of bad news for Sir Keir Starmer’s government. Now a new Ipsos poll has revealed that over half of all Brits feel disappointed by Labour’s achievements (or lack thereof) so far. 53 per cent noted their dissatisfaction with the governing party in the latest survey, which quizzed 1,092 adults between 22-25
Another day, another drama at the BBC. Now it transpires that one of the corporation’s top newsreaders Clive Myrie failed to declare up to a quarter of a million pounds worth of ‘external events’ that he was involved in outside of his BBC job. Dear oh dear… As well as undertaking his newsreader role, the
Sue Gray may no longer be Sir Keir Starmer’s chief of staff but that doesn’t mean she isn’t still making headlines. Now it transpires that the Prime Minister is planning to award a peerage to the former civil servant, despite the rather negative press attention Gray managed to garner while in the top job. How
In 2024, no incumbent has been safe. Whether it was the Democrats in America or the Tories in Britain, there has been plenty of drama in every corner of the globe. Here in Westminster, Keir Starmer swept to power – only to discover that governing well is quite a bit harder than some seemed to
When you’re in a hole, stop digging. These words of wisdom are yet to be heeded by the bright young things in Downing Street, who appear to be ploughing on manfully with plans to slap inheritance tax on family farms. Yet despite all the state-sponsored spinning, the public seems to be increasingly turning against Labour
The ravens really are leaving the Tower. Last week, it was Andrea Jenkyns quitting the Tories; this week it is the turn of an even bigger name. Tim Montgomerie – the founder of Conservative Home – has today been announced as the latest prominent Conservative to switch to Reform UK. The party posted a picture
There have been a lot of political firsts this year: Labour’s supermajority, Reform UK’s Westminster seats and the incorporation of an, er, bungee jump into the Liberal Democrat election campaign. Now all eyes are on a curious development in Westminster today that has the potential to alter the UK’s entire voting system… In a rather