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
With twelve candidates so far declared for the Tory leadership contest, more MPs are expected to announce in the coming days. Those rumoured to be planning on throwing their hat into the ring include Mark Harper, Steve Baker and 1922 chairman Graham Brady. On Friday, Brady recused himself from a Conservative Party statement on the
Alastair Campbell has been something of a Labour party fixture for the last twenty years – but not any longer. Blair’s former spin doctor has just been given the boot from the party for revealing that he voted Lib Dem at the European elections. Campbell said he was ‘sad’ and ‘disappointed’ to get an email
Rory Stewart is emerging as something of a dark horse in the Tory leadership contest. But while the international development secretary is an impressive candidate he is not immune to making a mishap. Richard Madeley reminded him this morning of a particular low point for Stewart: his made-up ‘fact’ about Brexit –that 80 per cent
There’s a lot of soul-searching in the Labour party after Sunday’s abysmal results in the European elections. On Monday, Corbynista commentator Paul Mason was one of the first out of the blocks, with a lengthy autopsy of Labour’s electoral failure. He placed the blame squarely on Corbyn’s Brexit-leaning advisors, and urged those responsible to be
Is Jesse Norman standing for the Tory leadership? The Conservative MP has just taken to Twitter to provide an answer. But unfortunately 33 tweets later we are no closer to finding out. Norman wrote: ‘In recent days I’ve been asked a lot if I would stand for Leader of the Conservative Party. It’s already a
The Brexit Party has convincingly won the European elections, picking up nearly a third of the vote. But it seems that their success still isn’t enough for some. One Lib Dem MEP – Barbara Gibson – dismissed Nigel Farage’s outfit, saying it is ‘not a real party’. Gibson, who was elected in the East of
Enoch Powell famously said that all political careers end in failure. But for Ann Widdecombe, it seemed that her career had ended with Strictly Come Dancing when she entered the show back in 2010, after retiring from politics at the general election. Yet last night, Widdecombe once again returned to the frontline of politics after
Tonight was a vital night for the fledgling Remain party Change UK. After the resurgence of the Lib Dems in the local elections, Chuka Umunna and Heidi Allen’s party had to fight to justify its existence, and prove that it wasn’t simply another party which was splitting the Remain vote. Alas, it appears that that
The results have begun to trickle in from the European elections tonight, and already it looks like Labour are being hammered from both sides, as they lose Leave voters to the Brexit Party and Remain voters to the Lib Dems and Greens. And with only one region announced, it already appears that the cracks are
It’s one day since Theresa May set an exit date for her departure from 10 Downing Street and the leadership contest to replace her is already heating up. This morning, Rory Stewart – the International Development Secretary – performed a media round in which the Tory MP declared that he would not be able to
After three long years, she’s finally gone. The Prime Minister decided to face the music on the steps of Downing Street yesterday, her voice audibly cracking with emotion as she announced the date of her resignation on 7 June, while her husband Philip May and her Downing Street staff watched sadly on. May’s departure should
The door of Number 10 had barely closed after Theresa May’s resignation statement this morning when Tory MPs began debating who would be the best person to replace her. Brexiteer and ERG deputy chairman Steve Baker certainly wasted no time today, but revealed that the candidate he was really thinking about was… Steve Baker. Asked by
Now that Theresa May has officially announced she is resigning as Prime Minister and leader of the Conservative Party, the various leadership contenders hoping to take her place will be furiously canvassing their colleagues and stepping up their campaigns. But who are the favourites to succeed her so far? According to the betting exchange $Markets,
Top politicians are constantly in demand on the lecture circuit, as large businesses and other stakeholders seek their advice on the chaos engulfing Westminster and how upcoming legislation will affect their economic interests. So it’s not surprising that Change UK’s Anna Soubry and Chuka Umunna were the star speakers at a Marketing Group of Great
Laura Pidcock has been a rising star in Jeremy Corbyn’s Labour party ever since she became an MP in 2017. But the shadow minister for labour was somewhat caught out today when she appeared on Politics Live. Presenter Jo Coburn challenged Pidcock’s dismissal of Theresa May’s new Withdrawal Agreement Bill, when most of the concessions
This morning, new polling by YouGov ahead of the European elections on Thursday put the Brexit Party on top (at 37 per cent) and the Liberal Democrats in second place (on 19 per cent), ahead of Labour. So it was perhaps fitting that as the two new major parties in British politics, it was the
Theresa May has made her latest Brexit deal pitch – and it isn’t going down well with Tory MPs. The Prime Minister used a speech this afternoon to say Parliament will get a vote on whether to hold a second referendum if it backs the EU Withdrawal Agreement Bill. But Simon Clarke – a Tory
It’s quicker these days to list the number of Tory MPs not running to be leader than those expected to go for the top job. Last night another candidate appeared to join the list at an unofficial hustings hosted by the Telegraph. Mr Steerpike popped along to the £75 event, held next door to the Savoy,
Nigel Farage became the latest politician to be pelted by milkshake today, as he toured the centre of Newcastle ahead of the European elections on 23 May. The Brexit Party leader was talking to members of the public in the northeastern city when his assailant, carrying a Five Guys milkshake, surged forward and threw the
After weeks of dragging its feet and giving the distinct impression it would rather walk through broken glass than take part in the upcoming EU elections, the Conservative Party finally launched its campaign for the European elections this afternoon. To celebrate the launch, which the other parties began preparing for several weeks ago, Theresa May and
