Steerpike

Steerpike

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

Diane Abbott’s warning to second referendum supporters

Diane Abbott has a stark warning for those clamouring for a second referendum: be careful what you wish for. The Labour MP’s warning won’t go down well with those from the ‘People’s Vote’ campaign, who desperately need the support of the Labour party if their wish is to come true. On Nick Robinson’s podcast, Abbott

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The Corbynite with an eye on the crown

Readers may be familiar with the ultra-Corbynite MP Chris Williamson for many reasons. They may have heard about his campaign to deselect his fellow MPs. Or his frequent appearances on Russia Today. Or his hostile reaction to any suggestion that Labour might have an anti-Semitism problem. But who knew that Williamson had a modest streak

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Listen: Nigel Farage calls for another leader to go

Since Nigel Farage stepped down as the head of Ukip in 2016, the subsequent leaders have, to put it mildly, struggled to stay in power for very long. First there was Paul Nutall, who stepped down after nine months following a disastrous election showing – and some questionable claims about his involvement in the Hillsborough

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What’s in the small print of Theresa May’s “political declaration”?

Granted, it’s not another 40 horrors list but Mr Steerpike was struck by Paragraph 79 of the EU/UK Political Declaration: ‘The future relationship must ensure open and fair competition. Provisions to ensure this should cover state aid, competition, social and employment standards, environmental standards, climate change, and relevant tax matters, building on the level playing

Watch: Iain Duncan Smith slams May’s Brexit plan

Theresa May is in the Commons attempting to convince MPs to back her Brexit plan. But it isn’t going well. Iain Duncan Smith was particularly critical of the PM’s backstop blueprint, telling May that while he appreciated her efforts it wasn’t good enough. Here’s what he said: ‘For all of the effort and work, the

Michael Gove finds his Game of Thrones ‘soulmate’

One of the least popular MPs in the Conservative Party at the moment has to be Michael Gove. As the attempt to oust the PM gained pace late last week, Gove disappeared for the day, annoying those who wished him to remain loyal to May, and then refused to resign, annoying those who wished to

Watch: Clive Lewis misbehaves in the Commons

Clive Lewis is no stranger to controversy. The Labour MP was forced to apologise last year after he was caught on camera telling someone to ‘get on your knees b****’. Now, Lewis has surpassed himself, by appearing to pretend to shoot himself while sitting on the Labour frontbench in the House of Commons. The Corbynista

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Nadine Dorries defends the Tories’ botched coup

It’s been a rough start to the week for Brexiteers in the ERG, as they failed to reach 48 no confidence letters over the weekend, and are now being forced to explain why their coup (sorry, ‘democratic process within the Conservative party’) against Theresa May has been such a disaster. It was Nadine Dorries’ turn

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Watch: Jacob Rees-Mogg rebukes reporter over Brexit ‘coup’

The Brexit bunch’s bid to oust Theresa May has fallen rather flat, at least for the time being. Having failed to muster enough letters to force a vote of no confidence in the Prime Minister, the European Research Group now appears to be desperately backtracking. Jacob Rees-Mogg, who enjoyed the limelight at an impromptu press

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Labour snatch defeat from the jaws of victory

Oh dear. Theresa May’s confidence and supply agreement with the DUP is on very thin ice – if not already dead – after the party’s MPs abstained on a range of amendments to the finance bill and even voted en masse for a Labour amendment. This is in breach of the party’s deal with the

ERG plotters fail to meet the bar

Speaking on the Today programme this morning, Simon Clarke – the Tory Brexiteer who has filed a letter of ‘no confidence’ in the Prime Minister – declared that ‘this is the day we stand at the bar of history’. Clarke and his fellow Brexiteer plotters said that the full 48 letters required to trigger a

Watch: Graham Brady – I haven’t received 48 letters yet

It’s the question that’s on everyone’s lips in Westminster this week: how many letters of no confidence have been sent to the chairman of the 1922 committee, Graham Brady? Only Brady knows how many letters there are, and he’s committed to not revealing to anybody (including his wife) what the running total is. This morning

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Watch: Corbyn’s Brexit befuddlement

Since he became leader in 2015, Jeremy Corbyn has not exactly cultivated a sense that he’s top of any political situation. But he reached new heights of incompetence when he was interviewed on Sky this morning. The Labour leader was asked by Sophy Ridge if he’d actually read the Prime Minister’s draft Withdrawal Agreement which was

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Til Brexit do us part

Brexit is one of the most divisive issues in the UK – splitting friends, family and all the main political parties along Leave and Remain lines. But if you think you’ve had some bruising arguments about Brexit these past two years, spare a thought for one particularly political household. Chief Brexiteer Andrea Jenkyns has been