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
Oh dear. Shadow chancellor John McDonnell’s interview on the Today programme started off a little oddly this morning, with the presenters noting how rough he looked in the studio – apparently he had tripped over fly-tipped rubbish outside his house. The Labour MP joked that although he was arriving rather than leaving the studio looking
Once again, rumours began to swirl around Westminster on Tuesday that there would – finally – be a confidence vote in Theresa May. News outlets and journalists on Twitter breathlessly announced that the chairman of the 1922 committee, Graham Brady, had received the necessary 48 letters from MPs to call a confidence vote. Unfortunately for
This week the House of Commons commission will meet to discuss its response to the Cox report on bullying and harassment at Westminster. The report concludes that a number of officials, including one John Bercow, could need to stand down in order for real change to come about. Only there is very little chance of that happening
After a hectic political summer, with multiple cabinet resignations and minor rebellions, even the most seasoned of Westminster watchers were struggling to keep track of all the junior ministers in Theresa May’s team. But even after the resignation dust has settled, it seems that Commons staff are still struggling to remember who’s in the government
It’s the day of the People’s Vote march and over half a million protesters are estimated to have descended on the capital to call for a second referendum. The pro-EU protesters have brought with them a range of placards – while some parents have opted to simply save paper and write pro-EU slogans on their
The EU flags, glitter berets and bad taste posters are out in full force today as the People’s Vote march hits London. Among the big names expected to attend are Alastair Campbell (still trying to work out what makes this march different to the anti-Iraq one in terms of effectiveness) while Philip Lee – the
Oh dear. Today hundreds of thousands of ‘People’s Vote’ campaigners are set to take to the streets as they campaign for a second referendum – or to use their words: a vote on the final deal. Only it’s not got off to the best start. A Twitter account by the name of Chesterfield EU has
When the FT revealed today that former Lib Dem leader and deputy Prime Minister Nick Clegg was joining Facebook as a head of global affairs, there was a predictable chorus of outrage from Labour MPs. In a statement, Labour’s Jon Trickett decried Clegg’s new position as: ‘a damning indictment of the sorry state of our
It used to be a truism on the left, that the one surefire way to motivate your base (and boost funding) was to attack the supposed greed and wealth of the hated Tories. But it appears that times have indeed changed. Not the tactics of course, but the targets: now the true enemies of Jeremy
This weekend thousands of anti-Brexit protesters are expected to take to the streets in the name of the People’s Vote march – the campaign calling for a second referendum. Of all the ‘People’s Vote’ cheerleaders, Alastair Campbell is one of the loudest and he appeared on This Week to plug the event. Only Andrew Neil
Oh dear. It’s not going great for Theresa May right now what with Brexiteers calling on her removal and Remainers also tiring of her dithering. But despite the rise in blue-on-blue hostilities, an interview with Johnny Mercer still manages to surprise. The Conservative backbencher – who has been branded a rising star – has used
We’ve all been there. Having to ask someone to repeat themselves because you couldn’t understand them is embarrassing enough. Spare a thought then for Sir Paul Beresford. In the Commons just now, the Tory MP failed to understand the Glaswegian accent of the SNP’s David Linden. Twice. Luckily for Beresford, deputy speaker Lindsay Hoyle eventually stepped in
It’s fair to say that it’s been a tough couple of weeks for Theresa May. As the Brexit negotiations have stalled and her Chequers plan crumbles before her eyes, the PM could be forgiven for deciding that she’s had her fill of leading the country and packing up her bags and going. No 10 certainly
With the Brexit negotiations hitting an impasse, Theresa May is under pressure from Brussels to make yet more concessions. Meanwhile, the ‘People’s Vote’ campaign is keen to tell anyone who will listen that public opinion has changed and Remain is now the mood of the country. Only as far as Mr S can tell the vast
Ever since the Brexit referendum, it’s been a fact of British political life that the most important decisions, that will have the profoundest impact on society, will not be decided by politicians, but by the people. Therefore it made perfect sense when politicians questioned Westminster’s favourite curry house’s decision to update its menu, that the
Here we go again. It’s no big secret that these days the New York Times isn’t so fond of Blighty. The American paper frequently publishes gloomy articles about what’s gone wrong in the UK – whether it’s mistaking a newspaper sketch writer’s joke about the French for Brexit bias, factually incorrect articles about London’s once ‘mutton-filled’ culinary
In recent months, there has been speculation that John McDonnell has leadership ambitions – and a rift has formed between the shadow chancellor and his one-time comrade Jeremy Corbyn. So, it won’t have gone unnoticed by the Leader’s Office that McDonnell today embarked on a charm offensive of the MSM – also know as the
Labour MPs like to see themselves on the front line when it comes to protecting women’s rights and creating safe workplaces for everyone. In fact, the slightest sign of impropriety in the Conservative Party or society at large is usually enough for them to call for sackings and public apologies. So you would expect after
It’s been a curious day in Parliament after Labour MPs en masse came to John Bercow’s defence amid a damning report into bullying in Parliament. Despite the report concluding that the Speaker is among those who should consider their position, numerous Labour MPs have said that he should stay in place. It seems that treating
John Bercow is under growing pressure to step down over the report into bullying in the Commons. But while the Speaker has been all too eager to take a stand in the past – saying, for instance, that Donald Trump was not welcome in Parliament – he isn’t taking the hint when it comes to