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
Although Paul Nuttall made a quick escape from today’s Ukip Spring Conference in order to avoid the pesky press, compared with Douglas Carswell it was an admirable effort. Mr S understands that Ukip’s only MP has deigned not to bother turning up today. While there are over 25 Ukip politicians speaking at the event, Carswell
As the government considers plans to raise an extra £1billion next year through a revaluation of business rates, there has been much concern on the backbench that the move would see high street shops priced out of existence. Mark Field — vice-chairman of the Conservative party — has called on Philip Hammond to back down from the ‘looming nightmare’ of higher
Ken Loach has carved out a name as something of a Corbynista luvvie. The director put together a droning, hour-long promotional film for the Labour leader last year. And Corbyn returned in kind by offering a glowing review of his pal’s recent I, Daniel Blake movie, which he urged people to go and see. This
Pencils are being sharpened in the literary world as the row over cultural appropriation rumbles on. Last year Lionel Shriver found herself in the eye of a storm after she used her keynote speech at the Brisbane writers’ festival to complain that fear of ‘cultural appropriation’ was inhibiting both fiction writers who wish to write from
Oh dear. As Theresa May avoids questions about the NHS up in Copeland ahead of this month’s by-election, brains at No 10 decided a trip to Captain Shaw’s Primary School in Bootle would make for a safe photo opp. Alas things didn’t go quite to plan when the Prime Minister struggled to raise a smile in
As Paul Nuttall receives flak today over his admission that the claim on his website that he lost ‘close personal’ friends in the Hillsborough disaster is false, his press officer appears to have fallen on her sword. Lynda Roughley says she made the mistake and has offered to resign. Roughley adds that she feels ‘absolutely terrible’ as
Just in case tensions between Brexiteers and Remain-ers were beginning to die down now that MPs have voted for Article 50, television producers are at the ready to whip up more drama between the two camps. Channel 4 is bringing back Wife Swap for a Brexit special. While it has been touted as a one-off special,
Oh dear. It’s safe to say that Labour’s candidate for the Stoke-on-Central by-election has not had a good day. After Guido published tweets in which Gareth Snell called a variety of women ‘sour-faced’ and ‘annoying’, the Sun revealed that he had said Deirdre from Coronation Street deserved a slap. Meanwhile, Mr S notes that Snell also found
Relations between Theresa May and Nicky Morgan took a turn for the worse last year after the former education secretary criticised the Prime Minister for wearing a £995 pair of trousers while claiming that she wanted to help those who are ‘just about managing’. While the pair have since made — uneasy — peace, the woman
Last month, Tim Farron ruled out any electoral pact between the Liberal Democrats and Labour — branding Jeremy Corbyn ‘toxic’. With Labour mourning the loss of over 7,000 members in January, it seems Farron may be on to something. In contrast to Labour, the Liberal Democrats were buoyed by 4,000 new members last month. And just how
Yesterday James Duddridge, the Tory backbencher, tabled a motion of no confidence in the Speaker. It comes after John Bercow took the government by surprise on Monday by declaring that President Trump was not welcome to address Parliament on his upcoming state visit. Given that Trump had expressed no desire to do so and several world leaders with
With Labour lagging behind the Tories in the polls and the party divided over Brexit, there has been much speculation of late over Jeremy Corbyn’s future as Labour leader. While Clive Lewis is rumoured to be considering a leadership challenge, Corbyn appeared to pave the way for a more Corbyn-friendly successor yesterday when he appointed Rebecca Long-Bailey as
There’s little love lost between the BBC and the Leader’s Office. Jeremy Corbyn’s team have regularly accused the Beeb of anti-Corbyn bias, with the BBC trust recently concluding that its political editor Laura Kuenssberg inaccurately reported the Labour leader’s views about shoot-to-kill policies in the aftermath of the terror attacks in Paris. Today, the battle took
After the government’s Brexit Bill passed through the Commons unamended, whips, government ministers and Brexiteers were in the mood to celebrate. Alas, not everyone was on the same page. Although Diane Abbott was well enough to vote for Article 50 today, the shadow home secretary is far from happy about the government’s plans for a ‘Tory Brexit’. So, it was unfortunate timing
This week John Bercow was accused of double standards after he announced that he would not allow President Trump to address both Houses of Parliament. Putting aside the times world leaders with questionable human rights records have (a) addressed the House, and (b) shared tea with the Speaker, Bercow said Trump’s policies meant he was unworthy of
Another month, another declaration of extra-income from the former Chancellor of the Exchequer. According to the latest register of interests, George Osborne brought in over £90,000 last month for just five hours work. This means that Osborne managed to out earn his annual MP’s salary of £74,962 in less than a day. Mr S praises the
On Tuesday, the Daily Politics aired a segment lifting the lid on the staff in No 10. Among the power players featured were the Prime Minister’s chiefs of staff Nick Timothy and Fiona Hill, her press secretary Lizzie Loudon and a man by the name of… Philip May. ‘One more activist seen working at CCHQ made his
How times have changed. When Jeremy Corbyn first entered the Labour leadership race in the summer of 2015, Glenda Jackson — the former MP for Hampstead and Kilburn — wrote to him saying her only regret of not standing at the last election was that it meant she was unable to nominate him for the leadership. Has
As the committee stage of the government’s Brexit bill rolls on, MPs have been debating a range of amendments. Signalling that she could back an amendment on parliamentary sovereignty, Claire Perry – a former transport minister defenestrated in Theresa May’s purge of the Osbornites – said that she had been left disappointed by the attitude of some
It was a family affair at this year’s Oldie of the Year awards. The magazine’s new editor-in-chief Harry Mount — who paid tribute to his predecessor, the great Alexander Chancellor — was joined by his second cousin, David Cameron. The former prime minister told hacks at the reception how much he missed Larry, the No