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
This year’s Labour conference in Liverpool will be accompanied by the rival ‘The World Transformed’ event which will see Momentum host four days of talks. With speakers including Richard Seymour — the journalist who once said if Falklands hero Simon Weston knew anything ‘he’d still have his face’ — it’s shaping up to be an interesting few days.
As Owen Smith’s supporters struggle to stay positive about his chances in the Labour leadership race, the MP can at least take heart that some still have faith. The latest Register of Interests shows that Smith has received a donation of £67,550 from Anthony Watson. This covers the rental, phone and internet costs of Smith’s campaign
After Gary Johnson, the Libertarian Party presidential nominee, didn’t know what ‘Aleppo’ was in an interview, hacks at the New York Times thought the gaffe would provide great material for a story. Alas, said hacks failed to do their research before writing it. In correcting Johnson, the article claimed that the Syrian city is the
After seven years of Tory domination at the Westminster Dog of the Year competition, MPs from other parties had clearly had enough. Labour’s Anna Turley and Clem the Shih Tzu (named after Clement Attlee, of course) came down from Redcar in a bid to knock the Tories off top spot (though seemed more interested in
This week Ken Livingstone has managed to cause a stir after he appeared on the BBC to defend Keith Vaz — but ended up talking about Hitler. However, there was another reason Livingstone’s appearance on television piqued Mr S’s interest: why is he still in Britain? During the EU referendum campaign, Livingstone threatened to emigrate if
During the London mayoral campaign, the Evening Standard was accused of showing ‘overwhelming bias’ towards the Tory candidate Zac Goldsmith. The Media Reform Coalition claimed the paper had become the ‘mouthpiece of the Conservative party’ after it ran twice as many positive headlines about Goldsmith than his Labour rival Sadiq Khan. Khan was also the subject
Last summer, Chuka Umunna disappointed his Blairite mentors when he dropped out of the Labour leadership race. Explaining his decision, Umunna said that he was uncomfortable with the level of pressure and scrutiny on both himself and his loved ones. A lot has changed since then. With Jeremy Corbyn leading a fractious party — and
To GQ‘s Men of the Year awards at the Tate Modern. With Russell Brand not around to make Nazi jokes at the expense of a sponsor this year, Amy Schumer did her best to unsettle the champagne-fuelled crowd. Accepting the ‘woman of the year’ gong, the American comedian said she was relieved an awards ceremony ‘finally celebrated men’. However it was Sadiq
Oh dear. After the nation voted for Britain to leave the EU in the referendum, many Remain-ers were left downhearted and depressed over the result. While some have since managed to put on a brave face, others continue to struggle. Take for example Martin Roth, the director of the V&A. Over the weekend, reports surfaced that the museum’s
Today Keith Vaz has stepped down as chair of the Home Affairs Select Committee following a series of claims about his personal life. His decision comes after a number of his Labour comrades tried to help his cause by going onto the airwaves to wax lyrical about their colleague. Simon Danczuk — who is currently suspended from the party for sexting a
Throughout Jeremy Corbyn’s leadership of the Labour party, his links to Sinn Féin have been called into question by his critics. As Mr S’s colleague Douglas Murray has previously reported, Corbyn was chumming up to the Irish republican party even while their military wing was blowing up ordinary pub-goers, shooting farmers in the head and planting
After the Government released its childhood obesity strategy last month, Theresa May stood accused of sidelining the issue. So, Mr S was pleased to receive an invite to an event focussing on the issue. Sharon Hodgson — the Chair of the All-Party Parliamentary Group for School Food — is holding a breakfast on Tuesday morning to call on the government
Although a poll in the Times last week suggested that Jeremy Corbyn will win the Labour leadership with an even bigger mandate than last time, some party insiders claim it is a lot closer than many think. So, perhaps that’s why Corbyn has called in the help of… UB40. Yes, the British reggae band are to
In the aftermath of the Leave vote, it’s safe to say that not every Brexiteer’s career path has played out as they hoped. After Michael Gove’s leadership bid backfired, the former Justice Secretary has found himself on the back bench. What’s more, his old pals George Osborne and David Cameron appear to have cut him from their
Following the Sunday Mirror‘s claim that Keith Vaz is leading a double life paying young male escorts for sex, the MP for Leicester East is expected to step down from his role as the head of the Home Affairs select committee. In the texts and video footage published by the paper, Vaz appears to inquire about purchasing
During the EU referendum campaign, Eddie Izzard toured the country wearing a pink beret in a bid to convince young people to vote Remain. Alas his efforts failed to have the desired effect, with the Leave result only adding to his growing list of doomed campaigns. While Izzard’s kiss of death has since gone on to lose
Once upon a time Jeremy Corbyn said that he would not bring back Labour’s mandatory reselection of the Eighties if elected leader. However, it seems that the recent Labour coup has caused him to have a change of heart. Just last month, Corbyn refused to rule out Labour MPs facing mandatory reselection battles before being allowed to stand. So, it’s rather
Yes, it was a bank holiday – but did that give the BBC an excuse to launch a licence-fee funded attack on its independent rival? The peg, if you can call it that, was ITV’s decision to turn off all its programming for an hour on Saturday morning as part of its ‘I am team GB’ campaign
Since the British people voted for Brexit in June, there has been a sense of disbelief among luvvies. While Charlotte Church has demanded her ‘f—ing European Union back’, Mr S’s colleague Lloyd Evans reports that the comedy at this year’s Edinburgh Fringe harboured a ‘pleb-hating mood’ when it came to the referendum result. So, Mr S was
After the nation voted in favour of Brexit in the EU referendum, Jeremy Corbyn faced a coup from Labour MPs left unsatisfied with his efforts for Remain. Leading the charge, Hilary Benn sparked a round of mass frontbench resignations after he said there was ‘no confidence’ in Corbyn’s ability to win the next election. However, could it all
