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
Since the 56 SNP MPs entered Parliament, they have taken to ‘rebelling’ against the establishment in a number of ways. So far they have focussed their time on trying to nab Dennis Skinner’s seat, going against Commons’ etiquette by clapping in the chamber, and purchasing white roses for the Queen’s Speech. Now they also appear to have had enough of corridors. Stewart McDonald, the SNP
Alex Salmond’s reintroduction to Parliament has hit a few bumps in the road this week. He was criticised on Tuesday when he appeared to use Charles Kennedy’s death as an opportunity to push Scottish independence. Now, Salmond has told Anna Soubry, the small business minister, to ‘behave herself, woman’. During a House of Commons debate last
Could there be trouble in doggy paradise? Sarah Vine has previously revealed that their family dog Snowy (a Bichon ‘ish’ dog, who was the runner up in the Westminster Dog of the Year, 2015) is ‘married’ to Lola, George Osborne’s bichon frise. But could it be that Lola has been forced into this canine partnership?
Last week the Guardian‘s food police turned their attention to tea. After the publication declared war on HP sauce in January, they have now vetoed tea. The writer Joel Golby claims that liking tea is ‘the worst possible English trait, up there with colonialism and the class system’. All very… Guardian. Only the tea memo has yet to reach the Guardian shop, which
Something incredible happened today: the Twitterati – used to passing mob justice on telly, celebs and politics – turned their attention to poetry. More specifically a poem in the London Review of Books by Craig Raine. How Mr S’s heart leapt as he saw Raine’s name trending up there with Andy Coulson and #NationalRunningDay, could
Ever since the 56 SNP MPs arrived in Parliament, their main focus seems to be battling Dennis Skinner for his seat. Happily, the Scottish Nationalists appeared to have a night off from pestering the 83-year-old MP yesterday, with Angus MacNeil teaming up with the Conservatives to take on the Lords in Macmillan Cancer Support’s annual Parliamentary Tug of
The first PMQs of the new Parliament will kick off shortly and Commons watchers will be looking to see if Dennis Skinner remains in his usual spot. The socialist firebrand, along with fellow members of Labour’s so-called awkward squad, has previously occupied the second opposition front bench — until the SNP’s 56 MPs came along
Given that the Queen looked in such good health last week during her speech, Mr S was surprised to hear ‘breaking’ news that she was being treated in hospital this morning. The BBC journalist Ahmen Khawaja took to Twitter to tell her followers exactly that. However, Buckingham Palace has since confirmed that the Queen was in hospital, but just for
After mounting public pressure, Sepp Blatter has today announced he will resign as Fifa president. This comes after the 79-year-old was re-elected last week in the role, despite being embroiled in a corruption scandal. Blatter’s decision to resign, even though he seemingly remains popular with his colleagues, has struck a chord with one UK politician. Jim Murphy, the former
This afternoon Alex Salmond faced a public backlash after he appeared to use a television appearance to push his own politics, while paying tribute to the late Charles Kennedy. The Scottish Nationalist claimed on air that Kennedy, who passed away yesterday, was never really a true supporter of the Better Together campaign. Now Jenny Rathbone, the Welsh Labour and Co-operative politician, has also risked the
Those hoping one of Westminster’s most entertaining ongoing feuds would cool after the election will be disappointed. As the dust settled on David Cameron’s majority, his 2010 confident and in-house polling guru Lord Ashcroft let rip in the New Statesman at the Tories’ victorious 2015 election strategist Lynton Crosby: ‘By and large, on balance, we can
Who ever says that the Scots aren’t healthy needs to rethink their stereotyping. While Scotland may be famous for creating the culinary delicacy that is the deep-fried Mars Bar, under the SNP it has evolved into a ‘healthier’ version. Jim Murphy, who was ousted from his seat by the SNP, has been reacquainting himself with the national favourite in
With the BBC up for charter renewal next year, increasing attention is being paid to the manner in which the corporation conducts itself. Things weren’t helped last week when a BBC historian claimed that Lord Howard, the chairman of the BBC governors from 1980-83, paid for a prostitute on the Orient Express with an expenses claim.
With Ed Miliband’s leadership hopes well and truly over, the Labour MP returned to the backbench today: Miliband could be spied on the BBC’s Commons cam in the corner of the Chamber, flanked by his former PPS Karen Buck. His return to the Commons also appeared to attract the attention of his fellow MPs in the Chamber:
Oh dear. The love in between Dr Éoin Clarke and aspiring Labour leader Andy Burnham appears to be over. Mr S’s colleague Sebastian Payne noted last week that Burnham has attracted ‘an online army of fans’ which includes Dr Eoin Clarke: ‘Part of [Burnham’s] nascent leadership campaign is an online army of fans who are promoting his cause and
Andy Burnham may be the odds-on favourite for the Labour leadership but that doesn’t mean it’s all plain sailing for the politician. Mr S notes that Burnham has been sporting a bruised lip of late. When a hack spied him in the Strangers bar recently, they asked him whether the Labour leadership race had become physical with
Lucy Powell’s list of PR blunders reached epic proportions through the course of the election campaign, with the Labour campaign chief messing up several media appearances: However, Mr S understands that one of her biggest cock-ups remained unknown until this weekend. Writing in the Sunday Times, Tanya Gold revealed that it was Powell who helped organise Russell Brand’s much mocked
Alan Bennett’s Lady in the Van tells the story of a homeless woman called Miss Shepherd who moved her van into the playwright’s drive temporarily and ended up staying there for 15 years. Speaking about the film adaptation, which stars Maggie Smith, at Hay, Bennett claimed that Miss Shepherd would not be given the same welcome by
This week’s New Statesman, guest-edited by Neil Gaiman and Amanda Palmer, is titled ‘Saying the unsayable’. It promises to ‘address the ideas of censorship, taboos, offence and free speech’. The magazine has Stephen Fry revealing two opinions that will get him in ‘trouble’, as well as Rowan Williams writing on ‘Why religion needs blasphemy’. It was also supposed
‘The art of politics is not to lie,’ claimed Alex Salmond on last night’s This Week. A noble sentiment for sure, but Mr S feels it’s his duty to remind readers of a story that broke in October 2013. The Telegraph reported that ‘Alex Salmond spent almost £20,000 of taxpayers’ money to keep secret legal