Ministers believe Sir Keir Starmer made a fatal blunder at Prime Minister’s Questions on Wednesday when he veered from the script and claimed “no pressure existed whatsoever” over Peter Mandelson’s vetting, directly misleading Parliament, according to the Mail‘s Dan Hodges. Here’s an excerpt.
Ministers believe Keir Starmer has made his last mistake. “I think that next week he’ll have to hand in his resignation,” one told me this morning. “He completely f****d up at Prime Minister’s Questions. He’s lied to the House. Next week everyone will see he’s lied to the House. And that will be it.”
The fatal blunder they were referring to relates to a statement Sir Keir gave to Conservative leader Kemi Badenoch halfway through yesterday’s sparring match. To widespread incredulity across the Commons, he read out a series of quotes from sacked Foreign Office permanent secretary Sir Olly Robbins, which attempted to give the impression he had cleared No. 10 and the Cabinet Office of applying untoward pressure in relation to Peter Mandelson’s vetting.
The quotes themselves were selective, misleading and, in one instance, even falsely ascribed. But then Sir Keir went further. “No pressure existed whatsoever in relation to this case,” he defiantly asserted.
According to a Minister I spoke to yesterday, that statement had created “deep unease” among No. 10 officials. But by this morning, that unease had morphed into outright “panic”. The reason for this, I’m told, is that the Prime Minister had clumsily deviated from a carefully crafted response prepared for him by his team on how to respond to Sir Olly’s allegation on Monday that “throughout January, honestly, my office and the Foreign Secretary’s office were under constant pressure”.
I’m told that, in advance of Sir Olly’s appearance at the Foreign Affairs Committee, Sir Keir’s team gathered to produce a rebuttal to briefings circulated by the civil servant’s allies that he and other officials were press-ganged into fast-tracking Mandelson’s appointment. They decided it would be impossible to refute the charge – not least because they were only too aware such pressure had indeed been applied – but decided on another approach. If pressed, the Prime Minister would simply assert that officials should have been robust enough to resist any arm-twisting.
This was precisely the line Sir Keir road-tested in his initial statement to the Commons on Monday.
That day, Lib Dem MP Claire Young put this to the Prime Minister: “Ditching a tried and tested ambassador for a high-risk one seems odd behaviour for a Prime Minister who claims to be so fond of proper process. Whose idea was it, and who was applying the pressure?”
Sir Keir responded: “I reject the idea that any pressure is a good reason not to disclose to the Prime Minister that UKSV (UK security vetting) recommended against clearance for a very senior, sensitive appointment. I simply do not accept that that is an adequate reason, whatever the pressure.”
But then on Wednesday, for reasons even his closest advisers cannot fathom, he opted to abandon that script – and extemporise. With potentially catastrophic consequences.
Much of Westminster’s focus has been on the news that Sir Keir’s former chief of staff, Morgan McSweeney, is to appear next week before Dame Emily Thornberry’s select committee. But within Downing Street the focus – and fear – is centred on an expected appearance by Sir Philip Barton, Sir Olly’s predecessor.
It is common knowledge within No. 10, the Cabinet Office and the Foreign Office that Sir Philip was placed under enormous pressure to fast-track Mandelson’s appointment. According to one report, he was ordered by McSweeney to “just f*****g make the appointment”.
It’s not clear whether Sir Philip will confirm that specific quote, and McSweeney’s allies insist he would not use such industrial language towards a senior civil servant.
But Downing Street officials do expect Sir Philip to confirm severe pressure was applied. At which point the Prime Minister will be seen to have directly misled Parliament.
Worth reading in full.
Stop Press: Labour MPs are plotting to topple Starmer swiftly in the aftermath of the predicted local election wipeout on May 7th, according to the Telegraph. Backbench Labour MPs told the newspaper that the “game is already up” over his “disastrous” handling of the Mandelson vetting scandal.
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If Shakespeare were alive, he’d have Thersites say, ” … but to be Sir Keir Starmer … “
There’s no doubt he’s a dead man walking. He’d be gone already were it not for the upcoming elections, following which he’ll be ousted and replaced by someone even worse.
Since 1997 things have only got worse.
But he could sack his Number 10 Officials, then his scriptwriters, then change his word processor and print his ‘scripted replies’ onto lined paper.
All to put off the day when his carefully worded replies no longer have any value.
If everything’s on lined paper he’ll find it difficult to claim nothing crossed his desk?
It seems strange to say this but if Two Tier does go – willingly or othewise – then there is a chance that whoever follows could hasten our economic collapse and force an early election. Given that the party members are very fond of the escapee from the asylum, Mad Ed, you can see chaos on the horizon if this utter moron becomes PM. Sad to say it, but the horrible little lying woman, Pixie Balls Cooper, could be the least worst option but is she popular with the party members?
Regardless of whatever happens, the least likely consequence is a General Election.
Do turkeys vote for Christmas?
I have to say Starmer does impress me in one way. He has amazing hair, which he seems to wear with the style and precision of a punctilious SS officer. The contrast with Boris Johnson’s scruffy mop could not be greater.
One has to admit the system does elevate some pretty quirky characters to its loftiest post.
That’s because he’s just an animated wax model of himself on loan from Mme Tussaud’s.
I don’t really get the purpose of this spectacle, other than to indulge the games of the courtiers and court observers who seem very energised by the prospect of taking Starmer down and replacing him with the next sock puppet.
Me neither. I really do hope he stays until the next general election so the people who voted for him and the people who voted for other parties that are Labour-adjacent (all of them except Reform and a few minor parties) get a chance to have their say on his performance. But he won’t. He will be replaced, some people will feel reassured that we are in good hands again and so it goes on.
It would be delightful if the person whose favourite phrase is “due process was followed at all times” was forced to resign because of not following due process.
Still, it’s often the sour-faced, hell-and-brimstone Bible bashes who are found in a public toilet with their pants down, trying to buy a goat from two Arabs using a stolen credit card.
Lovely simile.
Could perhaps be a male goat or a stolen goat.
A Ukrainian goat?
Zelenskyy? Doesn’t pursue this line of work anymore since he became president.
:->
Only one?
So, the prime minister did something other than delivering a King’s speech (metaphorically spoken) for civil service that’s supposedly not governing the country?
Clumsy it may have been, but nevertheless, that’s how things are meant to work: The government governs and the civil service serves and not the other way round.
A liar will inevitably trap himself in his own deceit sooner or later and expose his lies for what they are.
Much as I want Starmer to fall, it still leaves the Labour party in place. We have three more years of this.
Quite so. It would give me a certain amount of personal satisfaction to see this two-faced creep stand down, but the gap could be filled by someone even worse for the country as a whole.
To quote my brother: Schlimmer geht’s immer (Everything can always get worse).
But that it could get worse doesn’t mean it will and sticking to something bad because change could be even worse isn’t a good plan. If Starmer manages to outstarm his not exactly warm welcome, that’s one problem less.
Yes: and recalling their anthem during the Kinnock years. . it can only get worse.
These days it is ‘Things can only get shitter.’
A very good (and alarming) point. And yet if the incompetent are not punished future incompetence is more likely.