In another bumpy start to 2026 for Starmer, the first flight of the year to deport illegal migrants under the ‘one in, one out’ scheme has been cancelled. Detainees who were meant to be deported this morning were told they had their tickets cancelled. One of whom told The Guardian:
“I came on a boat with 80 people onboard. Ten of us were detained and 70 were taken to hotels because their asylum claims will be processed here. That’s not fair. I was delighted when our tickets were cancelled but the guards would not tell us the reason. When I asked a guard he said: ‘We can’t tell you why.’”
‘Turning the corner’…
Tom Baldwin, author of Starmer’s hagiography, spoke to Times Radio:
Tom Baldwin: “I think he’d like to do something. He’s very dutiful and driven by service. That’s why he came into politics. I think that’s characterised his time as prime minister. He hasn’t always sought popularity or been good at being popular. But I think he has some of the necessary qualities that we actually do want in a prime minister. That resilience, that relentlessness, that ability to carry the weight and the job really does weigh very heavily on people and he carries that weight very, very well.”
Jo Coburn: “NATO Secretary-General?”
Tom Baldwin: “I think that’s something that he would be interested in. I think it probably requires Andy Burnham’s government to support him in that and these are some of the questions which Andy Burnham has to resolve quite quickly.”