Shabana Mahmood has not done any media since before she went into Downing Street and told Starmer to set out a path for his leaving office. Shy?
The Home Secretary was not even due to give the Commons statement on the Henry Nowak case. Until it became such big news that she took the place of policing minister Sarah Jones, who was due to take to the despatch box…
Sue Gray ally Donjeta Miftari is working on comms for Team Burnham as Guido revealed last week. Not only is Miftari a Grayite – she also worked for a year as an adviser to Mahmood prior to the general election…
Mahmood is close to key Burnham aide (and seat provider) Josh Simons through Labour Together, the Starmerite operation from which she drew tens of thousands of pounds. Mahmood’s current chief of staff Josh Williams also previously served as Simons’ chief of staff at the organisation…
Sources familiar with the messages say the Home Secretary’s SpAds were texting excitedly about Andy’s seat announcement on the morning of that Thursday.
Burnham has praised Mahmood in the press – he said 13 days ago that he agrees with the “thrust” of her immigration reforms and his spokesmen have gone further in indicating Team Burnham’s support for the policy programme. That’s crucial for a Home Secretary who is obsessed with the policy side of things…
An optimistic Burnham camp is briefing that the fealty–paying Cabinet ministers are more of a pain than anything and are trying to keep their presence low-key. Ministers are in the Mah-mood for a job in the new Andy ministry…
Former leader of the SNP in Westminster Ian Blackford told Times Radio why he believes Nicola Sturgeon’s claim that she spent no time in the kitchen and therefore didn’t see any of her husband’s purchases:
“She doesn’t have a passion for cooking.”