Starmer’s ‘Chief Secretary’ Darren Jones is threatening a run at the leadership if certain conditions are not met by Team Burnham. ‘Our generation’s Rehman Chishti’ as described by Labourites…
Some pro-Starmer MPs are briefing about a Jones run and his briefer is attempting to toe the line between “Darren will run” and “he will do it if he has to.” So far Darren’s people say that he is waiting to see if the economic credentials of Burnham’s rapidly-assembling government are to his satisfaction…
81 names are needed to trigger a contest. A Labour source suggests “I have more fingers than Darren has names.”
Andy Burnham for his part has still not chosen a Chancellor between an apparent selection of Ed Miliband, Wes Streeting, and Shabana Mahmood. Which tells you something about how decisive he is…
Starmer is also pushing ahead on the Defence Investment Plan with Dan Jarvis ahead of the NATO summit on 7 July – the last major international event he is scheduled to attend. Burnham’s team are complaining that it should be delayed until he can approve it. Circus…
Krishnan Guru-Murthy asked John Healey: “Just finally, I mean Andy Burnham has been very clear he wants Britain back in the European Union in his lifetime. Do you?”
The Chancellor replied: “I’m older than Andy Burnham. I don’t expect to see that.”