Water minister Emma Hardy was asked why ex-Cabinet Secretary Chris Wormald left his role just a year after Starmer appointed him. She told Sky News:
“Well, from the statements that I’ve seen, and of course, I’m not involved in that personally. They’ve said it’s a mutual decision for that they both have made together…Well, I think [Starmer] is keen to sort of, you know, look at his team and make sure that we have the team we need to deliver on the priorities this year.”
Meanwhile, the Whitehall row over the saga continues, with senior figures now briefing The Times that officials refused to sign off on Starmer’s decision to let Wormald go as there was no compelling reason he should be sacked and it would cost the taxpayer too much money. Last night, three sources told Channel 4 that bullying allegations against expected new pick Antonia Romeo were not dismissed by the Foreign Office and that had a formal process been followed by the FCDO rather than being taken over by the Cabinet Office, she would have faced action. The Cabinet Office says: “All allegations were dismissed on the basis there was no case to answer.” Romeo wasn’t built in a day…
Speaking on the Labour chaos over the last few weeks, Culture Secretary Lisa Nandy told The Guardian:
“You call it a sh*tshow, I say it’s unforgivable…It does look to people outside that we’re more interested in ourselves and less interested in preventing chaos. […] We’ve not done enough, and this has got to be the moment of reckoning where we say not just what are we here for, but who are we here for?”