Ex-Shadow Culture Secretary Thangam Debbonaire was chatting to Iain Dale on the For The Many podcast yesterday. When talking through the shock of her loss the former MP revealed that Starmer didn’t even call her after she lost. All he could muster was a measly text…
Thangam desperately tried to insist it was fine as Dale pointed out how poor form that is. Hey, I just left you, replaced by Nandy, but here’s my number, so call me maybe…
England’s heartbreak was made worse in London for football fans who tried to find places to watch the Euros final against Spain, only to realise that outside screenings – traditional in the capital’s big parks – had been banned by Sadiq Khan. Mayoral miser Khan blocked the provision of outside viewing areas or big screens for fans in the capital. Londoners were lucky to find a spot in a packed pub – or they had to win a ballot for City Hall’s limited capacity screening of the match at the O2…
The Met slapped an antisocial dispersal order on central London – somewhat confusingly given street gatherings were banned by the Mayor. The force said in a statement:
“If you were thinking of travelling in, perhaps consider other options and remember to plan your journey home.”
Islington Council has announced a by-election for Hillrise Ward on 15th August. This comes after Labour councillor Ollie Steadman suddenly resigned two months into the job…
Steadman only won the ward in a by-election on May 2nd this year. Labour and Islington Council are curiously not responding to requests for comment. Guido notes that Steadman’s Twitter profile was taken private around the 26th June. Perhaps Labour’s ‘transparency’ drive will shortly make things clear…
Labour have been in office less than a week, and already they’ve broken one of their promises. Last year, Rachel Reeves promised to enforce ministerial rules on the use of private aircraft for official trips to “save millions of pounds for taxpayers”. At the time it was revealed how often Sunak had used RAF jets, which lead Labour to promise to kick this “private jet habit”. That hasn’t lasted long…
David Lammy flew to Stockholm via an Airbus A321 three days ago. Starmer took a private RAF flight around the home nations on Friday, while Healey jetted off in a separate RAF plane to Ukraine. Yesterday, the two took separate RAF jets to fly to Washington DC. According to publicly available operational cost data, Healey’s flight on the swanky Dassault Falcon 900LX alone cost around £60,000. Starmer’s first class trip on the same plane Lammy used cost roughly £90,000. A glimpse of future broken promises and splashing taxpayers’ cash to come…
There’s an interesting inter-Whitehall competition shaping up to produce the most fawning welcome video for Labour’s new ministers. Wes Streeting’s shows him sweeping up to the Department for Health and Social Care in his new ministerial car…
Welcome Secretary of State for Health and Social Care @WesStreeting.
We look forward to helping you deliver the government’s mission to build an NHS fit for the future. pic.twitter.com/WN02CJZaBf
— Department of Health and Social Care (@DHSCgovuk) July 5, 2024
Meanwhile, Angela Rayner includes shots of her being taken on a tour of the department by its permanent secretary, culminating in her being presented with a portrait of herself on the wall – which seems to leave her slightly stunned. Impartial…
Welcome to the Deputy Prime Minister and our Secretary of State @AngelaRayner pic.twitter.com/XsYC2YnRYT
— Department for Levelling Up, Housing & Communities (@luhc) July 5, 2024
David Lammy is also off the mark with a homiletic video introducing his foreign policy priorities. Don’t remember Tory ministers being given this treatment…
Britain’s new Prime Minister, Keir Starmer, has been surrounded by Labour activists and supporters at his speeches and rallies following Labour’s landslide victory today. There’s ‘almost a carnival atmosphere’ among them…
The loyalists have been handed flags to wave and cheer with by Labour HQ – the Union Jack, Welsh and Scottish flag – to showcase Starmer’s grand vision of a united kingdom. Though there’s a glaring omission: not a single English flag in sight…
It’s not the first time Starmer’s snubbed the St George’s Cross – he didn’t wear an England shirt watching the Euros two weeks ago for fear of offending Scotland. It seems the flag is too much of a sensitive subject for Labour to be handing it out to supporters. Emily Thornberry will be pleased. Their first own goal against Reform…?
Speaking at his speech on how to achieve “progressive capitalism” Wes Streeting fired a dig and Andy Burnham:
“Bond markets are not bond villains and fiscal rules matter.”
