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Starmer to face PMQs as reports suggest No 10 briefing about leadership threats has backfired
There is a lot of commentary around this morning about the No 10 briefing reported by the Guardian last night, and the reaction it has triggered. Among journalists who have been sounding out Labour MPs, the consensus is that the briefing has backfired, and weakened Keir Starmer’s standing in his party.
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Henry Zeffman, the BBC’s chief political correspondent, has written an analysis headlined “Efforts to shore up Starmer’s leadership may have backfired”. He says:
The key question this morning is whether the briefings have made Sir Keir more or less vulnerable.
Judging by the rancour of the messages I have received from various corners of the Labour Party, the definitive answer is: more vulnerable.
One senior Labour figure questioned why Sir Keir’s allies had “legitimised what was a taboo” by publicly entertaining the prospect of a leadership challenge …
An MP said the approach was “utterly unhinged and self-destructive,” adding: “They’re in the bunker shooting everyone who’s outside the bunker guarding it. And poor oblivious Keir doesn’t even realise he’s in the bunker.”
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Jessica Elgot, the Guardian’s deputy political editor, says Labour MPs are staggered by the No 10 approach.
Have had at least 10 messages from Labour MPs overnight all on the same theme. “What on earth are they doing?”
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George Eaton in New Statesman says that, although there are people in No 10 claiming to have hard evidence that Wes Streeting was plotting against Starmer, Labour MPs are not convinced.
Streeting’s activities, as Morning Call has long reported, have certainly attracted much attention in recent months. Whether calling for the UK to immediately recognise a Palestinian state back in June or denouncing claims that the far right is merely exercising “free speech”, he has been happy to go beyond the government line. His praise for New York mayor Zohran Mamdani (“lessons for progressives the world over”) also raised eyebrows and was seen as part of a conscious effort to woo the soft left.
But none of this, of course, amounts to active disloyalty – and here’s the question No 10 will have to answer today: if it has hard evidence that Streeting is plotting against Starmer, why is he still sitting in the cabinet?
The danger for Downing Street is clear: it has dramatically elevated the leadership question, giving every MP and journalist in the country a new excuse to pose it. Rather than shutting down speculation over Starmer’s future – as it managed in the aftermath of Labour conference – it has fuelled it. And far from uniting the party around the Prime Minister it risks only achieving the reverse.
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Robert Peston, ITV’s political editor, says some MPs may boycott PMQs today out of protest.
From a Labour MP who tries hard to be loyal to the PM and Downing Street, but feels badly let down by the internecine politics of the team around Starmer:
“Some Labour MPs are planning on boycotting PMQs today in protest at the briefing. If the PM thinks we are feral and too stupid to understand economics, then why on earth would we go out and cheer him on?”
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Patrick Maguire, the Times’s chief political commentator, says Streeting is benefiting.
Senior Labour source writes: “They have achieved the impossible: they have made Wes popular with the backbenches.
In a post on his Substack blog, he also explains the background to today.
That, then, is what’s going on. From my conversations it seemed that critical mass of Labour MPs had agreed on that what at September’s party conference – that Starmer was probably finished. Now the conversation has turned to the how, when and who. Each question is as yet unsettled. So, by the way, is the most important question of all: why? Anyway, inside No 10, that’s all academic. All that matters is that they know Starmer will be challenged in the near-to-medium term.
So what will he do? As I say on the podcast, tell them to come and have a go if they think they’re hard enough. He won’t accede to one minister or a dozen backbenchers’ demands for his head. This isn’t the morning after the Hartlepool by-election, when Starmer had no proof point of electoral success and had to be talked out of resigning by Morgan McSweeney. The prime minister now feels that he has a mandate – still a reasonably fresh one, as it happens – and should be allowed to fulfil it. So he will invite any challenger to trigger a leadership election and face the consequences of contesting it against him and whoever else.
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Ben Riley-Smith, the Telegraph’s political editor, says MPs have been impressed by Streeting’s performances this morning.
The irony this morning: If the Starmer ally briefings were an attempt to sap the energy out of a Wes Streeting below-the-radar leadership campaign it appears to have done the opposite for some people.
Streeting’s central selling point is his strength as a communicator and breezing through the morning round with humour (jokes about Traitors and JFK conspiracies when asked about plotting) may have just underscored that point.
“Wes is now more popular because he is so self-assured,” says one minister. “He took my breath away in answering every question directly and with humour.”
Another minister agrees Streeting’s performance has just reminded people what a strong media performer he is.
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George Parker, the Financial Times’s political editor, says in an article this morning No 10 has triggered a crisis.
One minister called it the “one of the weirdest briefing decisions I have ever seen” and on Wednesday recriminations were flying in Downing Street after Sir Keir Starmer’s team conjured up a leadership crisis out of nowhere, just two weeks ahead of the Budget.
Tuesday’s briefing from inside Number 10 that Starmer would fight any leadership challenge propelled low-level Westminster gossip into a political crisis, as the prime minister advertised the weakness of his own position.
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Lib Dems call for windfall tax on banks in budget to fund 5% VAT cut for hospitality and fuel bills reduction
The Liberal Democrats are calling for a 5% cut to VAT for hospitality businesses in the upcoming budget to make going out to the pub and restaurants more affordable, PA Media reports. PA says:
The party is also proposing the main renewable levy be removed from energy bills under the £12bn support package it is putting forward ahead of the chancellor’s statement on 26 November.
Deputy leader Daisy Cooper said the plan aims to return “small joys” like a restaurant meal or family day out to those for whom they have become an “unaffordable luxury” with measures that the party says will save the average family around £270 over the next 18 months.
The plan would be an “emergency” package to come into immediate effect in November this year and expire at the end of the next financial year in April 2027.
It would cut VAT from 20% to 15% for hospitality, accommodation, and attractions in a bid to boost high streets and slash prices for families.
They estimate that around half of the VAT cut would be passed on to consumers – giving each household around £135 during that time period.
And it would remove the “renewables obligation” levy from people’s bills, which the party said would slash the typical energy bill by £90 annually.
Cuts to VAT would cost some £7.5bn, while funding the levy would be around £4.5bn, the party estimates.
Both would be funded by a temporary windfall tax on big banks.
The Lib Dems said this could raise around £30 billion between now and 2030, pointing to research from the Institute for Public Policy Research (IPPR).
The influential think tank said earlier this year that hiking a levy on profits from major firms such as Barclays, Lloyds, HSBC and NatWest could raise up to £8bn a year for public services.
Cooper said: “High street businesses have been hammered by the jobs tax and higher business rates bills, so it’s no wonder that so many treasured pubs, restaurants and cafes are boarding up their shopfronts, taking with them vital jobs and local community spaces.
“Our plans to cut VAT on hospitality and energy bills for households would put £270 back into people’s pockets, making it more affordable to heat their home and allowing them to spend more on occasional extras.
“This would help to drive economic growth, restore our high streets and give the country a much-needed morale boost.”
Reform UK pulls out of BBC film amid Trump speech edit row
The No 10 briefing row is not the only story around this morning. Amy Sedghi is writing a live blog about the ongoing turmoil at the BBC and she has details of Donald Trump saying he has an “obligation” to sue the BBC.
In a related development, Reform UK has pulled out of a BBC documentary about the party amid a row over the broadcaster’s editing of the Trump speech. Robyn Vintner has the story.
Streeting says Starmer should sack aides responsible for hostile briefings - but also suggests trying to find them waste of time
In his Sky News interview this morning Wes Streeting said whoever was briefing against him from No 10 would not have been doing it with the support of Keir Starmer. (See 8.25am.) In subsequent interviews he elaborated on this, saying Starmer would be furious about the briefings.
He told ITV’s Good Morning Britain:
That’s the other thing I know about this prime minister: nothing grinds his gears more than this kind of like Westminster bubble stuff and the briefings to newspapers.
You don’t see him angry often, but at cabinet meetings, the only time I’ve seen him really angry is when there have been briefings against colleagues.
On ITV, and also on the Today programme, Streeting said that Stamer should sack any aides responsible. “If I [knew who was responsible], I would tell the prime minister and the prime minister would sack them,” he told ITV.
But, on the Today programme, he added:
But [Starmer’s] got to find them first and I wouldn’t expect him to waste loads of time on this.
Asked if Starmer had contacted him about the story since the Guardian’s report was published last night, Streeting said:
No, and I think he’s got better things to do with his life and I wouldn’t expect him to. In fact, if he does, I’ll tell him ‘why are you bothering with this’.
On ITV, asked if he thought the briefings were a sign that Starmer had lost control of Downing Street, Streeting replied:
I wouldn’t put it like that, I would say there are some people in Downing Street who evidently do not model the behaviours and style of leadership that the prime minister models.
Streeting says Labour must 'keep our promises to the public'
In his BBC interview Wes Streeting also said:
The only pressure I feel sat here this morning is the pressure to make sure we keep our promises to the public, turn our NHS around, and we make sure the National Health Service is always there for all of us when we need it, as a publicly funded public service free at the point of delivery.
In at least one other interview Streeting also talked about the importance of Labour keeping its promises. He told Sky News:
I do think that trying to kneecap one of your own team when they are out, not just making the case for the government, but actually delivering the change that we promised, I think that is also self-defeating.
Some journalists are interpreting that as veiled criticism of the probable decision in the budget to raise income tax, in defiance of a tax pledge made in Labour’s manifesto. If that was Streeting’s intention, it was subtle. Streeting did not labour the point, and the main impression he gave in all his interviews this morning was one of loyalty to Keir Starmer.
Streeting says he 'cannot see circumstances' in which he would challenge Starmer for Labour leadership
In his BBC Breakfast interview, Jon Kay asked Wes Streeting if he would ever stand against Keir Starmer for the Labour leadership.
Streeting replied:
I cannot see circumstances in which I would do that to our prime minister.
And, look, the thing I’ve said about the prime minister constantly and consistently is from the moment he became leader of the Labour party, he has had an extremely difficult job.
He took us from the worst defeat since 1935 to winning a general election that many people thought he could never win.
We have now got enormous challenges we’re facing as a country. I know there are people who are doubting and saying, well, can he deal with those challenges? He will confound his critics again. Those things have never been in doubt.
Kay put it to Streeting that, in saying he could not see circumstances in which he would not challenge Starmer, he was not ruling it out.
Streeting said he was just making a statement of “the bleeding obvious”.
When Kay said Streeting was not ruling out running against Starmer, Streeting replied: “I just did … I literally just did.”
Streeting’s comment is reminiscent of Michael Heseltine saying that he could not “foresee any circumstances” in which he would challenge Margaret Thatcher – a line he used for some years in the 1980s after he resigned from cabinet. Eventually his foresight proved faulty, and in 1990 he did challenge Thatcher.
But the circumstances then were very different. Streeting sounded like someone trying to play down the prospect of a leadership challenge one day, not play it up.
Also, the question is not always relevant. Often, when a leader gets replaced, it’s not because there has been a challenge; it’s because they resign having lost the confidence of their party.
Streeting says Labour's 'toxic' briefing culture needs to change - but that it doesn't come from Starmer
In his interview with BBC Breakfast, Wes Streeting expanded on what he said to Sky News about Lucy Powell being right about the need for Labour to change its culture. (See 8.25am.) Standing for deputy leader, Powell criticised the briefing culture in No 10, of which she felt she had been a victim.
Streeting said:
This silly briefing is water off a duck’s back. We’ve seen this before against other cabinet colleagues. I think our deputy leader, Lucy Powell, was absolutely right about that toxic culture that needs to change. I don’t think these people are speaking for the prime minister. I don’t think this is the sort of behaviour he expects from people who work for him and for the government. So on all that, I’m not worried.
Jo White, chair of Red Wall group of Labour MPs, says No 10 'barking up wrong tree' briefing against Streeting
The Labour MP Jo White, who chairs the Red Wall group of Labour Mps and who represents Bassetlaw, told the Today programme this morning that those in No 10 who were briefing against Wes Streeting were making a big mistake. She explained:
Our enemies love nothing more than when we start fighting like dogs in public, and my message to those MPs who are running around with their tails held high: That this is neither the time or the place.
This is a group of people who think they’re much cleverer than the rest of us, who spend their time selectively briefing journalists and stirring the pot. I want to simply say: We’re not having it …
I’d like to say to No 10, I think they’re barking up the wrong tree, briefing against Wes.
I’ve known Wes since he was NUS president. He’s one of the tiny handful of MPs who came up to Bassetlaw to help me with my election. He’s only just recently written a really kind letter to one of my members who lost her husband. And I think I’d know – he’d tell me if he was manoeuvring.
Starmer 'is not fighting for his job', Streeting says
In an interview with LBC, Wes Streeting, the health secretary, said that some of the comments being made about the situation in government were “ridiculous” and that Keir Starmer was “not fightint for his job”. Streeting said:
I’m laughing because I just think this is ridiculous.
And no, the prime minister is not fighting for his job this morning.
In fact, the last time I saw the prime minister, on Monday evening with a small group of cabinet colleagues, was to talk about how we’re going to fight the scourge of violence against women and girls. So I think this is daft, to be honest.
Streeting says Starmer will be 'horrified' by reports of No 10 briefing
Wes Streeting told Sky News that he thought Keir Starmer would be “horrified” to read the front page reports this morning about the briefing coming out of No 10. He said that was not how Starmer conducted himself, and he said he thought people should follow the PM’s example.
UK government borrowing costs rise slightly after reports suggest PM's position not secure
UK government borrowing costs ticked higher this morning, as the price of gilts – UK government bonds – slipped in value amid speculation over a leadership challenge to Keir Starmer, PA Media reports. PA says:
Yields on 10-year-gilts, which move counter to the price of the bonds, rose by 3 basis points to 4.42% in early trading. The yield on the longer-term 30-year-gilt also rose by a similar amount.
The rise come after yields had dropped significantly on Tuesday after rising unemployment and falling wage growth prompted predictions of interest rate cuts.
The value of the pound also moved 0.02% higher to 1.315 against the dollar.
It came after a flurry of late-night briefings from No 10 in which allies of the prime minister came out fighting on his behalf amid fears his job could be under threat after the budget in two weeks’ time.
Wes Streeting condemns No 10 bid to ‘kneecap’ him, denies plotting against PM, but says Labour needs 'culture change'
Good morning. All governments are collections of people who don’t always agree, and don’t always get on, but who largely keep their disagreements in private. But sometimes the disputes get quite serious, and sometimes they become public. The Guardian is today leading on a report by Pippa Crerar, the political editor, who has discovered that Keir Starmer’s most senior aides are so worried that he could face an imminent leadership challenge that they have started briefing against potential rivals.
Starmer’s allies are saying that getting rid of the PM would be would be a “reckless” and “dangerous” move that could destabilise the markets, and they seem to be particularly worried about the threat from Wes Streeting, the health secretary.
Some lobby stories like this, based on people speaking anonymously, get ignored, because other journalists either don’t believe them, or can’t stand them up. But this morning all other mainstream news organisations are following this story, and running it quite hard, because they know Pippa is right.
Streeting has been doing a media round this morning. Here are some of the main things he said in his interview with Sky News.
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Streeting denied plotting to oust Keir Starmer. Asked if he was planning a leadership challenge, he replied:
No, and I think whoever’s been briefing this has been watching too much Celebrity Traitors, and this is just about the worst attack on a faithful I’ve seen since Joe Marler was kicked out and banished in the final.
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He said that he would not challenge Starmer after the budget. Asked if he would rule out demanding Starmer’s resignation after the budget, he replied:
Yes, and nor did I shoot JFK. I don’t know where Lord Lucan is, had nothing to do with Shergar, and I do think that the US did manage to do the moon landings. I don’t think they were fake.
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He claimed the Downing Street briefing against him was “totally self-defeating”. He said:
It’s totally self defeating briefing, not least because it’s not true and I don’t understand how anyone thinks it’s helpful to the prime minister either …
I do think that, you know, going out and calling your Labour MPs ‘feral’ is not very helpful. I do think that trying to kneecap one of your own team when they are out, not just making the case for the government, but actually delivering the change that we promised, I think that is also self-defeating and self-destructive behaviour.
I also think whoever did this doesn’t speak for the prime minister. I speak for the prime minister.
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He said the No 10 briefing showed that Lucy Powell was right when she called for a change of culture in the Labour deputy leadership contest.
When Lucy Powell stood to be deputy leader of the Labour Party and said there needed to be a culture change in how we lead and how the party is managed, I think she has been vindicated.
Powell, who won, defeated Bridget Phillipson, who was seen as No 10’s preferred candidate. Powell stood after being sacked by Starmer from cabinet.
Streeting has been doing a full interview round. I will post more from what he is saying soon.
Here is the agenda for the day.
9.45am: Daisy Cooper, the Lib Dem deputy leader and Treasury spokesperson, gives a speech about her party’s budget proposals.
Noon: Keir Starmer faces Kemi Badenoch at PMQs.
After 12.30pm: MPs debate two Tory opposition day motions, one saying taxes should not go up in the budget, and another saying the government should remove green levies on energy bills.
1.45pm: Wes Streeting, the health secretary, gives a speech to the NHS Providers conference.
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