Lisa Nandy: Labour leadership speculation is ‘froth and nonsense’
Wes Streeting has resigned as health secretary, and declared that he would stand in a leadership contest. Meanwhile, Josh Simons stepped down as Makerfield MP to allow Andy Burnham the chance to return to Westminster. On Sky News this morning, Trevor Phillips asked Culture Secretary Lisa Nandy if Keir Starmer would be gone by summer. Nandy said the prime minister would not be stepping down, and if people want to challenge him, ‘there is a process for doing that.’ Nandy said most of the speculation about a leadership challenge has turned out to be ‘nonsense’, and Labour had to ‘get on with the job’. Phillips asked whether Starmer might stand down if such a challenge materialises. Nandy said it would be up to him whether he ‘wants to take that next fight’. She said Conservative MPs had told her that this kind of ‘introspection’ had got the country into a mess under the last government.
Lisa Nandy: Wes Streeting’s pitch to rejoin the EU ‘a bit odd’
In Wes Streeting’s first speech since resigning as health secretary, he said: ‘Britain’s future lies with Europe… back in the European Union’. Trevor Phillips asked Lisa Nandy if she agreed with his position. Nandy said the government had been taking a ‘more pragmatic approach’ in getting closer to the EU and ‘repairing some of the damage’ from the Brexit deal. The culture secretary argued that calling for a return to the EU is like telling people ‘life was fine in 2015’, and said Streeting would hear from people that that is not the case when he starts campaigning. Nandy claimed the focus has to be on raising living standards for people.
Jess Phillips: ‘It would be better if we had a contest’
On the BBC, Laura Kuenssberg spoke to another recently resigned minister, Jess Phillips, asking her why she thought Wes Streeting would do a better job as prime minister. Phillips said Streeting had ‘stepped up’ when working with her on establishing local health hubs for child victims of sexual abuse, and she saw ‘bravery and boldness’ in him. Kuenssberg asked if there had to be a leadership contest, or whether there might be a ‘coronation’ for Andy Burham if he wins the Makerfield by-election. Phillips said a contest ‘would be better’. Kuenssberg then asked if Keir Starmer should be part of that contest, and Phillips said no.
Kemi Badenoch: ‘I am not here to speak for foreigners’
Unite the Kingdom and pro-Palestinian marches both took place on Saturday. Before the rally organised by Tommy Robinson, 11 foreign far-right activists were barred from entering the country. In a statement, Keir Starmer said: ‘we will block those… who seek to incite hatred and violence’. On GB News, Camilla Tominey asked Conservative leader Kemi Badenoch whether she thought the Unite the Kingdom speakers should have been allowed to attend. Badenoch said that marches should be banned when they create a ‘climate of intimidation and fear’, and argued that the pro-Palestine marches are in that category, but the Unite the Kingdom rally is ‘fine’, adding that she does not endorse Tommy Robinson. On the subject of the banned international speakers, Badenoch said she was more interested in ‘free speech for people in this country’, and that if she were prime minister she would want the power to make the same calls about who can or cannot enter. Tominey asked Badenoch to clarify that she is ok with more Unite the Kingdom marches but not pro-Palestine ones. Badenoch said ‘everyone is just angry all the time’ and people ‘need to calm down’ and focus on ‘the real issues’.
Kemi Badenoch: ‘Is there a general election tomorrow… I don’t think so’
Trevor Phillips also spoke to Kemi Badenoch, who ruled out any future deals with Reform, saying voters who want conservative policies had to vote for her party. Phillips pointed out that Reform had won over 1400 seats at the local elections, and the Conservatives lost hundreds. Badenoch said those were seats won ‘at the height of conservatism when Boris Johnson was there’, and claimed the Conservatives have gone forwards since last year. She said she wanted to talk about her policies, not Nigel Farage who is ‘just messing around’, and pointed out that the general election is not for three years.
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