Katy Balls is The Spectator’s former political editor.
Another day, another story about Sue Gray. Today the BBC reports the details of Sir Keir Starmer’s chief of staff’s salary. Gray is paid the handsome sum of £170,000 a year – £3,000 more than her boss, the prime minister. She therefore earns more than any cabinet minister or Tory predecessor in the role. In
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Liberal Democrat Conference wraps up today in Brighton. It could well be the happiest conference we visit this season with the party riding high after winning 72 seats at the election. The challenge that they face now is improving on that number, providing some opposition to the Labour party and protecting their new Surrey MPs
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This weekend we had another twist in the story involving Labour donor Lord Alli, who was caught up in a ‘cash for access’ scandal a couple of weeks back. It now seems he has forked out the thick end of 20k on clothes and glasses for Keir Starmer and his wife. Foreign sec David Lammy
Keir Starmer finally has a chair for the government’s Border Security Command. When the Prime Minister first entered government, the Home Office advertised for someone to head the new unit, which ministers hope will be their answer to ‘stopping the boats’. Overnight, Martin Hewitt has been named as the successful applicant. He is a senior
14 min listen
Last week, there was a surprise visitor to the Treasury: Gordon Brown. The former prime minister and chancellor secretly returned to his old digs for the first time since he left office 14 years ago. According to onlookers, Brown visited his old office as he caught up with the new chancellor – and his friend
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Keir Starmer and David Lammy are in the Washington for a planned foreign policy summit with Joe Biden. They will principally be talking about a new deal regarding the use of UK long range missiles in Russia, a move which Putin has warned would constitute an escalation of the war and the formalisation of NATO’s
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From working on the 1997 general election campaign, to serving in the shadow cabinets of three leaders, politician Lucy Powell has been a prominent figure in the Labour Party for many years. First elected to parliament in 2012, she was appointed Leader of the House of Commons and Lord President of the Council following Labour’s
Last week, there was a surprise visitor to the Treasury: Gordon Brown. The former prime minister and chancellor secretly returned to his old digs for the first time since he left office 14 years ago. According to onlookers, Brown visited his old office as he caught up with the new chancellor – and his friend
14 min listen
Last night saw the first Trump vs Harris debate and the consensus seems to be that Harris came out on top. She managed to avoid sticky issues about her political past and goaded Trump into some rambling and – at times – outrageous remarks. What did we learn? Also today, we have had new figures
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It’s been a busy day in Westminster today. Labour avoided a large scale rebellion on the winter fuel allowance and Mel Stride was eliminated from the Tory leadership race – not to mention the sale of a certain weekly politics magazine. Oscar Edmondson discusses with Katy Balls and James Heale. Produced by Oscar Edmondson.
The names of the final four candidates left in the Tory leadership contest are in. Mel Stride has been eliminated from the contest, with just 16 MP backers. That leaves Robert Jenrick, who leads with 33 backers, Kemi Badenoch in second on 28 MPs and James Cleverly and Tom Tugendhat who are tied in third
14 min listen
Tomorrow MPs will vote on Rachel Reeves’ decision to cut winter fuel payments for pensioners who aren’t eligible for pension benefits. We spoke on this podcast on Friday about the pressure that Labour is under from all sides on this, but the temperature has increased over the weekend with the trade unions getting involved. What’s
Will Rachel Reeves hold her nerve over the winter fuel payment? That’s the suggestion inside government ahead of a Commons vote tomorrow on the proposed cut that will see only pensioners eligible for benefits receive the £300 payment. Already this morning, government sources have had to play down the idea that there could be a
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Join Fraser Nelson, Katy Balls and Kate Andrews, along with special guest Jonathan Ashworth, for a live edition of Coffee House Shots recorded earlier this week. They dissect the first few weeks of the new Labour government and look ahead to the policies autumn, and the budget, might bring. Having surprisingly lost his seat at the election,
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Fraser Nelson and Katy Balls join James Heale to look ahead to a crucial week for Labour. On Tuesday, Parliament will hold a binding vote on the changes to winter fuel allowance – how are Labour expected to deal with this? Former shadow chancellor Ed Balls, and husband of the current home secretary Yvette Cooper,
What should the Tories do about Nigel Farage? The leadership candidates have made many speeches and written many columns explaining how they would answer this question. Yet at Kemi Badenoch’s campaign launch on Monday, she dismissed it. Instead, there was another contingent of new MPs she was more concerned with: the pro-Gaza independents. ‘When everyone
14 min listen
The first round of the Conservative leadership race has seen Dame Priti Patel eliminated with the fewest votes. Robert Jenrick came out on top but, with a second vote taking place on Tuesday, where could Patel’s supporters go? Who could get eliminated next? Will ‘Melmentum’ build? Oscar Edmondson speaks to Katy Balls and James Heale.
Priti Patel is out of the race to be the next Tory leader. In the first knockout round of the contest, the former Home Secretary received the lowest number of votes at 14, behind Mel Stride who was in fifth place with 16 votes. It is Robert Jenrick who has the most to celebrate –
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The fallout continues from the UK’s decision to suspend some arms sale licenses to Israel. Defence Secretary John Healey insists the UK remains a ‘staunch ally’ of Israel, yet the decision has been criticised by Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu as ‘shameful’. What has the domestic reaction been to the government’s decision, and who is
Is the UK still a ‘staunch ally’ of Israel? Defence Secretary John Healey insisted so on the broadcast round this morning. But his claim is coming under scrutiny following the government’s decision to suspend 30 out of 350 arms export licences to Israel, thereby affecting equipment which includes parts for fighter jets, drones and helicopters.