Steerpike is The Spectator's gossip columnist, serving up the latest tittle tattle from Westminster and beyond. Email tips to steerpike@spectator.co.uk or message @MrSteerpike
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It never rains but it pours for Rishi Sunak. Just when a new term loomed, with the encouraging news that UK GDP had been revised upwards, along comes a deluge of bad news to dampen his freshly-raised spirits. First, there was the ongoing row about school roofs potentially collapsing on kids – a ‘sub-optimal’ spectacle,
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Oh dear. With parliament returning from recess today, No. 10 was hoping that this week would be a chance to put the summer blues behind them. But a former mandarin with a grievance has returned to put a spanner in the works. Amid a row over who is to blame in the ongoing schools farrago,
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Good old Humza Yousaf: the one-man walking cure for imposter syndrome. Scotland’s First Minister was out making the case for independence this weekend, telling a Scexit rally that ‘the people of this country are not suffering from a cost-of-living crisis, they’re suffering from a cost of the Union crisis.’ When asked by reporters to justify
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More bad news for the Beeb. It seems that the Corporation’s flagship Sunday politics show has sprung a leak and is losing its audience at an alarming rate. Figures from Barb, obtained by the Sunday Times, show that the number of live viewers for Laura Kuenssberg’s show has declined by more than a third since
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It’s not just the ministers getting reshuffled. This afternoon, Amber de Botton departed her role as Downing Street’s director of communications, having served just 10 months in the role. Does this mean a new comms strategy could be the offing? In a statement, the former head of ITV’s politics coverage said: It has been an
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He may have lost the Labour whip, but Jeremy Corbyn’s shadow still looms over the party’s finances. Following the leak of the Forde report into antisemitism in the party, the Labour party launched legal action against five ex-staffers thought to be the source of the leak, including Corbyn’s former chief of staff, Karie Murphy and
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What is the purpose of a local newspaper? Time was, it was to stand up for local people against the tyranny of corrupt councils, daft bureaucracies and badly-behaved businesses. It appears though that the Manchester Evening News has expanded its remit lately: to include tattling on service workers for not toeing the line on identity politics.
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It’s back to school for many pupils this week – but it seems Schools Minister Nick Gibb is still in holiday mode. Gibb has been touring the airwaves to try and reassure parents in the wake of the announcement that dozens of schools may need to shut some buildings because of safety fears. But Gibb’s
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Some sad news to bring you from the literary world. Those who have saved up £25 for Nadine Dorries’ upcoming The Plot: The Political Assassination of Boris Johnson, will have to keep waiting a little longer. Publication day for the explosive real-world political thriller has today been pushed back from September to November to allow
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Parliament is back next week and with that comes the resumption of the age old game of ‘Who’s up, who’s down?’ One name we know who is heading for the exit is Ben Wallace, who has handed his resignation before he can enjoy a last victory lap at the party conference. The Ministry of Defence
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Hackney Council taxpayers, breathe easy. The fight against global climate change will be fought hardest, not on a global or even national level, but, er, by the emergency responders at the local council, apparently. The local authority’s apparatchiks are advertising for a ‘climate change director’ to enact their ‘climate action plan: a five-point action memorandum
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Michael Portillo. Nick Clegg. Jo Swinson. Every election has its defining moments: the viral clip when a big beast is brought low, humbled by the voters in his or her patch. So, in 2024, who are the long-faced losers likely to be? Steerpike’s crystal ball is by no means infallible, but given the way of
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Oh dear. The latest figures for Scotland’s alcohol-related deaths are out and it’s not good news. Deaths registered in 2022 have risen by 2 per cent from 2021 to total 1,276 mortalities overall. Strikingly, Mr S notes that the rise in deaths is attributable to women, with 440 deaths tragically recorded last year. With alcohol-related deaths at
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Could Sadiq Khan’s controversial Ulez scheme cost Labour the general election? Even before Ulez came into effect this morning, the policy has already proved costly for Khan’s party, having led to Labour failing to win the Uxbridge by-election in July. This morning, just hours after the scheme went live, Khan was asked whether more votes
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Who says Britain no longer produces quality telly? Mr S this weekend thoroughly enjoyed the sight of Nish Kumar – a man who identifies as a comedian – being put firmly in his place by TV presenter Lowri Turner on women’s rights. Invited on to Jeremy Vine’s Channel 5 show, Kumar waxed lyrical on the
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So. Farewell Then. Nadine Dorries. The departure of the bestselling author from parliament got Mr S wondering just which books her colleagues have been reading this past year. Fortunately, the Commons Library publishes a list of all works purchased and borrowed, allowing us to discover just what is on our honourable members’ minds… The latest
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It’s only been a day since Nadine Dorries announced her resignation as an MP – in a scathing letter released to the Mail on Sunday blasting Rishi Sunak’s premiership. But it seems that the former culture secretary still has plenty of ammunition left over. Dorries appeared on TalkTV this afternoon to explain why she felt
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Nadine Dorries is off – and this time it’s for real. Following weeks of criticism, the former Culture Secretary has finally announced that she will be quitting the Commons when parliament returns from recess on Monday 4 September. That will trigger a by-election in her Mid-Bedfordshire constituency, helpfully timed to coincide with Tory party conference.
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The moment we’ve all been waiting for has finally arrived: Donald Trump’s mugshot has been released to the world. With a furrowed brow and scowl, the former President posed for his mugshot at Fulton county sheriff’s office in Georgia in his trademark navy suit and red tie yesterday. Trump was booked by the sheriff’s office
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Following Labour’s shock defeat in the Uxbridge by-election, Keir Starmer suggested that Sadiq Khan ‘reflect’ on his Ultra Low Emission Zone (Ulez) crusade. A month on from that result, how exactly is the reflection going? Tuning into LBC today, Mr S was amused to discover that the London Mayor has found the answer to why
