Steerpike

Trade union Unite are back in the news again after a brief hiatus following the end of the Corbyn melodrama last year. Outgoing general secretary Len McCluskey is facing questions about the £98 million of members’ money spent on building a four star Marriott hotel complex and conference centre in Birmingham which will house union offices. Despite a reported initial estimate of £7 million, the building costs ballooned to £57 million before construction began, with the key contract being awarded to Flanagan Group — run by McCluskey ally Paul Flanagan. This morning ‘Red Len’ showed he still has plenty of life left in him as he hit back at the ‘hostile media’ for a ‘disgraceful smear campaign.

Tonight the Scottish National party released its latest party political broadcast on Twitter. Featuring a young red-haired woman sitting on a stool, striding around a stage, it flashes various images onto the back of a screen complete with melodramatic background tones. Ignoring the Scottish government's own record of the last 14 years on health, education, social mobility and every other matter of public policy, it asks: 'Who will care? When you see your mother, your father, your brother, your sister, your grandpa and nan, how can we get governments that care about them. The governments that we can trust to work tirelessly for Scotland, day after day after day.' https://twitter.com/theSNP/status/1379484798251626497?

As a young man, Barry Gardiner planned to become an Episcopal priest, serving as secretary of the Scottish Christian Movement. Fortunately for the country however, Gardiner decided that first academia and then politics were his true calling, rising eventually to the giddy heights in government of being Gordon Brown's special representative on forestry and then Jeremy Corbyn's shadow trade secretary in opposition.  Having stunned Westminster with a one day wonder bid to be Labour leader, he returned to the backbenches last April where he has largely remained a dutifully loyal presence in spite of some social distancing rule breaking.

It has been a difficult few years for Remainer campaigner Femi Oluwole. Having failed to stop Brexit, secure a second referendum or prevent the Tories winning a majority in 2019, you might have thought the last four years would have chastened the 'Our Future Our Choice' founder. Not a bit of it. Oluwole, 31, is now turning his hand to journalism with the same aplomb that he brought to political campaigning. In a series of bizarre tweets this afternoon that sounded like outtakes from a Liam Neeson Taken sequel, Oluwole told Labour's team that he was 'currently writing an article which it's in your interest to stop' and added 'You have my number. You've got a few days to use it.

It is Good Friday today but a bad one for Labour frontbencher Charlotte Nichols. The 29-year-old Warrington North MP was elected in 2019 and despite her Corbynista credentials was named shadow minister for women and equalities by Keir Starmer in November. Six months on, Starmer may be having cause to regret such a rapid promotion today after Nichols inadvertently caused a storm over a classic 'great response on the doorstop' style tweet while out campaigning in Orford. https://twitter.com/charlotte2153/status/1377713847142858752?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw A Labour campaign leaflet which she was pictured delivering told residents Labour is 'dealing with Traveller incursions' causing an outcry from Labour Gypsy, Roma and Traveller campaigners.

George Eustice has had a rocky relationship with farmers since taking over as environment secretary last year. Trying to balance agricultural interests with Boris Johnson’s vision of ‘Global Britain’ has proven a difficult challenge at times, with Eustice facing flack over the lack of food safety protections in the Trade Bill and criticism over his suggestion that lamb farmers rear cows in the event of a No Deal Brexit. The industry itself has endured a difficult time during Covid, with the pandemic forcing supply chains to be drastically restructured to take account of the closure of bars and restaurants. So Mr S was pleased to read this morning that the Eustice family farm Trevaskis is doing rather better at present.

Sadiq Khan is all set to win by a landslide in London, so why not allow a failed election candidate a moment or two in the sun? Mr S was intrigued to see Georgian Democrat Stacey Abrams pop up on his timeline this afternoon in a classic Twitter ‘Get out the vote’ campaign message. Steerpike suspects there aren’t many political anoraks in London who have actually heard of the onetime gubernatorial nominee who aren’t already registered to vote but was more interested in Abrams’ call for Londoners to cast a postal vote in May’s mayoral race. Coming from a state long bedevilled by allegations of postal fraud, who better to front up a campaign for mail in ballots? https://twitter.com/SadiqKhan/status/1377310945815494659?