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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Chuka Umunna loves to talk Brexit, telling anyone who will listen what a disaster Britain’s departure from the EU will be. The MP for Streatham has even made several hops across the Channel to discuss the subject with European politicians. But who paid for Chuka’s recent jolly to Paris to talk Brexit? Mr S can
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Another one bites the dust. Sports Minister Tracey Crouch became the latest minister to resign from the government this evening, in protest at Theresa May and Philip Hammond’s decision to delay the introduction of a £2 maximum stake on fixed-odd betting terminals. Crouch’s resignation puts her in the growing group of Conservative MPs who have
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It’s not been an easy month for Speaker John Bercow. Dogged by allegations of bullying and intolerant behaviour, he’s so far only managed to cling on to his job by promising to resign in the summer of 2019. Yet his imminent departure from political life has not stopped the indefatigable Speaker from giving his own
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Peter Bone has previously said Philip Hammond needs ‘slapping down’ over his plan for Brexit, but the Chancellor’s Budget this week seems to have made Bone change his mind about his party colleague. The Tory backbencher said he had always thought that Hammond was a ‘bit iffy about Brexit’. ‘How wrong I was’, he said.
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Kanye West’s association with Donald Trump is well known. But there is another politician that the rapper-turned-political-activist likes to pay attention to this side of the pond: Caroline Lucas. While Kanye has nearly 30 million followers on Twitter, the list of those he follows is far more exclusive – numbering just 120. So imagine Mr
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As James Kirkup writes on Coffee House, David Cameron’s misreading of Angela Merkel contributed to Brexit. The then Prime Minister and his team believed that Cameron’s personal relationship with Merkel – who apparently saw him as a ‘naughty nephew’ – would be enough to secure some important compromises in the renegotiation. Those compromises never came but Mr S
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In recent years, George Osborne has attempted to rebrand himself. Once known as the austere chancellor, the Evening Standard editor is keen to be depicted these days as a liberal progressive – who has more in common with Emmanuel Macron than Boris Johnson. The problem is that many of those who regard themselves as progressive
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Yvette Cooper got more than she bargained for when she had a go at immigration minister Caroline Nokes at today’s home affairs committee. The Labour MP rebuked Nokes after she complained about the meeting overrunning, telling her: You have been incredibly generous with your time and we really appreciate it. I would also say, however, we have
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Last night was the Spectator’s ‘Deal or No Deal’ event, where six panellists convened to discuss all things Brexit, and say whether they thought Britain would ‘crash out’ of the EU or thrive on WTO terms. Nobly representing the Remain side was parliamentary titan, and Father of the House, Ken Clarke. And while Ken was
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How far the mighty have fallen. While he was once known as the decisive fixer, who was able to get things done inside Labour, deputy leader Tom Watson has largely been sidelined by the Corbyn crew. Rumour has it that the MP is now so sick of being the perennial outsider, he is even considering other
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Oh dear. John McDonnell has found himself in hot water this morning after he declared that Labour would support Philip Hammond’s budget tax cuts. Given that the Resolution Foundation claims that the tax cuts will benefit the better off, it doesn’t seem like the most obvious move for anti-austerity Labour. Labour politicians have been quick to
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Poor old Philip Hammond. In a bid to raise some laughs during his Budget announcement, the Chancellor made a series of gags that fell somewhat flat in the Commons. But there was one big laugh in the chamber. Unfortunately for Hammond, though, it came after he made a reference to his budget next year. ‘You
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Ever keen to show that there’s a man lurking behind the Spreadsheet, Chancellor Philip Hammond usually uses his Budget speech to crack a few jokes, and try to convince the country he possesses a sense of humour. This year was no exception, but whether he managed to achieve anything close to comedy, Mr S will
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If anyone is wondering who is No 10’s least favourite MP today, Mr Steerpike’s money is firmly on former education minister Justine Greening. The Remainer MP has been a thorn in Theresa May’s side as of late, but she ramped up the disloyalty this Budget day, when she told told ITV’s Good Morning that she
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Budget day is upon us and it’s safe to say that expectations have been set rather low when it comes to Philip Hammond’s big moment. The Chancellor has said he plans to remain a fiscal hawk – and warned that there will be a brand new Budget in the new year should a ‘no deal’
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The British press has been unable to name the famous businessman who has taken out an injunction against the Daily Telegraph to prevent it reporting on the multiple allegations of sexual harassment, racist abuse and bullying against him. But such laws do not apply to parliament where, in the House of Lords, Peter Hain named this person
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On his television show the Apprentice, Alan Sugar is known for taking his contestants to task, whether they’re pitching a hopeless product or simply talking absolute rubbish. But the businessman clearly has a bit of a blindspot when it comes to his own incoherence. In a speech in the House of Lords this afternoon, the
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Oh dear. Shadow chancellor John McDonnell’s interview on the Today programme started off a little oddly this morning, with the presenters noting how rough he looked in the studio – apparently he had tripped over fly-tipped rubbish outside his house. The Labour MP joked that although he was arriving rather than leaving the studio looking
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Once again, rumours began to swirl around Westminster on Tuesday that there would – finally – be a confidence vote in Theresa May. News outlets and journalists on Twitter breathlessly announced that the chairman of the 1922 committee, Graham Brady, had received the necessary 48 letters from MPs to call a confidence vote. Unfortunately for
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This week the House of Commons commission will meet to discuss its response to the Cox report on bullying and harassment at Westminster. The report concludes that a number of officials, including one John Bercow, could need to stand down in order for real change to come about. Only there is very little chance of that happening
