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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As the protesters gather for President Trump’s impending visit to the UK, a debate is going on over whether it’s all got a bit too much. Given that the US president managed to visit Emmanuel Macron in France with little hoo-ha, are some Brits overreacting over this instance of international diplomacy? That was the topic
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There is no love lost between the so-called ‘monster of Brussels’ Martin Selmayr and the British government, but it is English football fans that Selmayr has chosen to take a dig at in his latest tweet. Just moments after England were knocked out of the World Cup last night, Selmayr – who previously served as
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When Theresa May first met Donald Trump, she was pictured strolling arm-in-arm with the president through the grounds of the White House. But a lot has happened in the 18 months since that meeting, and now it seems May doesn’t even want to touch the Donald’s hand. When Trump greeted the Prime Minister at the
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Whether or not England win their World Cup semi-final tonight, one thing is guaranteed: Gary Lineker has plenty to be happy about. The Match of the Day host, who flogs crisps and virtue signals on Twitter when he isn’t on the telly, has topped the BBC’s pay league for the first time. Lineker’s earnings last
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Back in May, John Cleese promised to leave England if MPs voting not to go ahead with Leveson 2. At the time Mr S was left asking: is he a man of his word? Happily, Steerpike can confirm that he is. Speaking on Newsnight, Cleese told Emily Maitlis that he had decided to leave the country
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The television cameras may have packed up from College Green but Theresa May’s troubles over her Brexit position are far from over. Suspicion is growing in government that the two Tory vice chair resignations on Tuesday are part of a coordinated campaign by Tory Brexiteers to ramp up the pressure on the PM over her Chequers
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Just this weekend, the Tories were joining others in rounding on Labour for trying to politicise the World Cup – with a call for a bank holiday. But with the Conservative party now in the midst of blue-on-blue warfare over Theresa May’s Brexit position, that memo appears to have gone out of the window. Ahead
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Last week, Labour managed to surprise for a change with the news that Jared O’Mara was to have the whip restored. The MP for Sheffield Hallam had been suspended over a series of misogynistic posts he had made prior to becoming an MP. Others complained that even when he had the whip he had failed
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Brexit supporters are used to getting a hard time when they appear on TV, but enough was enough for Iain Dale when he popped up on Newsnight last night. After being introduced as a Brexit supporter – in contrast to Matthew Parris and Rachel Shabi, who were called a ‘Times columnist’ and a ‘Labour-supporting columnist’ –
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After a day of high drama in Westminster, tensions are running high in Parliament. And also, it seems, in the buildings attached to Parliament – like Westminster Underground. This is the ‘service information’ message on today’s board: ‘Tricks and treachery are the practice of fools that don’t have enough brains to be honest’ Who ever
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Theresa May’s nightmare Monday morning is going from bad to worse. Steve Baker, who followed David Davis out of the exit door at the Brexit department, has savaged the Prime Minister’s Chequers plan on the Daily Politics. When asked whether the Brexit blueprint was delivering Brexit in name only, he had this to say: ‘The problem
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David Davis had left DexEU – and taken most of his colleagues with him. Steve Baker – junior minister– at the Brexit department has resigned and there are rumours Suella Braverman could also quit. So, with a growing Brexit rebellion brewing, Theresa May’s next move is pivotal. Who will replace Davis? No-one: The department for
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Oh dear. At one point this weekend, it seemed as though Theresa May had pulled off a blinder – getting her Cabinet Brexiteers to sign up to her soft Brexit plan. Not so anymore after Davis Davis resigned late last night. And it seems, Davis and his band of Brexiteers are not about to make
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Although Moggmentum has been building for some time among the Tory grassroots, conventional wisdom dictates that Jacob Rees-Mogg is still very unlikely to make it to No 10 – no matter how enthusiastic the members – thanks to the fact that he doesn’t have the support of enough Tory MPs to get onto the ballot
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Theresa May has come under some pressure these last few weeks over her plan for Britain’s post Brexit trade relationship. Both wings of her party have aggressively pitched their preferred version. Today it’s crunch time as the Cabinet head to Chequers to thrash out a position. But has the most convincing argument for the Brexiteer
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‘Happy 70th Birthday to our wonderful NHS,’ the Labour MP Naz Shah tweeted earlier today. Shah isn’t the only one marking the anniversary, but it would seem that the Labour MP has more to celebrate about our health service than most. The latest register of MPs’ interests reveals that last month Shah received £1,800 for providing
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With just two days to go until Theresa May’s big Chequers away day, the Cabinet headed to 22 Old Queen for a pre-sesh. Theresa May held court in the garden while Michael Gove charmed guests on the merits of getting rid of tusk – ivory, not the EU leader naturally. Given that this was no
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Theresa May has promised repeatedly that ‘Brexit means Brexit’ but it seems she is still confused about what exactly Britain’s departure from the EU involves. In PMQs today, May said: ‘As we leave the UK…as we leave the EU…’ This mixup is unlikely to inspire confidence ahead of this week’s crunch Chequer’s summit. Perhaps it’s time for
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Paul Mason wasn’t the only England fan celebrating last night’s World Cup win over Colombia but he is perhaps one of the more surprising. The journalist-turned-left-wing-revolutionary was pictured with St George’s crosses emblazoned on both cheeks taking to the streets of south London. But Mr S. was somewhat surprised to see Mason’s apparent change of heart.
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Good news for people who love bad news. Jared O’Mara, a former member of the Labour Women and Equalities select committee, has been reinstated as a Labour MP. He had the whip removed in October over a series of online posts and claims he verbally abused a woman – from his time before becoming an
