Steerpike

The most regular attack-line used against leading Brexiteers is that they misled the public over how much money could be used to fund the NHS if Britain left the EU. Throughout the referendum campaign, Vote Leave said that we send £350 million a week to Brussels – a gross figure, applied before a rebate etc. But no one knew the real 2016 figure because the data is compiled in arrears. Only today do we have the data, published by the Office for National Statistics. Its figures show… Payment to Brussels, net of rebate and money returned to the UK: £9.4 billion a year, or £181 million a week. Payment to Brussels, net of rebate: £13.9 billion a year, or £267 million a week. Gross payment to Brussels: £18.

As Parliament sleaze dominated Commons business today, John Bercow told MPs 'there is a need for change' – describing allegations of a 'culture of sexual harassment' at Westminster as 'disturbing'. Although the Speaker placed the responsibility on political leaders to clean up Parliament, Mr S hopes that Bercow can also play an important role in helping MPs understand how to treat their female colleagues and staff with more respect. After all, it wasn't so long ago that Bercow found himself in the firing line over his approach to women. In 2009, a 'comical' John Bercow article dating back to 1986 was unearthed.

After the Conservative MP Chris Heaton-Harris was outed last week for writing to universities requesting details of their Brexit syllabus, the debate on academic Brexit bias is in full swing. Happily Labour's Barry Sheerman was on hand to clear the matter up with an appearance on Yorkshire Sunday Politics. Sheerman said any anti-Brexit sentiment at universities was down to the fact that 'better educated people' back Remain: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=JiRbRWgPKjs BS: The truth is that when you look at who voted to Remain, most of them were the better educated people in our country… TI: This is controversial! Massively controversial. BS: Absolutely! It’s absolutely true. You can actually see the pattern.

If proof was needed that deference is dead in Parliament, look no further than the interview Tom Tugendhat has given to The House magazine. The new chair of the Foreign Affairs Select Committee uses his first interview since winning the coveted position to make clear he's ready and willing to be Prime Minister, Foreign Secretary or Defence Secretary should his services be required. However, the part that caught Mr S's eye relates to the current occupant of the Foreign Office. Tugendhat – who was elected to Parliament in 2015 – appears to launch an attack on Boris Johnson's modus operandi: 'He’s certainly got a lot of passion for the United Kingdom and has a way of expressing himself which certainly carries a lot of noise.

Oh dear. Since Labour's surprisingly good defeat in the snap election, the hard left has managed to tighten its grip on the party. As last month's conference proved, Jeremy Corbyn's party is intent on socialism for the 21st century. But behind the scenes there are still battles being fought between the moderates and the Corbynistas. On Wednesday night, elections took place for the Labour Party Irish Society executive.

Oh dear. When a Tory MP missed last week's Opposition Day debate on universal credit to referee at a Barcelona match, both the SNP and Labour were quick to go on the offensive – accusing Douglas Ross of failing his constituents. Now it seems that one of Labour's most vocal justice warriors has also fallen foul and missed a debate on universal credit. Laura Pidcock was notably absent from Tuesday's emergency debate on the government's new benefits system. However rather than sickness keeping her away, it was a holiday to Venice.

Oh dear. Although John Bercow has a penchant for winding up Conservative MPs in the Chamber, he also has a habit of taking the SNP to task for failing to grasp Westminster etiquette. However, today he adopted a rather different approach. During questions after Theresa May's statement on the EU Council summit, the Speaker appeared to have an odd turn. Calling the SNP's Alan Brown to speak, Bercow attempted a Scottish accent: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=pt2HALDW5a8 Mr S recommends he leaves it to the Scots next time...

Since George Osborne moved to the Evening Standard, the one-time austere chancellor has rebranded himself as a centrist darling – and a critic of Theresa May's government. So, at last night's Standard Progress 1000 awards at the Tate Modern, Osborne took great delight in telling the esteemed crowd – which included Diane Abbott, Matt Hancock and Grayson Perry – of how he had stood up to government bean counters when he first arrived in the Treasury: 'In the first week of my former job, I was advised by the Treasury civil service to cancel immediately three projects because we had to save money and it was easier to save money from things we hadn't built yet than things that had already been built.

Alastair Campbell has made his views on Brexit loud and clear to anyone who will listen. Tony Blair’s former spin doctor is not happy about Britain leaving the EU and he wants us all to know it. It’s something of a shame then that he doesn’t give others who don’t agree with him about Brexit the opportunity to have their say. Cracking set-to between Alistair Campbell and John Redwood over the WTO. pic.twitter.com/veUDBFCDTy — Nick Hilton (@nickfthilton) October 19, 2017 Campbell popped up on Sky News this afternoon to discuss why he thought walking away with no Brexit deal would be a mistake. But when it came to Tory MP John Redwood’s turn to speak, Campbell was having none of it: AC: 'Because people like you..