Shadow health secretary questioned by Guardian editor-in-chief, Katharine Viner
Q: You oppose the Rwanda policy because you don’t think it will work. If the supreme court rules it is legal, and deportations start and it is seen to be working, would you still reverse it.
Yes, says Starmer. He says it is the wrong policy. It is very expensive, and it only affect only a small number of people. And the policy does not deal with the problem at source.
Continue reading...Role preparing for election will see McFadden shape party’s direction, but it will likely be done quietly
Pat McFadden is the most powerful Labour politician most people have never heard of. As Rachel Reeves’ No 2 in the shadow Treasury team, with responsibility for Labour’s public spending plans, he could derail the dreams of shadow cabinet colleagues with just a raised eyebrow.
In his new role preparing for the election campaign and – should Labour win it – running the Cabinet Office, he assumes even greater responsibility for the direction of Keir Starmer’s party. Yet much of it is likely to be done quietly, and efficiently, behind the scenes.
Continue reading...National Archives documents show concerns raised over Scottish National Portrait Gallery’s proposal
Downing Street feared that a group portrait of Tony Blair’s cabinet that the Scottish National Portrait Gallery wanted to commission to mark New Labour’s 1997 election victory would look “triumphalist” and be unlikely to win votes in Scotland, newly released documents reveal.
The gallery proposed a portrait by Peter Howson, a distinguished member of the new wave of expressionist artists who emerged from the Glasgow School of Art in the 80s, and was willing to pay. With the fee likely to be “substantial”, Downing Street aides were also concerned about negative coverage if any public funds were used, the documents released by the National Archives show.
Continue reading...From contracts for mates to flat makeovers and illicit parties, barely a day passes without a crisis at No 10. But using the tabloid language of the 90s doesn’t scratch the surface of this government’s sins
Think of bonking. Not the activity, but the word. As a shorthand for sex, it was popularised, if not invented, by the tabloid press in the 90s – back then, “Bonking Boris” referred to a former Wimbledon champion rather than a future prime minister. You can see why it appealed. “Bonking” slipped easily under the bar prohibiting expletives in family newspapers; it sounded fun rather than pornographic. It was clear and direct, yet had all the advantages of euphemism.
Now think of sleaze. As it happens, that word performed a similar role in the same period. It could be hurled at politicians – specifically the Conservative government of John Major – relatively free of legal risk. You could say an MP or minister was “mired in sleaze” without having to prove that they had broken a specific law. It was handy.
Continue reading...Former communications chief for Tony Blair voted for Lib Dems in European elections
Guardian Opinion cartoon – Martin Rowson on the expulsion
Alastair Campbell, the former communications chief to Tony Blair, has been expelled from the Labour party for saying he voted for the Liberal Democrats in the European elections because of their support for a second Brexit referendum.
The People’s Vote campaigner said he was “sad and disappointed” at his expulsion, especially as he felt it had happened on the day the Labour leadership appeared to be moving in the direction of supporting another Brexit poll because of the exodus of remainers from the party.
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