Badenoch presses Starmer on putting former aide in Lords after he campaigned for sex offender
Starmer due at PMQs after a tricky week – here’s what you need to knowpublished at 10:42 GMT
Image source, PA Media
It’s been one of, if not, the most challenging weeks of Keir Starmer’s premiership – and today he must face MPs at Prime Minister’s Questions.
In case you’ve missed what’s been happening – here’s a quick rundown.
Sunday: The PM’s chief of staff Morgan McSweeney dramatically quit, taking “full responsibility” for advising Starmer to appoint Peter Mandelson as US ambassador in 2024, despite Mandelson’s relationship with convicted sex offender Jeffrey Epstein being publicly known at the time.
Monday morning: With Starmer now bidding to shore up his leadership, his director of communications Tim Allan also quit.
Morning afternoon: Scottish Labour leader Anas Sarwar became the most high profile Labour voice to call on Starmer to resign, saying the “distraction” of the Mandelson scandal “needs to end”. But Starmer’s cabinet stood by him, publishing messages of support on social media.
Monday evening: Starmer received an enthusiastic response after addressing a behind-closed-doors meeting of the Parliamentary Labour Party. He also received public backing from three potential leadership challengers – Angela Rayner, Wes Streeting and Andy Burnham.
Tuesday: Speaking at an event, the PM said he would “never give up” on his fight for the “millions of people held back because of a system that doesn’t work for them”. Tory leader Kemi Badenoch, however, said it was “still a matter of when, not if, [Starmer] goes”.
- PMQs will get under way at midday and when it does, we’ll bring you live updates. You’ll also be able to watch the Commons session at the top of this page.
