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
Ding ding ding! Sparks were flying this morning on Sky News as host Wilfred Frost interviewed the rather combative Home Office minister Diana Johnson about last week’s Supreme Court judgment – which backed the biological definition of a woman. The duo entered into a tense back-and-forth on Sir Keir Starmer’s belated reaction to it all
It is Prime Minister’s Questions today and there is certainly much for Kemi Badenoch to go on. From increased government borrowing to the IMF’s UK downgrade, there is a veritable smorgasbord of failure for her to choose from. But Mr S wonders if there might be a more personal angle for Badenoch, following Keir Starmer’s
Talk about a turn-up for the books. In an unusual breach with convention, it was Kemi Badenoch rising for HM Loyal Opposition this afternoon to respond to Bridget Phillipson’s statement in response to the Supreme Court ruling last week. But the Tory leader – whose conviction on same-sex spaces has been applauded by JK Rowling
Another day, another rant by lefty loudmouth James O’Brien. Today LBC’s eviscerator-in-chief has decided to take issue with Labour’s decision to publish migrant crime league tables, fuming that ‘I don’t know what else this is designed to do but to feed hatred’ before demanding: ‘Are they going to publish the fact that the massive majority
Hurrah! The day has finally come: Prime Minister Keir Starmer has, after almost a week of deafening silence, eventually got round to welcoming the Supreme Court’s unanimous judgment that backed the biological definition of a woman. In a rather revealing clip on ITV News today, the PM insisted to interviewers that he is ‘pleased’ about
Just when you think the Scottish Greens can’t get any battier, they do. This Easter Weekend eco-zealot MSP Maggie Chapman took to the streets of Aberdeen on Sunday to pour scorn on last week’s Supreme Court ruling – that saw justices unanimously back the biological definition of a woman – and rant that she sees
Happy Easter Sunday to LGBT+ Labour. Today’s Mail on Sunday splashes on leaked messages from a WhatsApp chat of MPs who all belong to the campaign group. The paper claims that Labour ministers are now plotting to defy the Supreme Court ruling on Wednesday that the legal definition of a woman should be based on biological
Back to the Reform fallout, which has escalated this afternoon. Now the party’s former MP Rupert Lowe has said he will sue his old party for defamation over what he claims is a ‘concerted smear campaign’ against him. He was suspended in March after party chairman Zia Yusuf and the chief whip Lee Anderson released
Sir Keir Starmer may not be polling all that well with the British public but he’s managed to garner some overseas admiration. It transpires that the President of the European Commission Ursula von der Leyen has penned an enthusiastic piece in Time magazine on the UK Prime Minister, lauding his previous work in the courts
The ink had barely dried on the Supreme Court justices’ unanimous judgment on Wednesday – confirming that ‘woman’ in the Equality Act refers to biological sex – before Sir Keir Starmer’s Labour lot were out there touting their long-term advocacy of that very position. Education Secretary Bridge Phillipson even claimed in response to the ruling
It’s official: Robert Jenrick is running. Rarely a week now goes by without the Shadow Justice Secretary causing some sort of stir. Whether it is his impressive weight loss or his triumph over the Sentencing Council, the Newark MP is an ever-present in the headlines of the Tory press. But, in their latest initiative, it
Labour’s Health Secretary Wes Streeting and Conservative party leader Kemi Badenoch have clashed on many things – from Chagos to the NHS. But it transpires that they do have at least one thing in common: a love for Game of Thrones’ House Targaryen. When The Spectator’s Katy Balls interviewed the Leader of the Opposition at
It’s a big day for women’s rights campaigners, after the Supreme Court this morning backed the biological definition of a woman. After justices unanimously agreed this morning that the terms ‘women’ and ‘sex’ in the Equality Act refer to biological sex, public and private workplaces alike are trying to figure out exactly what today’s move
To the Supreme Court, which has this morning backed the biological definition of a woman. Today a panel of judges unanimously ruled that the terms ‘women’ and ‘sex’ in the Equality Act refer to biological – and not legal – sex in the landmark case For Women Scotland brought against Scottish ministers. It’s a win
Just what is it with the Department for Transport and phones? Back in November, Louise Haigh was forced to quit as Secretary of State after allegations about missing mobiles came to light. Then, last week, the Rail Minister Peter Hendy was revealed to have texted while, er, driving a Routemaster bus at rush hour. And
There was great excitement at the end of last year when it was reported that Reform UK was considering launching its own youth wing. For generations, pimple-faced politicos have offered a rich seam of stories for the press. Whether it is drunken Tory boys at Port and Policy night or NUS apparatchiks decrying Israel, the
The Labour government has a British Steel-sized problem that doesn’t look to be going away anytime soon. Sir Keir Starmer’s army took control of the production plant on Saturday after parliament was recalled in a rare move. Legislation was pushed through both houses to prevent the closure of the UK’s only virgin steel producer after
The cost of living crisis continues to afflict Brits across the country – but it would appear that Scottish government ministers aren’t having such a bad time of it. In fact SNP ministers will see their pay packets boosted by a whopping £20,000 after First Minister John Swinney’s government ended a voluntary pay freeze on
The 2024 general election may feel like a lifetime ago, but the Gambling Commission has certainly not forgotten about it. The watchdog has this morning charged 15 people over bets placed on the timing of the national poll – including former Tory MP and ex-parliamentary aide to Rishi Sunak, Craig Williams. Dear oh dear… The
Back to the curious case of Labour MP Tulip Siddiq, who has now had an arrest warrant issued against her in Bangladesh over alleged corruption charges. The warrant was issued by a judge in Dhaka on Sunday after the Anti-Corruption Commission (ACC) last week submitted a criminal charge sheet against the politician – who was