The wagons are circling. It seems Kier Starmer’s days are now well and truly numbered as a cabinet rebellion gains momentum over the Mandlesson scandal. >> We reveal the latest exclusive Westminster gossip and react to another nonsensical and infuriating civil service evidence session. >> I I began to actually boil with rage.
>> Yes, >> these are the people who run this country and they’re why nothing gets done. They are employed not to facilitate things but to say why something can’t happen. >> And part of the reason why they speak in that language is to make you eventually go I can’t be bothered with this and you walk away.
Camila, it is tminus 4 days until the Telegraph road show takes off. >> My car takes off. Badgers beware. We will be hitting the motorways of Britain. >> I know. And we are going to keep repeating this advert until someone buys a ticket. >> Buy a ticket. On Monday, we are going to be in London where we’re hosting a questiontime debate between Tory James Cleverly, >> uh, Reform Zia Yusf, and Labour’s James Murray, who works at the Treasury.
>> Rachel Reeves’s right-hand man is how we’re describing him, Tim. >> Very good. Okay. >> Um, on the Tuesday, we’re in Cardiff in Welsh Wales, uh, which looks like it’s set for a political upset. On the Wednesday, we are at Warick University with Jacob Reesemog taking on students. Mhm. >> And then on Thursday, we’re by the seaside.
>> Lovely. >> Get a 99 in your hand. Um because we’re going to be in lovely Worththing discussing royal matters with Lady Colin Campbell. >> Amazing. >> And Phil Dampia, formerly of the Sun. >> If you want to come and watch or be at any of the other live events next week, get your tickets now and the link is in the episode description.
Now, Camila, do you think it might actually be all over for Kia Star >> next week? >> I’m starting to wonder now. I I there’s a part of me that will be sad. I’ll be working on the impression. There’s a part of me that will be sad. And also, he is so bad. He has been putting my dog through school. You know, for journalists, he is. Yes.
He’s been paying a money printing machine. He’s fantastic. But >> but we thought maybe he’d caterize things on Wednesday with his performance in PMQs because he has this new formula of Lord Mandlesson. The process was followed. Ollie Robinson, give me all the information. Not my fault. Let’s move on. >> Move on. >> Let’s move on.
And I sense back benches might be coming around to the let’s move on position. But what’s interesting is that the toxins seem to have spread to the cabinet. Yes. Which of course is what really matters. >> They want to move on with someone else in charge and that’s his problem. So let’s have a look at our brilliant political editor Tony Divers uh reporting on this again first with the scoops.
So he’s been told by senior government sources quotes the wheels have stopped turning in number 10. The question is no longer whether things can go on. It’s a question of when people move. Now you say that we might not be in Clover if Starmmer resigns. Come on, hang on a minute. >> Who are the two names that everyone in cabinet is saying might replace him? >> Wes and an >> Wow. Okay.
>> Um and by the way, can I just say on that front that we are going to get on to speaking about Cat Little in a moment. You’re not in favor of this uh shortening of people’s names, are you? This an >> No. >> Shouldn’t we be calling him Wesley >> Cammy? Timmy. Yes. Um, you’ve got a problem with the fact that the civil servant, the very senior civil servant who appeared today and indeed the other senior civil servant or former civil servant who appeared the other day have shortened their names >> to Cat Little. I mean, there’s a lot
going on there because she’s taken Katherine and made it little. >> So, she’s Cat Little, but Cat Little sounds like a cartoon character or a primary school teacher. And it’s the same with Sir Olly Robbins. No, his name is Oliver. What has happened to this country, the land of Queen Victoria and Margaret Thatcher, that our senior civil servants now have childish playground nicknames? >> I mean, we called Thatcher Maggie, but she never called herself that she didn’t introduce herself.
Hello, my name is Maggie. That would have been ridiculous. >> If I’m ever >> bringing end, can you imagine the Cold War being ended by someone called Maggie or Timmy? >> Yes. If I’m ever um given a damehood, which I think is pretty unlikely, it’s probably as likely >> from this government anyway. Indeed, Kama remaining prime minister by Christmas.
Um, I think I might just say I want to be called Cammy just to annoy you. >> It’s the letters after the sir Ollie Robbins. KPMG IMF. >> Yeah. ABC >> KFC. Yeah. LGBTQ plus. >> You don’t have letters with Ollie. That’s ridiculous. Ollie is a 5-year-old’s name. Anyway, >> continue. Timothy, >> senior government sources have said to Tony that there is a debate about quote who would move first, Wes Streeting or Angela Raina.
>> Well, hang on. I thought they were moving a little pack. >> Ah, yes. And and that quote there is a sense that it is over now. A minister who has publicly supported K said their colleagues were quote furious about the Mandlesson saga and the open briefing war between Downing Street and the Foreign Office.
And this is a detail from Tony’s reporting that I love. What is it that Labour cabinet ministers are most annoyed about? Not the appointment of Peter Mandlesson, but that the prime minister and his team might be upsetting the civil service. >> Oh yes, we mustn’t do that. >> The Rollsroyce standard cat little civil service. >> Yes, indeed.
The blob must never be impinged. So several government ministers including reportedly Rachel Reeves, Shabbana Mammud, Wes Streeting, and David Lammy have accused the prime minister of creating a them and us split between ministers and officials in Tuesday’s cabinet meeting. During the disagreement uh first reported by the Guardian, uh Rachel Reeves advised Dharma to keep civil servants on side.
That’s because she is a purveyor of Treasury orthodoxy. >> Because we all know the way to keep public servants on side is to pay them double and let them work from home. I just think that’s such a strange thing for a minister to be advising someone to do. >> I know. But this is the weird thing because we’ll get on to Cat Little in just a moment.
Cat Little’s evidence before the Foreign Affairs Select Committee, Emily Thornbury 2.0, appears to be that Ollie Robbins was doing the prime minister’s bidding. Yes. If that is what civil servants are for, then you absolutely can’t sack them for doing exactly what you’ve told them to do. >> This point was reportedly made in the cabinet by Shabban Mahmud.
Karma uh described Robins as a fantastic civil servant. And Shabbana Mammud reportedly said, “If he’s such a great public servant, why did he lose his job?” >> I don’t understand the split down. When we used to deal with Tory splits, it would be really simple. It would be wetties >> and righties policy.
Is this split philosophy? What’s the split here? Is it Lego hair? Mmood is on the side of Reeves who is on the side of Philipsson. >> Yes. I I just can’t believe this government’s being torn apart by a debate over how pro- bureaucracy you are. >> Um a cabinet minister told the eye paper that quote, “It’s bleak.
It’s a question for the cabinet, i.e. the future of Kostama and colleagues need to come to a view. I know what my view is.” >> I think it’s moving, isn’t it? I think the wagons are circling. >> Mhm. >> And it’s just a question of time now. And also, by the way, I was discussing this with somebody earlier. I hadn’t previously thought that the prime minister, a proud man, a quite vain man, a man with a little soup of arrogance at times, which we see demonstrated often at prime minister’s questions.
>> I didn’t think he would fall on his sword. I didn’t think he would be a quitter because I think he would find that to be in contravention of his self-sol role as a public servant, >> but I’m increasingly starting to think >> yes, >> he might not have the stomach for this. >> Well, Dan, Dan Hodgees, >> isn’t it? It’s dicey.
>> Dan Hodgers, I’m always reluctant to give him the auction of publicity, but Dan, >> we love Dan. >> We do actually. Can’t but but Dan has been speaking to people in the cabinet and he says that uh after Iran, there was a a pause for thought. Maybe we can’t get rid of this prime minister right now. Maybe we need him.
Maybe he is the man for the moment. Uh but the Mandlesson saga has changed that calculation and we’re back to thinking let’s look at what happens in the May local elections and if they really are as bad as we’re all expecting that would be a natural time to say to the prime minister maybe you should go. >> You know how bad it is.
Even the London mayor Sadi Khn apparently thinks the handling of the Mandlesson saga has been a quotes omni shambles. >> Right. Extraordinary. Now, he’s usually quite loyal, isn’t he? He’s always going into bat for Star, >> but according to polls, he’s looking at Labour being not quite wiped out, but losing control of many councils in London and seeing reform and Green elected in their place.
>> Why do we never theorize Khn as a potential prime minister? Do you? But he’s still got his term to run. >> Yeah. And and and the only reason why we can’t he’s not in play is because he’s currently serving as mayor. But I think >> he can’t. >> Very good. But I think if he were in in parliament, I I think he would be a force to be reckoned with.
>> By the way, on Burnham, there’s now also reporting that he is in some way trying to convince the National Executive Committee not to block a second chicken run. So obviously he was stopped in the first place from leaving Manchester and coming to Westminster. There’s less justification for that now, Tim. >> Well, it’s an interesting counterfactual.
If Andy had stood in Look at me, I’m shortening names, too. If Mr. Andrew Burnham had run in Gorton and Denton and presumably won then right now he’d be in parliament and one wonders of the dynamic of this would be even worse for Kiama. So while we’ve got the sort of emotional political battle taking place within cabinet the Tories are still trying to exploit the question of whether or not Kama misled parliament.
>> Yes. Which I think is a perfectly sensible strategy. I think that’s all they can do. That’s all they can do. And also they’re just trying to grind him down. And this is what Labour did to Boris Johnson. >> Called for him to be subjected to repeated inquiries. So now they’re saying, “Right, we should get the privileges committee to order an appearance by the prime minister.
” We’ve heard Ollie Robbins being interrogated. We’ve heard Cat Little being interrogated. Next week, we’re going to hear Morgan Mcweeny being interrogated. Okay, he has appeared in front of Prime Minister’s questions. But that’s six questions from the leader of the opposition. I think we would all welcome a longer interrogation of these events, wouldn’t we? I mean, not not K star or can can we take any more? >> It’s all good sketching material.
Um, so they’re pushing on that door, by the way, on Mweeney. I’m wondering how Mweeney is going to behave >> because of course he’s a star loyalist. He succeeded in electing this man as a Labour prime minister, but does he, like Robbins, feel he’s been thrown under the bus? Does he feel I was the adviser who advised? You were the prime minister who decided.
Why am I having to cop all this flack? I’m now, you know, public enemy number one, struggling to get another job. Do he could turn >> Yeah. >> couldn’t he? I mean, let’s be honest, Starmmer’s next week isn’t going to get any easier for the prime minister despite the fact that we called it yesterday. >> Produed Parliament early so he can avoid PMQs, >> but it could be his last PMQs, too.
>> Yeah, it could very well be. and that’s how we will remember him. It’s interesting you say that all this is good stuff for sketchwriting because I was just too busy today. I wasn’t on duty to write about Cat Little. That’s the that’s the prime minister’s civil service chief. >> Not much to write to be fair.
>> Who was giving she was giving evidence to the foreign affairs committee uh chaired by Emily Thornbury who today was channeling Alexis Carrington. I felt with that jacket >> it was gold. >> It was gold >> and I appreciated it. It was part Alexis Carrington, part Jackie Collins book launch. >> Yeah.
And I just feel Emily never wears the same thing twice. No, >> she’s either got a massive wardrobe or she’s just cycling through eBay or something. I don’t know how she does it, but she she always looks great. But Emily struggled and I would have struggled to write it up too >> because after about 30 seconds of cat little speaking, I completely switched off.
>> Yes, >> it was like a Mandarin speaking Mandarin. It was a foreign language while eating a pure jargon. Now, I’m told by people who speak of the lingo that she was saying that Ollie Robbins in fact did see the results of the vetting. Yes, >> it may well have involved those colorful boxes, although she was just as clear as mud about whether it did or not. Yes.
>> And therefore, the fault lies with Robins cuz he didn’t pass it on. But the fact that it required someone to translate it, I think says everything you need to know. And watching her speak, I I began to actually boil with rage. >> Yes. Because I feel people like that, people like we mustn’t have her go to civil servant, right? She’s a career servant.
She’s not elected and there are rules in journalism about who you can and can’t take the mick out of basically. And normally we don’t touch civil servants. So if I can speak of her as the embodiment of a class, of a group of people. >> It’s Morris Glassman’s lanyard class. >> The lanyard. These are the people who run this country and they’re why nothing gets done.
Yes, >> they are employed not to facilitate things but to say why something can’t happen. >> And part of the reason why they speak in that language which is like the language of the foreign language of an elite which only they can understand >> governmental goblin a lot like wokery you know and triggering and all this sort of stuff you develop the class develops its own language and those who are outside the class can’t understand it so they’re excluded and they can look down on you because you don’t know what I’m talking about. Part of the reason
why Cat Little speaks like that is to make you eventually go, I can’t be bothered with this. And you walk away. >> It’s basically the same strategy employed by Starmer, which is to kind of blind you with legal ease. >> Yes. >> And basically try and transmit the message due process was followed. Yes. >> By boring everyone to tears with your explanation.
>> Yes. Exactly. And it’s the same process employed by my broadband provider. Yes. Right. who I’ve discovered recently for the last 6 months I’ve been paying for two broadbands because when you switch they’re supposed to tell the other company that you’ve switched and stopped the payments but they didn’t do it.
So, I’ve been ringing them and I’ve been having like halfhour long conversations about process and how to get the money back to the point where you eventually think, >> I’m just going to give up the money. Little Timmy like like the great British public inside they’re screaming just get it done. >> Yeah, exactly.
>> This is the trouble, right? So, we know the cabinet and MPs are increasingly seeing through it. >> The electorate sees it. The electorate listens to this nonsense knows you’re talking. The electorate feels it instinctively. I’m always trying to figure out why does Britain hate Karma? Cuz sometimes it’s irrational, right? We’ve had a lot of bad prime ministers.
But our dislike of this man is on a whole other level. And I think it’s because when he speaks, it is computer says no. >> Yes, it is. >> It is the petty bureaucracy of everyday life in a country where things are more expensive than they used to be. that the service quality is falling. It’s someone explaining to you, I’m afraid, having ordered it, that’s not on the menu this evening.
Perhaps you’d like to have a bucket of cold sick instead. >> But you know what? It’s worse than that. It’s not just that. It’s those people who tell you everything is fine when it isn’t. >> Yes. So, when you go and you have some inconvenience at a doctor’s surgery or maybe at an airline desk or on a train and the person tells you to stay calm when you haven’t raised your voice even though you’re getting increasingly >> don’t hit the staff. Yes.
>> Please don’t punch the staff. And you’re saying, “No, I’m justifiably put out because you are managing this whole situation really badly.” and they smile at you and they go, “No, I’m handling it really well.” Which is why when he says, >> “We must do everything in our power to ensure that there’s no anti-semitism in this country as a viral video is currently on X >> and you all know he’s going to do absolutely nothing.
” >> Showing a man literally abusing a Jew in his front garden. Yes. But everyone goes, >> “And not only is he going to do nothing, but also the bad things in our life are a consequence of his policies.” >> Yes. but he doesn’t see it. But like with that please don’t thump the staff message that you keep getting, there’s this underlying passive aggression, very polite passive aggression in everyday official life. So today is St.
George’s Day. >> Why can we not just raise a few flags and go Morris dancing? >> Instead, we have to have Labour ministers coming out and saying, I just want to say I love St. George. I’m a big fan of St. George, but let’s not be divisive. >> Yeah, I love St. George, but I do secretly think that anybody who waves the flag is a racist and a brigot.
>> I don’t need your permission to tell me it’s okay to feel proud about my country so long as I subscribe to this 36 points of principles that I’m tolerant and proiversity. As long as you’re all of those things, let’s enjoy ourselves. It’s like starting a party by telling people where the fire exits are, right? And going through a little fire drill.
Just let us get on with our lives. For the man who told us, “I’m going to you you won’t notice I’m here.” Remember that speech at number 10 when he he first got elected, I want to touch more lightly upon your lives. That sort of thing. >> I feel like I’m going to wake up and he’s next to me in bed. >> I can’t escape him.
>> What a thought. Imagine. Tim, can I borrow your grill cream? As here we are, gear. >> If you’re enjoying our journalism, why not sign up to From the Editor, our free email newsletter. Start your day with the latest news and opinion, plus our bite-size puzzles. Scan the QR code to sign up free today.