Steerpike

Steerpike is The Spectator's gossip columnist, serving up the latest tittle tattle from London and beyond. Email tips to steerpike@spectator.co.uk.

Minister: Farage is on Jimmy Savile’s side

29 July 2025 6:05 pm

An extraordinary exchange on Sky News this morning. Peter Kyle was invited on to discuss the reaction to the implementation…

Watch: Trump slams Sadiq Khan as ‘nasty person’

29 July 2025 1:47 am

While relations between Sir Keir Starmer and US President Donald Trump have been lauded as ‘unparalleled’ by the President himself,…

Corbyn and Sultana botch their party launch. Again

24 July 2025 10:27 pm

After a rather botched party launch attempt in which Zarah Sultana appeared to force Jeremy Corbyn into letting her co-lead…

BBC apologises to Rupert Lowe over Rape Gang Inquiry report

24 July 2025 10:06 pm

Another day, another drama over at the Beeb. The BBC has apologised to ex-Reform MP Rupert Lowe and his Rape…

Watch: Green party leader struggles to say he likes rival

24 July 2025 9:53 pm

All is not well in the Green party. Adrian Ramsay is standing for re-election in the party’s leadership contest this…

Migrant relocation rumours spark Canary Wharf protest

24 July 2025 12:55 am

Uh oh. Protests have broken out outside an empty Canary Wharf hotel after claims began to circulate that migrants were…

Cleverly refuses to back Badenoch on ECHR

23 July 2025 10:05 pm

Kemi Badenoch might have reached an agreement with James Cleverly about his new role in the shadow cabinet, but it…

Cabinet ministers urge Starmer to recognise Palestine

23 July 2025 9:45 pm

Parliament may have risen for recess but that doesn’t mean that Sir Keir Starmer is getting much of a break.…

Ex-Unite boss under fire over private jets and million-pound hotel project

23 July 2025 1:42 am

Well, well, well. It would appear the former Unite the Union boss Len McCluskey is not immune to the temptation…

DVSA bosses celebrate ‘progress’ as car test waits worsen

22 July 2025 9:51 pm

The ability of Britain’s quangos to sugarcoat their rather unflattering performance figures will never fail to amaze Mr S. The…

Lowe brands Farage a ‘stinking hypocrite’ over crime policies

22 July 2025 1:12 am

Reform UK has dominated headlines this morning, as the party kick off their six-week campaign on crime. During a central…

When will Miliband make up his mind on Mingyang?

21 July 2025 9:12 pm

Net Zero Secretary Ed Miliband is preparing to be grilled by the Energy Security and Net Zero Committee this afternoon…

Commons blow Lords away in shooting cup

19 July 2025 1:54 am

The big guns of parliament were out in force this morning. The annual cross-party Commons v Lords shooting match has…

Jenrick accuses Yusuf of ‘bulls**t’ over Twitter post

19 July 2025 1:25 am

Never mind uniting the right, there’s more talk of fighting the right today as the feud between Tory MP Robert…

Shapps accused of trying to ‘rewrite history’ over MoD leak

19 July 2025 1:09 am

To the Ministry of Defence leak, which has created a flurry of news this week after journalists were eventually allowed…

Ex-Tory MPs denied special treatment for 2029 election

18 July 2025 5:24 am

The 2024 election was something of a disaster for the Tories. Two in every three MPs departed the Commons last…

Rayner’s youth blunder

18 July 2025 3:22 am

Oh dear. After the government announced that 16- and 17-year-olds will be allowed to vote in time for the next…

Lefty MPs accept Glastonbury tickets in freebie U-turn

17 July 2025 11:16 pm

Well, well, well. It transpires that a number of left-wing MPs enjoyed some time away from their constituencies at this…

Will Labour suspend Diane Abbott – again?

17 July 2025 8:58 pm

All is not well in Sir Keir Starmer’s Labour party. Last night, seven MPs were punished for voting against the…

NHS diversity officer: I don’t know my own sex

17 July 2025 8:42 pm

The Sandie Peggie case against NHS Fife is only getting stranger. The tribunal resumed on Wednesday morning, after first being…

Foreign national benefits figures are ‘absolute insanity’, fumes Lowe

16 July 2025 11:31 pm

Well, well, well. It was only a fortnight ago that the government was forced to gut its own welfare reform…

Rael Braverman quits Reform after attacks on Suella

16 July 2025 9:42 pm

A day is a long time in politics. Just 24 hours ago, the husband of former Tory Home Secretary Suella…

Sandie Peggie cleared of NHS misconduct

16 July 2025 7:12 pm

To Scotland, where the nurse at the centre of a trans tribunal against NHS Fife has been cleared of all…

Soaring asylum costs threaten aid budget, watchdog warns Labour

15 July 2025 5:30 pm

Immigration is never off the news agenda these days, as Brits remain concerned about the influx of people to the…

Layla Moran’s nimbyism backfires

15 July 2025 5:59 am

Oh dear. It seems that Layla Moran – the oracle of Oxfordshire – has been left with egg on her…