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.

Starmer hits out at Mauritian PM over Chagos comments

6 February 2025 1:38 am

Uh oh. There’s trouble in paradise as it appears the relationship between Sir Keir Starmer and Navin Ramgoolam is becoming…

Watch: Starmer ducks PMQ on Covid rule-breaking

5 February 2025 11:49 pm

To Westminster, where Prime Minister’s Questions is in full swing. Sir Keir Starmer has delivered yet another tutorial in how…

Labour MPs form anti-Reform pressure group

5 February 2025 10:29 pm

Sir Keir Starmer’s party may have only been in power for seven months but in that time the Prime Minister…

Watch: Kay Burley retires from Sky on air

5 February 2025 9:30 pm

So. Farewell then Kay Burley. After 36 years, the Sky star has announced she is retiring from the channel. In…

Eleven lowlights from the assisted dying evidence session

5 February 2025 2:59 am

To Westminster, where last week Kim Leadbeater’s Assisted Dying bill began the evidence session of committee stage. But rather than…

Starmer set to close Chagos deal in ‘coming weeks’

5 February 2025 2:48 am

Is Sir Keir Starmer determined to make himself more unpopular with the British public? The news of his latest Chagos…

Burnham’s night czar eviscerates Reeves

5 February 2025 1:07 am

Oh dear. It’s a day ending in ‘y’ – so that means more bad news for Rachel Reeves. Today, the…

Foreign Office struggles to mind its Mandarin

4 February 2025 2:58 am

The Foreign Office was once described as a ‘palace of dreams’, yet these days it seems increasingly like a graveyard…

Did Starmer breach Covid rules?

4 February 2025 2:18 am

Oh dear. It seems No. 10 aren’t keen to go anywhere near suggestions that Sir Keir Starmer might have broken…

SNP mull ban on household cats

3 February 2025 11:10 pm

Here’s one to make you paws for thought: SNP ministers are considering a ban on pet cats, in a bid…

Channel 4’s diversity hypocrisy

1 February 2025 2:24 am

Some good news for the BBC: for once it’s not them causing bad headlines. Today’s latest shining example in public…

Nats blast Humza in ministerial interview series

1 February 2025 1:44 am

Uh oh. There’s more trouble in nationalist paradise. A series of interviews with past and present Scottish government ministers have…

J.D. Vance mocks ‘110 IQ’ Rory Stewart

31 January 2025 6:43 pm

Oh dear. In his never-ending desire to appear clever, it seems that Rory Stewart has slipped up again. You might…

Trump: Diversity hires to blame for Washington crash

31 January 2025 6:37 pm

While the investigation into the Washington air crash has only just started, already President Trump has hinted at what he…

Watch: Priti Patel challenged to apologise over borders failure

31 January 2025 2:54 am

As Reform UK’s support surges, the Conservatives are coming under scrutiny for failing to deal with immigration to the UK…

Watch: Richard Madeley grills Rachel Reeves on CV

31 January 2025 12:21 am

When it rains for the Labour lot, it pours. This morning Rachel Reeves came under fire on Good Morning Britain…

Gaza uni protests used non-students to boost numbers

30 January 2025 11:52 pm

Well, well, well. In a new report released by the Higher Education Policy Institute, it has emerged that a number…

Tory donors pay five figures to appear at Reform fundraiser

30 January 2025 7:28 pm

Uh oh. Things aren’t looking good for the Tories after a number of former Conservative donors paid five figures to…

Can’t the UK pay its ‘Head of Tariff Strategy’ more than £55k?

30 January 2025 2:24 am

Donald Trump is back in the White House and the UK is playing catch-up once again. Whether it’s Mandelson grovelling…

Sadiq splurges £2.1 million on statues commission

30 January 2025 1:45 am

Another day, another City Hall scandal. Mr S can today reveal that Labour’s London mayor Sadiq Khan has splurged a…

Where is Ed Miliband?

29 January 2025 11:52 pm

It’s a busy day for the Labour lot, what with Rachel Reeves’s big growth speech this morning and Sir Keir…

Will the SNP government lose yet another health minister?

29 January 2025 10:48 pm

To Scotland, where today the SNP government’s embattled Health Secretary Neil Gray is in the firing line. The Scottish Tories…

Reeves blasted for backing third Heathrow runway

29 January 2025 10:05 pm

Growth is the flavour of the month for Sir Keir Starmer’s government, with Rachel Reeves this morning delivering a big…

Mandelson grovels to Trump on Fox News

29 January 2025 9:08 pm

Oh Mandy. It’s now nine days since Donald Trump was elected – and our new man in Washington is still…

Kim Leadbeater U-turns once again

28 January 2025 5:56 pm

Another week and another U-turn on Kim Leadbeater’s Assisted Dying Bill. The 23-man committee scrutinising the legislation is supposed to…