BONUS: Can Keir Starmer survive the Mandelson vetting scandal?
4/17/202616 min
Everything you need to know about the latest instalment of the Mandelson scandal. What Labour MPs are saying about Keir Starmer; our verdict on whether he can survive it, and why Patrick thinks the prime minister is doing "the political equivalent of smoking outside a hospital".
Steven Swinford, political editor, The Times
Patrick Maguire, chief political commentator, The Times
Lara Spirit, deputy political editor, The Sunday Times
Producer: Harry Kitson
Executive producer: Molly Guinness
Picture credit: Getty Images
Audio: Reuters, x.com/KemiBadenoch, x.com/Nigel_Farage
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First 90 secondsSpeaker 10:00
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Speaker 2· Soundbite0:30
We have launched Operation Epic Fury. Stop us being a proper country. When everyone says they're right- Who do you believe? None of us knew the depth of that relationship. If the lines are blurred- He knew- Can you read between them? ... the depth of the relationship. When the story breaks- Who brings perspective? The mistake I made- If you want to understand the issues that define our times, it starts with listening.
Lara Spirit· Host0:54
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Speaker 2· Soundbite0:59
That I wasn't told that Peter Mandelson had failed security vetting when he's appointed is staggering.
Speaker 4· Soundbite1:10
Starmer has misled Parliament, he's lied to the public. They knew that Peter Mandelson had failed vetting, and they still sent him to Washington.
Speaker 2· Soundbite1:19
If he's saying he didn't know, he is telling the country that he is incompetent, and that means he shouldn't be running the government.
Steven Swinford· Host1:25
[tense music] Welcome to a bonus edition