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Politics At Sam and Anne's

Keir's cabinet: Who's left on the barricades

4/22/202619 min

Has the Prime Minister and No10 weathered the storm on the Peter Mandelson vetting scandal?

With the dust only beginning to settle, Sam and Anne dissect the mixed, uncomfortable and carefully worded reactions from senior figures across the Labour party after Olly Robbins’ combative session in parliament.

Keir Starmer braces for another grilling from MPs at Prime Minister Questions on the Mandelson saga but has he contained the damage, or has he been left out in the cold to face it alone?

Away from Starmer drama, the duo look at the latest polling in Wales where Reform seem to be making ground on Plaid Cymru.

Clips

Jones: Starmer 'got that wrong'
Dodging the Doyle question
A slap back on 'be bold'
Sam’s on-air cabinet challenge
When hesitation becomes a problem

Transcript preview

First 90 seconds

  1. Anne McElvoy· Host0:00

    [upbeat music] Hello, good morning and welcome. It's Wednesday, April 22nd. It was bad. The question is, how bad? And is the cabinet beginning to distance itself from Keir Starmer, his decisions, and ultimately his future? My name is Anne McElvoy from Politico.

  2. Sam Coates· Host0:21

    And I'm Sam Coates of Sky News. It was quite the spectacle yesterday with Sir Ollie Robbins talking about the constant pressure from Number 10 to get the vetting done and the dismissive approach to security checks. But the important thing this morning for us on this podcast is, where does it leave everybody?

  3. Anne McElvoy· Host0:36

    And I was getting immediate reaction from the Chief Secretary to the Prime Minister in the Cabinet Office, Darren Jones, and hearing how he dealt with the questions about Keir Starmer's judgment in the whole Peter Mandelson affair, alongside remarks from other frontline figures, and you get the picture of a PM now under a lot of pressure and a feeling that this week's showdown moments, Sam, have really changed the light, uh, around how they're thinking about him too.

  4. Sam Coates· Host1:06

    We're very lucky to have that interview with Darren Jones. Another of the most striking things today, um, which is complicated for a podcast, is an image, and it's an image that will, should haunt Number 10 because it's the cover of this week's New Statesman, out today, this morning. It's just all black with an image of Keir Starmer in a spotlight and the words, "All Alone," for the

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