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The Independent UK
The Independent UK
Helen MacNamara and Cleo Watson

Keir Starmer’s terrible to-do list: MPs, cost of living, and looming local elections

His own MPs are turning on him, the civil service is raging at him, and at next week’s local elections, the public will have the opportunity to express their views on Keir Starmer and his Labour party. Being prime minister is always difficult – but it seems to be a particularly thorny job at the moment. The question is: whose fault is it?

Today, Helen and Cleo analyse how Starmer’s handling of the Mandelson vetting scandal has significantly weakened relations with the civil service, what a three-line whip on his own MPs reveals about No 10, and why picking a political strategy is imperative if he wants to maintain his hold on power.

New episodes of In The Room drop every week. Listen on Apple Podcasts and Spotify.

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