Newslinks for Thursday 13th November 2025

Starmer and key aides left even less secure after briefing war over leadership

“Wes Streeting was leaving an Armistice Day commemoration in his constituency on Tuesday afternoon when he became aware that Downing Street was gunning for him. Senior government figures claimed that the health secretary had 50 frontbenchers who were willing to step down if the budget was received badly and Sir Keir Starmer refused to stand down of his own volition. In a series of briefings to The Times and others, senior allies of Starmer made clear that he was going nowhere and would not resign in the event of a leadership challenge. Any suggestion otherwise was the politics of “fantasy”. The messaging was intended as a show of strength, a bid to see off a prospective post-budget coup before it had any chance to gather momentum. One senior figure said that it was simply a straight answer to a straight question. However, it turned out to be a spectacular own goal just over a fortnight before the budget, one that leaves Starmer in an even weaker position. That is in no small part because of the furious response from the health secretary.” – The Times

• Streeting goes to war with Number 10 – Daily Telegraph
• How Keir Starmer is facing plots from across the Labour party – FT
• Toxic briefing that backfired on Keir: How No 10’s bid to block a Streeting left him quipping I’m a Faithful not a Traitor! – Daily Mail
• Pressure grows on Starmer to sack chief of staff over briefing row – Guardian
• ‘F**king deranged’: How No 10’s bid to squash Streeting backfired – The i
• Morgan McSweeney must go: Cabinet ministers demand sacking of Starmer’s chief of staff – Daily Express
• Starmer turns on staff after briefing backlash – Daily Telegraph

Meanwhile… Streeting and Badenoch strengthened by clumsy Downing Street tactics

“Wes Streeting has launched a scathing attack on Downing Street, branding it “toxic” and “juvenile” in the wake of a briefing war that has threatened Sir Keir Starmer’s leadership. Allies of the Prime Minister sought to bolster his position by briefing the press that he would resist any coup attempt, but the move backfired spectacularly. On Wednesday, a frustrated Sir Keir ordered an investigation into the source of the briefings, with his spokesman suggesting that those responsible could face the sack” – Daily Express

• Streeting’s ambition is obvious and No 10 has played into his hands – The Times
• Streeting accuses striking doctors’ union of ‘behaving like cartel’ – Daily Telegraph
• Wes Streeting says BMA is ‘morally reprehensible’ as strike looms – The Times
• Allies of Starmer warn coup plotters if they oust the PM it will trigger a General Election that would see the party annihilated – Daily Mail

Comment

• “Wes Streeting, the PM’s ambitious rival whose mother was born in jail… and whose gran shared a prison cell with Christine Keeler” – Andrew Pierce, Daily Mail
• Inside the Wes Streeting plot – Tim Shipman, Spectator
• I have witnessed a Labour feeding frenzy before. Starmer is finished – Tom Harris, Daily Telegraph
• How Starmer could be ousted by his own MPs – and who could replace him – The i
• How would a Labour leadership challenge work and how safe is Starmer? – Guardian
• Starmer the dead cat is down to his last life in Commons farce – Tom Peck, The Times
• If Labour were a game show, they’d all be Traitors – Tim Stanley, Daily Telegraph

Today

How Badenoch is making winning PMQs a habit

Robert Jenrick refuses to apologise for AI clown video of David Lammy

“Robert Jenrick has refused to apologise for posting an AI-generated video of David Lammy dressed as a clown in parliament, saying it was “utterly ridiculous” to claim it was racist. The shadow justice secretary said that accusations of bigotry over the video on X were a “disgusting smear”, telling the Labour MP who made the complaint, Uma Kumaran, to “get a grip”. Jenrick said there were no racial connotations in the clown video, despite critics saying he was reinforcing “historic racist tropes”. He told Times Radio: “No, none whatsoever. In fact, it’s a disgusting smear against me. We can’t have a situation where clowns are racist. Is that what we’re really saying?” He added: “I don’t know this member of parliament, to be honest. I’ve never heard of them before they made this so-called complaint. But it seems completely and utterly ridiculous. And it says a lot about them, right?  Instead of actually focusing on the real issue here, that prisoners, including sexual offenders, are being released onto our streets who should not be there, posing a danger to the public, they’re worried about a video, a graphic on Twitter. I mean, get a grip.” – The Times

BBC to apologise to President Trump over Panorama’s breach of editorial standards

“The BBC is prepared to formally apologise to Donald Trump after he threatened to sue the corporation for $1bn (£760m) after it doctored one of his speeches. The US president accused the broadcaster of “reckless disregard for the truth”, after The Telegraph revealed a Panorama documentary edited his speech to make it appear that he had incited the 2021 Capitol Hill riot. Tim Davie, the BBC director-general who resigned on Sunday, has since blamed “enemies” of the corporation for stoking the row and declared the broadcaster “the very best of society”. The Telegraph understands the BBC is now ready to apologise, with its lawyers working on the wording of their response to the US president. Senior news executives addressed staff on Wednesday but said they were unable to discuss the Panorama broadcast for legal reasons. Pressure continues to mount on the BBC ahead of Mr Trump’s Friday deadline for it to issue a retraction, apologise and compensate him “for the harm caused”. In an interview with Fox News, the president said he felt he had “an obligation” to proceed with the case, adding: “They defrauded the public and they’ve admitted it.”- Daily Telegraph

• BBC Bunker. Tim Davie slammed for claiming BBC’s failings are being ‘weaponised’ as clock ticks on Trump’s $1billion lawsuit threat – The Sun
• BBC prepares to grovel to Donald Trump today before President’s billion-dollar lawsuit deadline expires – Daily Mail

Comment

• The BBC and the death of ‘lanyardism’ – Joseph Dinnage, CapX
• Just as a goldfish in a bowl does not know that it is a goldfish, so those poor indoctrinated Left-wing clones at the BBC have no idea they’re deeply, unshakably biased – Peter Hitchens, Daily Mail
• How to fix the BBC – Rod Liddle, Spectator
• The BBC’s blinkered allies are almost comically delusional – Michael Deacon, Daily Telegraph

Reeves’ hidden double whammy inside her pension reforms

Rachel Reeves’ plans to limit a tax break on pension contributions could create an “unexpected additional cost” for taxpayers on top of preventing savers from increasing their retirement pots, experts have warned. If the chancellor goes ahead with a plan to reduce the tax breaks employees and employers receive in this month’s Budget, the Government could actually end up paying more to top up public sector pensions. The proposals, first reported by The Times, would raise up to £2bn a year by placing a £2,000 annual limit on the amount of salary that can be sacrificed into pensions without incurring National Insurance (NI) payments. There is currently no limit. Employers benefit from lower employer NI contributions when staff use such salary sacrifice schemes, because the tax is only applied to pay left over after pension contributions. Tom Selby, director at pensions platform AJ Bell, warned there would be “knock-on impacts” on the costs borne by employers through higher NI payments if a limit is introduced, “including in the public sector” – which is primarily funded by taxes.” – The i

• Economy slows as Britain braces for Budget tax rises – Daily Telegraph
• Rachel Reeves to cut tax benefits for workers using salary sacrifice schemes to buy bikes – Guardian
• Prevent Pain Now.  Everything you need to do in the next two weeks to protect your finances ahead of Rachel Reeves’ Budget – The Sun

News in Brief

• I changed my mind about killing myself– Paul Sagar, Unherd
• Winston Churchill was not Tony Blair – Patrick Porter, The Critic
• The Waspi women don’t deserve a penny – Maxwell Marlow, Spectator
• Slogans won’t get Britain building again – Sam Dumitrui, CapX