{"id":413912,"date":"2026-02-08T02:55:15","date_gmt":"2026-02-08T02:55:15","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/uk\/413912\/"},"modified":"2026-02-08T02:55:15","modified_gmt":"2026-02-08T02:55:15","slug":"with-morgan-mcsweeney-on-the-brink-no-wonder-starmers-losing-sleep","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/uk\/413912\/","title":{"rendered":"With Morgan McSweeney on the brink, no wonder Starmer\u2019s losing sleep"},"content":{"rendered":"

Meeting Labour MPs at Chequers on Thursday night as part of his charm offensive, Sir Keir Starmer was \u201cfull of bonhomie\u201d that seemed curiously at odds with his party\u2019s bleak political fortunes. <\/p>\n

Representatives from Yorkshire and the Humber and the north east arrived at the prime minister\u2019s estate in Buckinghamshire with friends, families and staff for an evening of rice, chilli and wine. It felt more like a last supper than a political reset. Starmer spent the evening \u201csmiling and hugging people\u201d \u2014 including Rachael Maskell, the MP who only hours earlier had called for him to resign. <\/p>\n

He also made a speech, explaining once again how furious he was with Peter Mandelson<\/a>, who is being investigated by the Metropolitan Police over allegations of misconduct in public office amid claims he passed on market-sensitive government information to the convicted sex offender Jeffrey Epstein. Mandelson denies acting with criminal intent or for financial gain.<\/p>\n

The revelations sent shockwaves through Westminster, and on Wednesday Starmer admitted that he knew Mandelson\u2019s friendship with Epstein had continued after his child sex conviction yet still appointed him as the UK\u2019s ambassador to Washington. Mandelson has since resigned from the Labour Party and is being stripped of his peerage. <\/p>\n

\"British<\/p>\n

Starmer and Mandelson in Washington last February<\/p>\n

CARL COURT<\/p>\n

The PM said: \u201cThe last couple of days have been really tough. I\u2019m as angry and frustrated as you are because all of us came into politics to make a difference to people\u2019s lives.<\/p>\n

\u201cWe\u2019ve all got a shared endeavour, which is to prove that politics is a force for good and can make a difference \u2014 and that really matters.<\/p>\n

\u201cBut not everybody acts in that way. And I am beyond angry that Peter Mandelson did not come into politics with that same spirit that we have.<\/p>\n

\u201cWe must not lose what brought us here, which is the politics of service and making a difference. Because that behaviour [of Mandelson] challenges what we stand for and that is corrosive and a challenge. We must rise to that challenge\u201d.<\/p>\n

For many in the room, the words were of little comfort. <\/p>\n

\u201cAfter the catalogue of U-turns and poor judgment, I am not sure rice and chilli and a glass of wine is going to keep him as PM,\u201d said one. \u201cMany of us have lost trust in him and No 10. They have managed to trash the reputation of the Labour government in 18 months.\u201d<\/p>\n

The following day, donors met Starmer at the country retreat to deliver a \u201crobust message\u201d. One source said he would have been left with the impression they had \u201clost faith\u201d in him. <\/p>\n

\"Prime<\/p>\n

Many in the cabinet think it\u2019s a matter of time before Starmer is toppled<\/p>\n

SUNDAY TIMES PHOTOGRAPHER RICHARD POHLE<\/p>\n

Meanwhile, a growing number of MPs and peers, including Baroness Harman, the former Labour deputy leader, are publicly warning the prime minister the scandal will \u201cfinish\u201d him off unless he changes course with a reset of his No 10 team. They want him to sack Morgan McSweeney, his chief of staff, who was instrumental in the decision to appoint Mandelson. <\/p>\n

Privately, cabinet ministers are equally scathing. One described the crisis as \u201cterminal\u201d. Another said: \u201cMost of the cabinet think it\u2019s done and it\u2019s a question of when, not if, the prime minister is toppled.\u201d <\/p>\n

A third added: \u201cThe royal family are much more ruthless than the Labour Party. If they had been in charge they would have seen the existential threat to them and acted [as they did with Andrew Mountbatten-Windsor].\u201d<\/p>\n

Starmer, the most unpopular prime minister in history, is facing the prospect of an electoral meltdown in May and he as lost control of backbenchers who torpedoed his economic and legislative agenda. Some are speculating that he could throw in the towel and be replaced by an interim prime minister. They likened his mood to May 2021 when Labour lost the Hartlepool by-election and he told aides he was going to quit. <\/p>\n

Worried MPs say he is not sleeping and they have recently noticed him online on his phone in the early hours. Amid claims his anger at Mandelson is turning inwards, allies say he is a man of \u201cmoral probity\u201d and is \u201cbeating himself\u201d up for the mess he finds himself in. \u201cWhat has he got left on his side?\u201d asked one concerned MP. \u201cHe must know he is a dead man walking.\u201d <\/p>\n

\"Downing<\/p>\n

Morgan McSweeney outside the Lady Mayor\u2019s Banquet in December<\/p>\n

CHRIS J RATCLIFFE<\/p>\n

McSweeney, often described as Mandelson\u2019s prot\u00e9g\u00e9, is said to be \u201ceven more shaken\u201d than Starmer by events. A government insider said that even though he is a \u201ctough character\u201d he is \u201cabsolutely knackered\u201d and his \u201cmood is very low\u201d. <\/p>\n

Since Starmer entered Downing Street, McSweeney<\/a> has become a lightning conductor for dissent within the party and has been urged by friends to leave No 10 \u201con his own terms\u201d. <\/p>\n

It is understood he was planning to leave his role in September and be replaced by Darren Jones before the PM persuaded him to stay.<\/p>\n

Westminster is now awash with rumours that McSweeney is on his way out \u2014 a suggestion No 10 claims is \u201cnot right\u201d.<\/p>\n

One source suggested the chief of staff had already agreed to leave next month after the Gorton & Denton by-election, while others say his departure could be imminent. <\/p>\n

\u2022 Mandelson has inadvertently exposed frivolous system of government<\/a><\/p>\n

\u201cMcSweeney will leave No 10 when it is the best time for Keir for him to go,\u201d said one ally. \u201cHe will be sitting in Scotland feeling terrible that he has let his boss down but you do not sack your most effective bodyguard at a time like this.\u201d Another countered that they expected McSweeney to be \u201cthrown to the wolves\u201d like a \u201csacrificial lamb\u201d in the coming days in the \u201chope the government can survive another week\u201d. <\/p>\n

There is also speculation that Sir Chris Wormald, the cabinet secretary, will soon leave No 10 as part of a wider shake-up. <\/p>\n

\"Sir<\/p>\n

Wormald, who was responsible for the vetting process for Mandelson\u2019s appointment, has been the subject of several negative media briefings from senior figures in government who have accused him of a lack of dynamism and excess caution. <\/p>\n

On Saturday, Gordon Brown, the former prime minister, warned that Starmer<\/a>\u2019s situation was \u201cserious\u201d and he had been \u201ctoo slow to do the right things\u201d to clean up politics. He described him as a \u201cman of integrity\u201d who made the \u201cwrong decision\u201d and urged MPs to stick with him. <\/p>\n

Soon after, the Metropolitan Police confirmed that they had concluded their search of Mandelson\u2019s<\/a> addresses in Wiltshire and north London as part of their investigation. Mandelson\u2019s position is understood to be that he has not acted in any way criminally and that he was not motivated by financial gain.<\/p>\n

He has previously expressed his regret for his continued association with Epstein and apologised \u201cunequivocally to the women and the girls who suffered\u201d.<\/p>\n

With Starmer at the lowest point of his premiership, his rivals are circling and chatter about a potential leadership challenge has got louder. Downing Street fears it has lost control as it is forced to release hundreds of thousands of emails, messages and files involving communications between senior ministers and Mandelson. <\/p>\n

There are discussions among key party figures about how to remove the PM. Options being considered include members of the cabinet going to Starmer to tell him his time is up, or a letter signed by enough Labour MPs to make it clear he no longer has their confidence. <\/p>\n

A frontbencher is also said to be on the brink of resigning, which could trigger a stalking horse, or even a genuine, challenge.<\/p>\n

The frontrunners include Angela Rayner, who is yet to settle her tax affairs after she was forced to resign as deputy prime minister in September for underpaying stamp duty on her \u00a3800,000 flat in Hove, and Wes Streeting, the health secretary. <\/p>\n

Other potential contenders include Lucy Powell, Labour\u2019s deputy leader, and Al Carns, the ex special forces colonel and junior defence minister. The dark horse is John Healey<\/a>, the defence secretary, who is being spoken of enthusiastically by some MPs and ministers as a possible caretaker leader. <\/p>\n

Andy Burnham, mayor of Greater Manchester, has also \u201cnot given up hope\u201d of returning to Westminster. Allies believe the Labour Party\u2019s National Executive Committee (NEC) would not block him again as they did after he requested permission last month to stand in the Gorton & Denton by-election. <\/p>\n

However, there is still a question over whether any of these candidates could unite the party and transform its electoral fortunes \u2014 and some MPs believe the status quo will limp on until at least the local elections in May and possibly beyond.<\/p>\n

With Starmer\u2019s premiership apparently in its death throes, Labour has been plunged into civil war as rivals openly brief against one another. Rayner\u2019s allies have been accused of trying to weaponise Streeting\u2019s relationship with Mandelson. The health secretary\u2019s allies have accused her team of \u201cexploiting\u201d the Epstein scandal for her own personal gain \u2014 a move they describe as \u201csordid\u201d.<\/p>\n

Rayner is understood to be frustrated that Starmer did not take heed of her warnings not to appoint Mandelson because of his links to Epstein and relayed the story last week in an expletive laden rant. \u201cI f***ing told him,\u201d she said.<\/p>\n

\"Jeffrey<\/p>\n

An undated photograph of Epstein and Mandelson from the latest Epstein files<\/p>\n

A supporter of Streeting said he was \u201cbullish\u201d about the prospect of personal messages between him and Mandelson being disclosed. \u201cThere\u2019s only a handful \u2014 including when Wes asked for advice ahead of a call with his US counterpart, and Mandelson passed him onto the deputy ambassador. His relationship with Mandelson is wildly overstated. They only met and spoke three to four times a year.\u201d<\/p>\n

Pat McFadden, the notoriously deadpan work and pensions secretary, will have his work cut out on Sunday as he is sent out on the airwaves to defend the prime minister. He follows Nick Thomas-Symonds, the Cabinet Office minister, who was parachuted in to lead Wednesday\u2019s debate on the release of key documents relating to the vetting process surrounding Mandelson\u2019s appointment, after his colleague Darren Jones phoned in sick. <\/p>\n

McFadden will want to talk about the work the government is doing to clean up politics. However, that is unlikely to do much to answer the critics of the prime minister, who is already braced for an upset in the by-election in two weeks\u2019 time \u2014 the next perilous moment for his premiership. <\/p>\n

\u2022 Angela Rayner \u2018told Keir Starmer not to appoint Mandelson\u2019<\/a><\/p>\n

Luke Tryl, director of the think tank More in Common UK, said: \u201cEven before the events of the past week the Gorton & Denton by-election looked to be an uphill struggle for the Labour Party and their anaemic poll ratings, but the perfect storm of local fury over the blocking of Andy Burnham<\/a> contrasted with the Peter Mandelson scandal, which has had high cut-through in focus groups, and questions about the PM\u2019s judgment have only bolstered the turn away from the traditional mainstream to Reform and the Greens.\u201d<\/p>\n

Starmer has little to smile about this weekend as he and his advisers hunker down in Downing Street for their latest crisis talks. For now they are saying, in public at least, that he will fight on. <\/p>\n

But many have already counted him out.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"Meeting Labour MPs at Chequers on Thursday night as part of his charm offensive, Sir Keir Starmer was…\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":413913,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[2],"tags":[49,50,51,47,52,48],"class_list":["post-413912","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","category-headlines","tag-headlines","tag-news","tag-top-news","tag-top-stories","tag-topnews","tag-topstories"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/413912","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=413912"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/413912\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/413913"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=413912"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=413912"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=413912"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}