Ed Miliband urges Labour to move on after Starmer apologises to Streeting for hostile briefings from No 10

 

 From 2h ago

08.22 GMT

https://www.theguardian.com/politics/live/2025/nov/13/ed-miliband-wes-streeting-keir-starmer-briefing-news-updates-uk-politics-live

 

Ed Miliband urges Labour to move on after Starmer apologises to Streeting for hostile briefings from No 10

Good morning. In an interview around this time yesterday morning, Wes Streeting, the health secretary, said that if Keir Starmer were to ring him about the anti-Streeting briefing by Starmer allies reported by the Guardian and others on Tuesday, Streeting would reply: “Why are you bothering with this?” It was an attempt to play down a new episode of Labour turmoil that has turned out to counter-productive for Starmer, though helpful for Streeting.

 

But, by the time the two men did speak last night, the conversation took a different turn.

 

Starmer apologised to Streeting, journalists have been told. The conversation was short, and they did not discuss Morgan McSweeney, Starmer’s chief of staff, whom Starmer is now under pressure to sack. The pair also agreed they would speak again soon – which doesn’t mean much (they both attend cabinet, and have to speak to each other), but is the sort of thing No 10 briefers say about a meeting to make it sound cordial.

 

Here is our analysis by Eleni Courea, Jessical Elgot and Pippa Crerar as to what is going on.

 

Thursday briefing: Is Wes Streeting a traitor or a faithful?

Quoting Jess Elgot, she says:

 

Two months ago, Andy Burnham, the Manchester mayor, launched his own leadership manoeuvrings, and since then, there’s been continuing conversation around replacing Starmer, as if it’s inevitable that he won’t be in position to fight at the next election. This, Jess says, has led to a “paranoia” in No 10.

 

“People close to No 10 will say to me: ‘I actually don’t think they intended to put the spotlight on Wes. What they wanted to do was make it really clear that Keir is not going anywhere, that he will fight any attempt to dislodge him, that he is not the sort of person who will go meekly away, that he will fight.’”

 

But the briefing backfired, because it ended up looking like a hit-job on Streeting, who is the cabinet minister whose leadership ambitions are most blatant.

 

Ed Miliband, the energy secretary, has been doing interviews this morning, and he is urging the Labour party to calm down. This is what he told Sky News:

 

Look, I think the briefing has been bad, no question.

 

But my message to the Labour party, though, is quite simple today, which is we need to focus on the country, not ourselves.

 

We were given a historic mandate last July, a historic opportunity to change our country. And we have a historic responsibility.

 

I’ve been at this a long time. Governments going through days of turbulence. I was there during the Blair/Brown years. What gets you through, what sustains you, is your sense of mission, your values, what you believe in, who you stand up for. And that is what really, really matters.

 

I know that Keir will hate all this nonsense and we’re going to focus on the country and that’s what we need to do.

 

Here is the agenda for the day.

 

9.30am: NHS England publishes its monthly performance figures.

 

Morning: Wes Streeting, the health secretary, is on a visit in Liverpool.

 

Morning: Rachel Reeves, the chancellor, is on a visit where she is due to speak to the media.

 

11.30am: Downing Street holds a lobby briefing.

 

Morning: Keir Starmer is on a visit to promote the news that the government is going ahead with the construction of the UK’s first small modular nuclear reactors at Wylfa on Anglesey.

 

Noon: John Swinney, Scotland’s first minister, takes questions at Holyrood.

 

2pm: Mark Rowley, the Metropolitan police commissioner, and Sadiq Khan, the mayor of London, are questioned by the London assembly.

 

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