Keir Starmer shames the House (Image: House of Commons/UK Parliament/PA Wire)
It was left to speaker Lindsay Hoyle – a Labour man himself – to give us everything we needed to know about this week’s Prime Minister’s Questions when he wearily told the House: “Let’s listen to the answer even if you don’t believe you’re getting one.” And indeed it really is time to refer PMQs to Trading Standards officers because it should correctly be renamed Prime Minister’s Evasions.
Starmer simply refuses to answer the questions of the Leader of the Opposition. Now, PMQs has always been replete with weasel words and political feints and deflections – this Prime Minister is different, he simply flatly refuses to answer a straight question. Oh, except the embarrassingly planted and stage-managed questions from his own side of course… which he always responds to with a giveaway “I’m glad my Right Honourable Friend has asked me that…” before telling us how milk, honey and unicorns are just around the corner.
And if all that adds up to any sort of democratic accountability I’m a banana.
Starmer shames the house.
And frankly that takes some doing.
Interestingly those hacks and MPs who lingered a minute or so following the final whistle of this week’s PMQs would have witnessed Shadow Leader of the House Jesse Norman putting forward a point of order, highlighting Starmer’s utter contempt for the political norms of British democracy.
Norman said: “This House and the viewing public have just been treated to the very unfortunate spectacle of a Prime Minister who is completely unwilling to answer questions from the Leader of the Opposition.
“So much so that he completely changes the subject.
“Could you give us some guidance as to whether you may be able to correct answers when they are wildly inappropriate.”
Poor Lindsay could only shrug and bluster “I’m not responsible for the answers given by ministers,” but you rather suspected the RHM for Chorley, a rigorous Parliamentarian rather wished he was.
Starmer’s contempt for the democratic Parliamentary process – oh, and by extension that’s contempt for you and me – was jaw-dropping.
Is jaw-dropping. He was blasted by Norman (and an incandescent Lindsay Hoyle) earlier this week for releasing Britain’s nuclear defence strategy to journalists and Govan dockers before he told elected MPs.
Today Kemi Badenoch, admittedly two weeks too late, asked a crystal clear opening question at PMQs about Starmer’s U-turn on winter fuel payments asking “how many will get it back?”
The Prime Minister ignored the question and started banging on about the triple lock, which of course Badenoch had never mentioned.
Her next question – a very important one to millions of families – was simply “will the Government keep the two-child benefit cap?”
Starmer refused to answer but blathered-on about driving down child poverty. Er, which he could do by lifting the benefit cap. But I guess we’ll never know.
Third up, Kemi rather surprised herself with an actually quite brilliant question simply asking the millionaire socialist what he truly believed in.
Sir Kier immediately referred to his notes, prepared no doubt by Morgan McSweeney, to check what it was he actually did truly believe in, this week.
The humour was not lost on the house and nor should it have been on the nation.
Elsewhere the hammy, panto-style, audience plant, brown-nosing from Starmer’s own MPs continued to act as an insult to democracy and all of us voters.
Does he really take us for mugs?
Of course he does.
You could see some of his hapless placemen visibly wince as they spat out parts of their own integrity with the scripted questions.
Most awful was perhaps Graeme Downie (Lab Dunfermline and Dollar). I may not have caught his words exactly but I think they were “just how marvellous are you Mr Starmer and just how many amazing things will the Labour Party do in Scotland?”
Gosh one would never imagine there was Scottish Parliamentary by-election for the Hamilton, Larkhall and Stonehouse constituency tomorrow.
PMQ’s should be, and indeed used to be, a cornerstone of Britain’s Parliamentary accountability.
Today it is lies, damned lies and Starmer’s evasion.
Keir Starmer humiliated by Greggs sausage roll after Madame Tussauds verdict
Madame Tussauds says it won’t be making a waxwork of Keir Starmer (Image: Getty)
Sir Keir Starmer has been snubbed by Madame Tussauds, which has said it won’t be making a waxwork of Britain’s latest prime minister. The world-famous waxwork museum said that because it can take up to a year to create a figure, each one has to remain “popular and relevant” with the public for five to 10 years. News of the decision comes after Madame Tussauds unveiled its latest wax attraction – a Greggs sausage roll.
A major tourist attraction in London since the 19th century, Madame Tussauds has modelled most prime ministers, positioning them in front of a replica of the door to No.10 Downing Street. The last PM to feature was Boris Johnson, who according to the Metro was first sculpted in wax in 2009 when he was the mayor of London.
Boris Johnson is the last PM to be crafted in wax by Madame Tussauds (Image: Getty)
A spokesperson for Madame Tussauds, explaining the decision not to include Sir Keir, said: “We have no current plans to make a figure of the British Prime Minister.
“As is the case with the world of modern celebrity, the political landscape is fast-moving and unpredictable, so we really have to consider our figure choices carefully.
“It can take up to a year for us to create a figure – from initial measurements to the unveil on attraction floor – so we expect each one to remain popular and relevant with the public for five to 10 years.”
No.10 told the Metro that the decision was a matter for Madame Tussauds and it wouldn’t be commenting.
Sir Keir isn’t the first PM not to feature. In 2008, the wax museum asked the public if the then-prime minister Gordon Brown deserved a waxwork. A staggering 83.8% of those who responded said no.
Britain has seen a succession of prime ministers come and go since David Cameron stepped down in the wake of the Brexit vote in 2016.
He was followed by Theresa May, who was PM for three years and 12 days. Mr Johnson was prime minister for three years 45 days before Liz Truss entered Downing Street.
She resigned in the wake of her mini-budget after 49 days – becoming Britain’s shortest-serving prime minister.
Rishi Sunak followed Ms Truss, leading the country for one year and 255 days before Sir Keir won the keys to Downing Street at the General Election in July 2024.
Besides its museum in central London, Madame Tussauds has attractions in Blackpool and New York.
Late last month, the museum announced the return of I’m A Celebrity… Get Me Out Of Here! presenters Ant McPartlin and Declan Donnelly’s wax figures.
The Geordie duo, popularly known as Ant & Dec, sat for the revamp of their wax figures, which have been updated with a current, up-to-date look.
