All posts tagged: Peerage

Andy Burnham Hands Peerage To Labour Figure Who Called On Starmer To Quit

Andy Burnham Hands Peerage To Labour Figure Who Called On Starmer To Quit

Published by Sam Flores

Andy Burnham has awarded a peerage and a government job to a senior Labour figure who called on Keir Starmer to resign. In a major shock, Scottish Labour leader Anas Sarwar is quitting Holyrood to enter the House of Lords. He will also become a minister at the revamped Department for Business, Innovation, Science and Trade. Sarwar’s elevation comes despite the fact he led Scottish Labour to a disastrous result at the Holyrood elections on May 7. The party came a distant second to the SNP, and saw their number of MSPs slump from 20 to just 17. However, Sarwar did break ranks in February to call on Starmer to resign as prime minister in the wake of the Peter Mandelson scandal. The disgraced former UK ambassador to Washington is accused of passing market sensitive information to the convicted paedophile Jeffrey Epstein when he was business secretary between 2008 and 2010. Sarwar said: “The distraction needs to end and the leadership in Downing Street has to change. “It is so obvious that we desperately need …

What does Sadiq Khan’s peerage mean for his future as London Mayor?

What does Sadiq Khan’s peerage mean for his future as London Mayor?

Published by Sam Flores

There is no rule preventing Sir Sadiq from sitting in the House of Lords and remaining in the job he has held for a decade. Ben Houchen, who has been the Tory mayor of Tees Valley since 2017, has sat in the second chamber for three years. Conservative London Assembly member Shaun Bailey, who ran as mayor in 2021, is also a peer. In a fiery City Hall exchange with Lord Bailey in 2022, Sir Sadiq described it as “proof, if it was ever needed, that we should abolish the House of Lords”. Mayor of London Sir Sadiq Khan with his wife Saadiya Ahmad in the royal box at Wimbledon PA Will Sadiq Khan run as London Mayor again? Sir Sadiq’s team has indicted that he will stay on as mayor until at least his third term ends in 2028. Sir Sadiq has described his current job as “the best job, not just in politics but in the world”. However, it has come with some personal costs. Threats to his safety mean that since 2017 …

Sadiq Khan torn apart over peerage after calling for House of Lords to be abolished | Politics | News

Sadiq Khan torn apart over peerage after calling for House of Lords to be abolished | Politics | News

Published by Sam Flores

Sir Sadiq Khan has come under fire after being handed a peerage despite previously calling for the House of Lords to be abolished. The Labour London Mayor called for the upper chamber to be scrapped in 2022 but is now set to take his seat on the red benches after being made a peer by outgoing PM Sir Keir Starmer. Reform UK’s London mayoral candidate Laila Cunningham said: “Sadiq Khan wanted the House of Lords abolished. Now he’ll happily take a seat there as Lord Khan. What changed? Your principles, or your title? Isn’t being Mayor of London enough of a title for you? And will you now resign?” Sir Sadiq is among 16 new political appointments made by the Prime Minister as he prepares to leave office, while Lib Dem leader Sir Ed Davey has made five nominations and Tory leader Kemi Badenoch has made three. The Conservatives also hit out at Sir Sadiq’s peerage, with Shadow Minister for London Gareth Bacon saying: “Sadiq Khan has been a disastrous Mayor of London. Under his …

Keir Starmer Could Have Blocked Peerage For Ex-Spin Doctor

Keir Starmer Could Have Blocked Peerage For Ex-Spin Doctor

Published by Sam Flores

Keir Starmer could have blocked the peerage of his former spin doctor over his links to a convicted paedophile even after it was announced, it has emerged. The prime minister is at the centre of a fresh crisis over his decision to put Matthew Doyle into the House of Lords last month. On Tuesday, Labour suspended Doyle, who was the No.10 director of communications until last March, after it emerged he campaigned for Sean Morton, who had been charged with having indecent images of children. Six months later, Morton, a former Labour councillor, admitted the charges. Doyle’s peerage was announced on December 10, and the Sunday Times revealed he campaigned for Morton on December 27. He formally became Baron Doyle of Great Barford on January 8 in a process known as having his “letters patent sealed”. Starmer came under fire at prime minister’s questions, with Tory leader Kemi Badenoch accusing him of “stuffing government with hypocrites and paedophile apologists”. Downing Street sources admitted that the PM became aware of the full extent of Doyle’s links …

Starmer Hammered In Fiery PMQs For Giving Peerage To ‘Paedophile Apologist’

Starmer Hammered In Fiery PMQs For Giving Peerage To ‘Paedophile Apologist’

Published by Sam Flores

Keir Starmer was accused of filling his government “with paedophile apologists” by opposition leaders during a brutal prime minister’s questions today. Starmer’s former comms chief Lord Doyle had the Labour whip removed on Tuesday over his links to a convicted sex offender. Doyle campaigned for a former Labour councillor, Sean Morton, after he had been charged with child sex offences in 2017. Though this was reported late last year, the prime minister still promoted his former aide to the upper chamber just two weeks ago. Doyle’s suspension from Labour comes days after fellow peer, Lord Mandelson, quit the party as the depth of his friendship with convicted padeophile Jeffrey Epstein emerged. The PM appointed the former Labour grandee to be the UK’s ambassador to the US last year though Mandelson was sacked in September. The Doyle scandal adds to the mounting public anger over Mandelson, and puts even more pressure on Starmer who is fighting to save his job. Conservative leader Kemi Badenoch torched the prime minister over the two incidents in PMQs, saying: “The …

Politics Home Article | Keir Starmer Wants Peter Mandelson To Be Stripped Of His Peerage

Politics Home Article | Keir Starmer Wants Peter Mandelson To Be Stripped Of His Peerage

Published by Sam Flores

Peter Mandelson resigned his membership of the Labour Party due to further evidence emerging of his relationship with Jeffrey Epstein (Alamy) 3 min read3 hr Prime Minister Keir Starmer believes Peter Mandelson should be stripped of his peerage due to his links to the late convicted paedophile Jeffrey Epstein. The prime minister’s spokesperson told reporters on Monday that Starmer “believes that Peter Mandelson should not be a member of the House of Lords or use the title”, after the latest release of files by the US Department of Justice on Friday suggested further connections between the peer and Epstein.  The documents suggest Epstein – the American financier who was convicted of child sex offences, rape and human trafficking before taking his own life in prison in 2019 – made $75,000 (£55,000) in payments to Mandelson in three separate $25,000 transactions in 2003 and 2004. Mandelson has denied these allegations and said he has “no record or recollection” of these payments. Mandelson resigned his membership of the Labour Party over the weekend, …

Is Peerage Removal Possible For Mandelson Amid Epstein Links

Is Peerage Removal Possible For Mandelson Amid Epstein Links

Published by Sam Flores

Peter Mandelson’s role in the House of Lords is facing fresh scrutiny after documents revealed new details about his long-standing friendship with the late paedophile Jeffrey Epstein. The US Department of Justice unveiled more than three million new documents in a huge dossier over the weekend, exposing Epstein’s expansive connections to the global elite. Lord Mandelson, one of the architects of the New Labour movement, was already sacked as Keir Starmer’s US ambassador last September over his links to Epstein. The new revelations led Mandelson to resign from the Labour Party altogether on Sunday night. He remains a member of the House of Lords as a life peer, though he is on a leave of absence, and a member of the Privy Council which advises the Royal Family. Critics are now calling for him to be kicked out of the House of Lords altogether – though that’s easier said than done. Why Are There Calls For Mandelson To Lose His Peerage? The DoJ documents appeared to show Mandelson received around $75,000 from Epstein over the …