Ed Miliband Calls on the Labour Party to Look Ahead Following Starmer Says Sorry to Streeting for Negative Backgrounding
High-ranking Labour figure Ed Miliband has urged the party to move beyond party disputes after leader Keir Starmer directly said sorry to Health Secretary Wes Streeting MP over damaging briefings coming from Number 10.
Major Events
- Miliband states Starmer will fire the No 10 source responsible for targeting Streeting if discovered
- The Energy Secretary dismisses future leadership ambitions, declaring his past time as leader was the "strongest protection" against wanting the position again
- British economic growth grew by just 0.1% in the third quarter, hit by the Jaguar Land Rover hack
Situation
The political turmoil erupted after allegations circulated about hostile background comments from the Prime Minister's team targeting the Health Secretary. Although early attempts to minimize the situation, the conversation between the PM and Streeting apparently followed a more serious direction.
The Prime Minister said sorry to Wes Streeting, journalists have been informed. The exchange was brief, and they did not talk about the chief of staff, whom Starmer is now under growing pressure to dismiss.
The Energy Secretary's Reaction
In his morning media appearances, Ed Miliband highlighted the need for the party to focus on national priorities rather than internal divisions.
Look, I think the backgrounding has been bad, without doubt.
But my advice to the Labour members now is quite simple, which is we need to focus on the country, not ourselves.
We were given a major victory last summer, a major opportunity to change our country. And we have a major responsibility.
Growth News
Meanwhile, official statistics revealed the British economy expanded by just 0.1 percent in the July-September period, with the production sector especially affected by the recently reported JLR cyber-attack.
The Day's Schedule
- Morning: NHS England publishes its latest statistics
- Today: The Health Secretary visits the Liverpool area
- Today: The Chancellor makes comments to the media
- 11.30am: Downing Street conducts its regular lobby briefing
- Today: The Prime Minister announces government plans for the UK's first nuclear power plant at Wylfa on the island of Anglesey
