Ed Miliband Urges the Labour Party to Move On After Keir Starmer Offers Apology to Wes Streeting for Hostile Media Leaks
High-ranking Labour official Ed Miliband has called for the party to leave behind internal tensions after PM Sir Keir Starmer personally apologised to health minister Wes Streeting MP over negative media stories linked to Downing Street.
Major Events
- Miliband states the Prime Minister will fire the Downing Street official behind for briefing against Streeting if identified
- Miliband dismisses any leadership aspirations, saying his previous experience as Labour leader was the "best inoculation" against seeking the position again
- British economy increased by just 0.1% in the July-September period, hit by the JLR cyber-attack
Situation
The internal turmoil began after allegations emerged about critical background comments from Starmer's team targeting Streeting. Although early attempts to minimize the incident, the discussion between Starmer and the health minister apparently followed a more serious direction.
The Prime Minister said sorry to Wes Streeting, reporters have been told. The discussion was concise, and they did not discuss Morgan McSweeney, whom Starmer is now under growing pressure to sack.
Miliband's Reaction
In his early morning broadcast appearances, Miliband emphasized the need for the party to focus on country-wide priorities rather than internal disputes.
Look, I think the media briefing has been bad, no question.
But my call to the party today is straightforward, which is we need to focus on the country, not each other.
We were given a major mandate last summer, a historic chance to improve our nation. And we have a serious duty.
Economic News
Separately, government figures revealed the UK economy increased by just 0.1 percent in the third quarter, with the manufacturing industry particularly impacted by the recent Jaguar Land Rover hack.
The Day's Agenda
- Morning: The National Health Service releases its monthly statistics
- Today: Wes Streeting is visiting the Liverpool area
- Today: Rachel Reeves speaks to the journalists
- Late morning: Downing Street holds its regular media briefing
- Today: Keir Starmer promotes government plans for the Britain's pioneering nuclear power plant at Wylfa site on the island of Anglesey
