‘It beggars belief’: Starmer insists he was not told about Mandelson’s vetting fail Politics Sir Keir Starmer has insisted he was not told that Lord Peter Mandelson failed a security vetting before telling MPs that “due process” around his appointment as US ambassador was followed. Starmer told MPs on Monday that he asked Whitehall officials to review whether due process was followed last September on whether the security vetting [...]
Tech bosses line up for Cabinet under new Whitehall plans Tech Hundreds of business leaders, tech executives and former military figures are set to be trained for senior roles in government under a new initiative aimed at overhauling Whitehall. The programme, led by the Centre for Government Reform, will target candidates from outside Westminster and prepare them to take on positions such as cabinet ministers and [...]
We talked to 12 permanent secretaries about how to rewire the state – here’s what they said Opinion The path to an integrated digital state must be problem-led, not tech led, says Yatin Mahandru The UK government has an ambitious vision – a ‘rewiring of the British state’ powered by digital and AI. Leadership is clear that “no person’s substantive time should be spent on a task where digital or AI can do [...]
MPs urge government to escape ‘regulation by default’ March 18, 2026 Ministers should overhaul the government’s approach to regulation as adding new rules has become an “easy” tool, according to a report backed by MPs from across the political spectrum. Researchers at Re:State, a non-partisan think tank focusing on growth and Whitehall governance, said justification for new red tape should have a higher bar and be [...]
‘What do they have to hide?’ Ministers must not scrap regulatory watchdog March 16, 2026 The Regulatory Policy Committee keeps a close eye on government red tape, and scrapping it would be a serious mistake – says Andrew Griffith. Red tape is strangling British business. A survey just out from the Federation of Small Businesses has found small firms and entrepreneurs collectively spend 379 million hours a year complying with [...]
We have created the worst possible system of government February 18, 2026 Keir Starmer does not appear to have many original thoughts (aides say he doesn’t read books while the PM himself told a baffled journalist that he doesn’t have dreams) so it’s no surprise that one of the few interesting things he’s ever said was in fact first uttered by one of his predecessors. Boris Johnson [...]
Starmer hands police details on Mandelson alleged leaks to Epstein February 3, 2026 Keir Starmer has shared government assessments on Lord Peter Mandelson’s alleged leaking of sensitive information to Jefrrey Epstein with the police after it was confirmed that several parties, including Nigel Farage’s Reform UK, had referred the matter to the authorities. The Cabinet Office shared details on emails from the former business secretary to the paedophile [...]
Whitehall in talks with City for non-dom reform after exodus January 11, 2026 Whitehall is locked in talks with City bigwigs as the Labour government seeks to attract wealthy investors to the UK following the tumultuous fallout to the scrapping of the non-dom regime. The non-dom status was changed by Chancellor Rachel Reeves in the Autumn Budget 2024 and was swapped for a residence-based system that taxes all [...]
Starmer promised to ‘rewire the state’ so why is the civil service bigger? January 6, 2026 Civil service headcount has reached a 20-year high, bigger than it was during Brexit or Covid. Yet more proof that this Prime Minister’s only belief is in bigger government, says Eliot Wilson When Sir Keir Starmer appointed a new cabinet secretary and head of the civil service at the end of 2024, he made a [...]
Tears, scandal, c*ck-ups and conspiracy: Westminster’s worst moments of 2025 December 23, 2025 Westminster never disappoints. When Keir Starmer came into Downing Street, he promised that politics would “tread more lightly” on the lives of everyday people. He was likely referring to the farce of Partygate, leadership battles and political blunders under successive Tory governments. But Labour have got caught up in less than pleasant situations of their [...]