Latest news with #MorganMcSweeney
The Independent
19-07-2025
- Politics
- The Independent
How Keir Starmer's crackdown on his own MPs could backfire – and even help Jeremy Corbyn
The Labour Party will start the Commons summer recess next Tuesday in an unhappy place. MPs were already drifting off from Westminster on Wednesday for their six-week break when Keir Starmer suspended four Labour MPs for disloyalty, with Diane Abbott to follow the next day. 'Parliament was already like the Mary Celeste,' one Labour insider told me. 'Now the mood is mutinous.' Starmer's move shocked his MPs because he had taken a more conciliatory line immediately after the revolt over cuts to disability benefits. As my colleague John Rentoul argued, there is a strong case for saying he needed to restore his battered authority. Removing the whip from four of the rebels was designed to limit future revolts looming over special education needs and, possibly, the two-child benefit limit. A free hit on welfare would have swelled the number of rebels. It was also an important nod to the silent majority of Labour MPs who supported the welfare bill; many felt angry that, after they defended the measure (sometimes through gritted teeth), the government pulled the rug from under them by filleting it to prevent a humiliating Commons defeat. However, even some Starmer allies believe his disciplinary crackdown could backfire – and that it displays weakness rather than strength. One cabinet minister called it "small man syndrome" – not a reference to Starmer (5ft 8in) but Morgan McSweeney, his chief of staff, who chose Starmer to front his crusade to regain control of the party from the Corbynistas. Others blamed Starmer rather than McSweeney, saying he was wrong to target Rachel Maskell, one of the four, who is respected in the Parliamentary Labour Party (PLP). 'He [Starmer] is the school bully who beats someone up on the last day of term so they feel rotten for the whole summer,' one Labour insider told me. Starmer has discovered that having a huge majority does not guarantee an easy life, as some colleagues expected in the euphoria of victory a year ago. There are only enough government posts for a third of Labour MPs. 'It brings big problems,' one minister told me, noting that the newbies first elected last year are showing a surprisingly independent streak. 'The PLP is a much more complex animal than we realised,' they said. I believe the prime minister needs to give the PLP more TLC and to reach out beyond the loyalists so he can isolate the 35 MPs on the hard left. Abbott is a dangerous enemy to pick. She outwitted the party's leadership the first time she was suspended for alleged antisemitism by refusing to stand down at last year's election. But Labour's legal department judged that the party should repeat its initial disciplinary action after she doubled down in a BBC Radio 4 interview on her previous remarks about there being different types of racism, while denying she is antisemitic. Although the Labour grassroots loves Abbott, there appears to be less sympathy for her in the Labour high command this time. Some figures were puzzled why she decided to repeat comments for which she apologised in 2023, and wonder whether she was goading Starmer into suspending her again. Although Labour whips talked Downing Street out of disciplining many more MPs over the welfare revolt, some Starmer allies suspect he is reaching for the playbook that served him well in opposition, when he defined Labour against the Corbyn left. They fear privately it might not work in government and, ironically, could make the breakaway socialist party planned by Jeremy Corbyn more viable electorally. The new party's on-off launch has been messy. It is striking that Corbyn allies such as John McDonnell, who was his shadow chancellor, have not jumped ship and see their future inside Labour. Breaking up is hard to do; some left-wingers want to stay, fight and turn the tables on Starmer. They describe the Corbyn project as 'Jeremy's old gang' and suspect it won't fly. However, opinion polls suggest the as-yet-unnamed party could attract 10 per cent of the vote. Not enough to break through under first-past-the-post but possibly enough to help deny Labour victory in a 2029 election, when five- or six-party politics will guarantee lots of closely fought contests. If the Corbyn party and the Greens agreed a pact to fight different seats, as they might well do, Labour would have real cause for concern. The Corbyn party might also appeal to those 16- and 17-year-olds who exercise their right to vote under plans announced by the government on Thursday. I think Starmer should be wary of fighting this particular war. His achievement in seeing off the Corbyn left was a remarkable one. But now he is prime minister, not leader of the opposition. The voters want him to change the country, not his party; that box has been ticked. Too many internal battles will remind some voters of the Conservatives' chaos, which he promised to end. Starmer leads his country, not just his party. He needs to find a better defining purpose for his government than a forever factional war against the left.
BBC News
17-07-2025
- Business
- BBC News
Starmer's chief of staff is top paid special adviser
Prime Minister Sir Keir Starmer's chief of staff is the highest paid special adviser, government figures McSweeney is paid between £155,000 and £159,999, the Cabinet Office said in a senior government staffers, known as spads, are in the next highest band and are paid between £145,000 and £149, Security Adviser Jonathan Powell, No 10's director of strategic communications James Lyons, and John Van Reenan, the chancellor's top economic adviser, are among those in the second-highest pay bracket. Last year, the BBC reported that Sir Keir's former chief of staff, Sue Gray, had a higher salary than the £166,786 the prime minister had been left her role, saying she "risked becoming a distraction", and was replaced by McSweeney, who was previously chief adviser to the prime minister and masterminded Labour's general election details of Gray's salary were leaked to the BBC, as the former senior civil servant was embroiled in internal rows in the early months of the Labour special advisers in the team were angry about being asked to take pay cuts. Overall, the pay bill for spads in 2024/25 was £ included £3.1m in severance costs, partly covering outgoing advisers from the previous Conservative of 31 March this year, there were 130 special advisers working for the over £76,000 are declared in bands of £5, was the only person in the £155,000 to £159,999 a veteran diplomat, was appointed as a special adviser last year, breaking with convention to take up the national security adviser role, which is usually held by a civil servant.
North Wales Chronicle
17-07-2025
- Business
- North Wales Chronicle
Sir Keir Starmer's chief of staff highest paid special adviser
Morgan McSweeney is paid between £155,000 and £159,999, according to data released by the Cabinet Office on Thursday. A raft of other senior Number 10 advisers, also known as spads, occupy the next highest pay rung on salaries between £145,000 and £149,999, as well as the Chancellor's top economic adviser. National Security Adviser Jonathan Powell is also within the same pay bracket. Veteran diplomat Mr Powell was appointed as a special adviser in a political capacity last year, a break from the norm which saw previous post-holders taken on as civil servants. Overall the pay bill for spads in the 2024/25 was £16.7 million, but this included £3.1 million in severance costs, which would have covered outgoing advisers from the previous Conservative government. The salary bill was £9.5 million, lower than the £10 million spent in the previous year, while national insurance contributions have increased from £1.3 million to £1.6 million over the same period. According to the Government's release, as of March 31 there were 130 special advisers across the Government. Salaries over £76,000 are declared in bands of £5,000. Mr McSweeney was the only person in the £155,000 to £159,999 band.
South Wales Guardian
17-07-2025
- Business
- South Wales Guardian
Sir Keir Starmer's chief of staff highest paid special adviser
Morgan McSweeney is paid between £155,000 and £159,999, according to data released by the Cabinet Office on Thursday. A raft of other senior Number 10 advisers, also known as spads, occupy the next highest pay rung on salaries between £145,000 and £149,999, as well as the Chancellor's top economic adviser. National Security Adviser Jonathan Powell is also within the same pay bracket. Veteran diplomat Mr Powell was appointed as a special adviser in a political capacity last year, a break from the norm which saw previous post-holders taken on as civil servants. Overall the pay bill for spads in the 2024/25 was £16.7 million, but this included £3.1 million in severance costs, which would have covered outgoing advisers from the previous Conservative government. The salary bill was £9.5 million, lower than the £10 million spent in the previous year, while national insurance contributions have increased from £1.3 million to £1.6 million over the same period. According to the Government's release, as of March 31 there were 130 special advisers across the Government. Salaries over £76,000 are declared in bands of £5,000. Mr McSweeney was the only person in the £155,000 to £159,999 band.
Telegraph
17-07-2025
- Business
- Telegraph
Morgan McSweeney is paid less than rival Sue Gray was in same role
Sir Keir Starmer's chief of staff takes home £15,000 a year more than his equivalent under Rishi Sunak, but less than his rival Sue Gray. New figures show Morgan McSweeney earns between £155,000 and £160,000, compared with the £140,000 to £145,000 earnt by Liam Booth-Smith under the last Tory government. Mr McSweeney took over as chief of staff from Ms Gray, a former civil servant, in October 2024 following damaging power battles. His salary is at least £10,000 less than the £170,000 Ms Gray demanded when she began her four-month stint in the post. Overall, there are now 130 special advisers across government, compared with 128 under Mr Sunak. Special advisers, or 'spads', are political appointees who are not part of the impartial Civil Service that runs Whitehall. Some 23 of them earn more than £100,000, up one from the last Conservative government. Special advisers on six-figure salaries take home £3.1m in pay under Sir Keir, compared with £2.7m under Mr Sunak. Sir Keir's original choice as chief of staff was Ms Gray, who left the Civil Service to join Labour in March 2023. Her appointment was controversial as she had written the partygate report which led to the fall of Boris Johnson. She moved with Sir Keir to Downing Street in July 2024 but soon became embroiled in an argument over her demand to be paid more than the Prime Minister, while special advisers were facing lower salaries than when in Opposition. Her £170,000 pay packet was £3,000 more than the Prime Minister's wage. Despite having worked with Sir Keir for years and having helped him turn Labour into an election-winning organisation, Mr McSweeney was given a lesser role as head of political strategy. In post, he reportedly clashed with Ms Gray, prompting one Cabinet minister to say: ' One or both of them will have to go. It's not going to be Morgan.' Angela Rayner has six spads The latest information on special advisers was released by the Government on Thursday afternoon as Parliament prepared to go into recess. Salaries for those on more than £76,000 are given in £5,000 bands. Sir Keir alone has 42 spads, of whom eight are on more than £145,000. Angela Rayner, the Deputy Prime Minister, has six spads with the highest earning up to £105,000. However, this total is exceeded by Chancellor Rachel Reeves, who has nine spads including one on up to £150,000. Yvette Cooper, the Home Secretary, has five spads and Foreign Secretary David Lammy has four. Most others have three or four although Energy Secretary Ed Miliband has managed to employ five. The document states: 'As at 31 March 2025, there were 130 (128.67 full-time equivalent) special advisers working across Government. 'The special adviser pay bill for the financial year 1 April 2024 to 31 March 2025 was £16.7million. 'This includes £3.1million paid in severance payments to special advisers, and a pay award of 5 per cent for eligible special advisers. 'A special adviser's appointment automatically ends when their appointing minister ceases to hold the ministerial office in relation to which the adviser was appointed to assist, or if earlier, immediately following a parliamentary general election.'
