Energy Secretary Ed Miliband Encourages the Labour Party to Look Ahead After Starmer Apologises to Streeting for Aggressive Media Leaks
High-ranking Labour Party official Ed Miliband has demanded the party to move beyond internal conflicts after Prime Minister Sir Keir Starmer personally said sorry to health minister Wes Streeting over hostile media stories linked to Number 10.
Key Developments
- Ed Miliband declares Starmer will fire the Downing Street source behind for targeting Wes Streeting if discovered
- The Energy Secretary rules out future party leader ambitions, stating his previous time as leader was the "strongest inoculation" against desiring the position again
- British economic growth grew by just 0.1 percent in the third quarter, hit by the JLR cyber-attack
Background
The political controversy started after reports circulated about hostile background comments from the Prime Minister's team targeting the Health Secretary. Despite early attempts to dismiss the matter, the conversation between the PM and the health minister according to sources followed a more serious turn.
The Prime Minister said sorry to Wes Streeting, the media have been informed. The conversation was brief, and they did not discuss Morgan McSweeney, whom the PM is now under pressure to dismiss.
The Energy Secretary's Response
In his early morning broadcast appearances, Ed Miliband stressed the need for the party to direct attention on national priorities rather than internal conflicts.
Clearly, I think the media briefing has been bad, no question.
But my advice to the Labour members now is straightforward, which is we need to focus on the nation, not our internal matters.
We were given a significant victory last July, a major chance to change our nation. And we have a major obligation.
Economic Update
Meanwhile, official figures indicated the British economy grew by just 0.1% in the July-September period, with the production sector especially hit by the recently reported Jaguar Land Rover cyber-attack.
The Day's Schedule
- 9.30am: The National Health Service publishes its monthly data
- Today: Wes Streeting visits Liverpool
- Today: The Chancellor speaks to the press
- Late morning: Downing Street holds its daily lobby briefing
- Today: The Prime Minister promotes plans for the UK's first small modular reactor project at Wylfa on the island of Anglesey
