Steerpike

Steerpike is The Spectator's gossip columnist, serving up the latest tittle tattle from London and beyond. Email tips to steerpike@spectator.co.uk.

Does Labour believe Israel is breaching international law?

19 March 2025 12:52 am

It’s a gaffe a day with David Lammy – but now his latest intervention has ruffled more feathers than usual.…

NYT outrage as Hezbollah-supporting professor deported

18 March 2025 10:10 pm

To Donald Trump’s America, where outrage spread across the nation’s left-wing papers at the weekend after it emerged that a…

Labour announce credit card crackdown in war on waste

18 March 2025 6:30 pm

After The Spectator’s Spaff probe brought the rather alarming extent of government waste to light, the Labour lot have hastened…

Even Italians are horrified by the NHS

18 March 2025 3:11 am

Anyone who has the misfortune of stepping foot into a hospital recently will know how bad things are with the…

Holyrood exodus: iPad scandal MSP’s worst moments

18 March 2025 1:54 am

The Holyrood exodus continues as more SNP MSPs throw in the towel ahead of the 2026 election. While some of…

The Royal College of GPs’ curious assisted dying U-turn

18 March 2025 1:41 am

A curious decision by the Royal College of GPs (RCGP). The UK governing council of the group – which represents…

Shakespeare Trust: celebrating Bard ‘benefits white supremacy’

18 March 2025 12:38 am

In a society obsessed with political correctness and progressiveness, nothing is sacred – not, it seems, even William Shakespeare. It…

Did Prince Harry lie on his immigration files?

17 March 2025 11:10 pm

Once again, the spotlight is back on the monarch of Montecito. A US judge has now ruled that Prince Harry’s…

Did Blair persuade Carney to run for PM?

16 March 2025 2:17 am

To Canada, where Mark Carney is settling into his first week in the top job. The former Bank of England…

Reeves reignites freebies row over Sabrina Carpenter show

15 March 2025 8:35 pm

It’s shaping up to be a difficult year for Chancellor Rachel Reeves, who is struggling to get many within her…

Treasury: employer tax hikes could reduce employment

15 March 2025 1:23 am

It has not been Rachel Reeves’s year. From accusations of CV embellishment to noisy backlash over the farmer’s tax, the…

Sturgeon still under investigation as probe costs top £2m

14 March 2025 9:54 pm

Nicola Sturgeon may be leaving Holyrood next year, but the spectre of Operation Branchform isn’t going away any time soon.…

Watch: Reynolds grovels over solicitor claim

13 March 2025 10:16 pm

Well, well, well. After Guido Fawkes revealed that Business Secretary Jonathan Reynolds had previously – and inaccurately – referred to…

Seven in ten Reform voters don’t recognise Rupert Lowe

13 March 2025 7:15 pm

It was only a few weeks ago that Reform UK was flying high in the polls. Now a fallout between…

Labour MP U-turns on benefit cuts letter

13 March 2025 12:06 am

There’s drama in Labourland today as one backbencher appears to have had second thoughts about her stance on benefits payments…

Parliament splashes £4 million on traffic marshals

12 March 2025 10:31 pm

If you, dear reader, have visited parliament in recent years, you might have had the misfortune to be confronted by…

Douglas Murray wins defamation case against Observer

12 March 2025 2:02 am

Today brings the news that the flailing Guardian Media Group has had to pay out ‘substantial damages’ to The Spectator’s…

Third of Reform voters want a new leader

11 March 2025 11:46 pm

Is Nigel Farage’s position under threat? Most inside Reform don’t seem to think so – but a new poll offers…

New SNP chief shared violent anti-monarchy posts

11 March 2025 10:24 pm

To Scotland, where the beleaguered Nats have appointed their third chief executive in two years. Yet Carol Beattie wasn’t able…

Rupert Lowe’s team rally around him

11 March 2025 9:16 pm

It was Alastair Campbell who declared that ‘if a story stays front page news for more than ten days, the chances…

Gove takes aim at Jolyon Maugham

11 March 2025 5:29 am

To the Covid Inquiry, the longest-running farce outside of the West End. With costs for the great gravy train now…

BMA consultants sound alarm on assisted dying

11 March 2025 2:13 am

As the Assisted Dying Bill continues to make its unceremonious way through parliament, various medical organisations are making themselves heard.…

Reform’s civil war blows up again

9 March 2025 8:06 pm

Oh dear, it looks like the civil war engulfing Reform UK is showing no sign of simmering down. On Friday,…

Tories smash Labour on latest donations

7 March 2025 9:20 pm

Some good news for Kemi Badenoch today. The latest donation figures for the end of 2024 are out – and…

Watch: Trudeau’s tears after Trump tariffs 

7 March 2025 8:43 pm

Donald Trump is intent on shaking things up in the White House and no one knows that better than neighbouring…