Episode

Keir Starmer vs the world: How the PM made his job so much harder

Podcast
In The Room
Published
Apr 29, 2026
Duration seconds
1865
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not_requested
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https://shows.acast.com/intheroom/episodes/keir-starmer-vs-the-world-how-the-pm-made-his-job-so-much-ha
Audio
https://sphinx.acast.com/p/open/s/69861398d4e01f1069d58875/e/69f24d6abe5ab6849c6d4a45/media.mp3
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/v1/public/podcasts/in-the-room-7693582/episodes/keir-starmer-vs-the-world-how-the-pm-made-his-job-so-much-harder
Markdown
/podcast/in-the-room-7693582/keir-starmer-vs-the-world-how-the-pm-made-his-job-so-much-harder.md

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Summary

His own MPs are turning on him, the civil service are raging at him and, at next week’s local elections, the public will likely express their unhappiness too. All of this has made Keir Starmer’s job a lot harder. Today, we analyse how Starmer’s handling of the Mandelson vetting scandal has significantly weakened relations with the civil service, why putting a three-line whip on his own MPs is always a revealing move and why picking a political strategy is imperative if he wants to maintain his hold on power. Find the best clips from the podcast and more from Helen and Cleo on the show's Instagram page here . This podcast is part of The Independent Podcast Network and is produced in association with Next Chapter Studios Executive Producers: Olivia Foster and Carrie Rose Producer: Sam Durham Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.