Harriet Harman
PMQs sketch: ‘What a penetrating insight into the affairs of state’
A mood of giggles and mischief descended on PMQs today. David Cameron is in America – attempting to cure insomniacs by explaining Tory Euro-scepticism to them – and his role… Continue reading
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Nick Clegg and Harriet Harman play a cautious game at PMQs
There was a rare moment of unity between the Tory awkward squad and the Whips at PMQs today. The awkward squad relished brandishing copies of a Liberal Democrat leaflet promising… Continue reading
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Labour is being forced to talk about ‘good borrowing’ before it is ready
It’s not a case of will they, won’t they when it comes to whether Labour would borrow more, but will they admit it and try to sell this plan to… Continue reading
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The glass houses of parliament
The Labour Party is most exercised by the news, broken by the Spectator, that Economist journalist Christopher Lockwood has been appointed to the Downing Street Policy Unit. Poor old Lockwood… Continue reading
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Harriet Harman and Maria Miller both claim victory in Leveson talks
Who has won in the late-night Leveson talks? Both Harriet Harman and Maria Miller seem to think their own party’s Royal Charter has come out tops. And one says they’ve… Continue reading
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Newcastle Labour leader founds a big society
Labour’s Nick Forbes is a great pioneer of austerity. As leader of Newcastle City Council he bravely decided to shut half the city’s libraries, close two respite centres for disabled… Continue reading
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Harriet Harman confirms Labour are in outright denial over their economic record
An interesting if depressing edition of Any Questions on Friday. Interesting because of Sir Malcolm Rifkind and occasionally because of Simon Hughes. Depressing because of one person: Harriet Harman. There… Continue reading
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Any suggestions for ‘Any Questions’?
I’m doing Radio 4′s ‘Any Questions?’ tonight with Harriet Harman and Simon Hughes. It’s a strange news week, in which almost anything could come up. But I wondered if Spectator… Continue reading
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Ed Balls reverses over his own progress on fiscal responsibility
The battle-lines over the Welfare Benefits Up-rating Bill — which faces its second reading in the Commons this afternoon — have been drawn. Labour has tied its opposition to the… Continue reading
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Harman: I cannot vouch for the strength of Tom Watson’s evidence
Tom Watson’s Twitter feed has gone a bit quiet recently. Strange, as he is normally quite vocal about media ethics and their failings. But his silence is well-judged: when he… Continue reading
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Harriet Harman was not ‘bullied’ at PMQs today
Barack Obama’s re-election has naturally perked up the Labour party, on the optimistic basis that the Obama formula for success, sans Obama, could work perfectly well here. But there’s a… Continue reading
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PMQs sketch: Harriet Harman enters her Elvis-in-Vegas phase
With the prime minister abroad flogging jets to tyrants, Nick Clegg was left to play the statesman at PMQs. He was opposed by Labour’s Harriet Harman. Once a plucky and… Continue reading
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David Cameron (finally) answers Chris Bryant’s Leveson question (sort of)
David Cameron was very grumpy with Labour’s Chris Bryant at Prime Minister’s Questions on Wednesday, sniping that as Bryant hadn’t apologised to him for speaking in the Commons about embargoed… Continue reading
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Labour conference: Harman rows back from her Spectator interview
On BBC1 Sunday Politics just now, Harriet Harman rowed back from what she told me for this week’s magazine: that Labour would not match Tory spending plans at the next… Continue reading
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Harriet Harman: Labour mustn’t match Tory spending plans at the next election
The spotlight is shifting from the Liberal Democrats to Labour ahead of the party’s conference. But I suspect that at least one theme from Brighton will be carried on to… Continue reading
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New term, same old tensions
Nick Clegg came to the Commons today to both praise and bury House of Lords reform, for this parliament at least. In a light-hearted start, Clegg informed the House that… Continue reading
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Warne caught for one
With the South Africans slaughtering England at the Oval this weekend, Mr Steerpike was more intrigued by the goings-on off the pitch. Catching up with a super-skinny and immaculately preened… Continue reading
1 Comment The lady Harriet
Will we soon see Harriet Harman shopping in Iceland while wearing a shell-suit and sporting, just above the cleft of her buttocks, the tattoo of a leaping dolphin? The fragrant… Continue reading
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Joining Harriet Harman’s feminist club
If feminism is ‘a creed of women’s solidarity’, do you pick and choose about which women you’re in solidarity with? In the case of Harriet Harman, the answer is, well… Continue reading
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Tories, oppose family values
For almost a decade now, what social conservatives say and the evidence in front of our eyes has been diverging with remarkable speed. According to the received wisdom, the permissive… Continue reading
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