Politics

Is Starmer’s voice coach his Carole Caplin?

Published

5 months ago

February 5, 2025

admin

Is history repeating itself in the row over Sir Keir Starmer’s voice coach Leonie Mellinger?

After all, she is not the first person who has coached a prime minister to be caught in political controversy.

After the Tories demanded a police probe, are there echoes of the row over Tony and Cherie Blair’s “lifestyle coach” Carole Caplin?

At Prime Minister’s Questions, Sir Keir defended meeting Ms Mellinger during lockdown in 2020, claiming “I was working” while the Tories were “partying”.

The Conservatives then stepped up their attacks, announcing that leader Kemi Badenoch wants a police investigation into whether laws were broken.

That is not going to happen, however. The Metropolitan Police said that because the alleged offence was more than three years ago, no action will be taken.

But have we been here before with a political row about a Labour prime minister receiving specialist coaching?

In the 1990s, before and after he became PM, Ms Caplin coached Sir Tony and wife Cherie, advising him on fitness and his wife on style.

And so, as the Tories continue attempting to embarrass Sir Keir over “Voice Coach Gate”, are there similarities between his voice coach and Ms Caplin?

It has been suggested, for instance, that both have a racy past. Now 65, Ms Mellinger, an actress, was once married to the star of the “Confessions…” movies, Robin Asquith.

In her acting career, she appeared in Channel 4’s political comedy The New Statesman as the leather-clad wife of a Conservative MP.

She also appeared in the 1981 film of the bleak Doris Lessing novel Memoirs Of A Survivor, which also starred Nigel Hawthorne, later star of TV’s Yes Minister.

Carole Caplin, a former dancer who once dated Gary Numan and Adam Ant, hit the headlines in 1994 when The Sun published topless photos of her under the headline “Secrets of Blairs’ Girl Friday”.

To make matters worse, it happened at the very moment the then Labour leader, elected earlier in 1994, was celebrating a successful party conference speech.

But much worse was to follow. In 2002 it emerged that Ms Caplin’s boyfriend, Australian Peter Foster, was a conman with a conviction for conspiring to supply a weight-loss drink that turned out to be tea.

The problem was that Foster had helped Cherie Blair buy two flats in Bristol when their eldest son Euan was at university there. The result was one of the biggest controversies of Sir Tony’s premiership.

More than 20 years later, it is now Sir Keir’s turn to face questions about his own coaching.

In the Commons, Tory MP Gagan Mohindra challenged the PM: “Can he repeat his assurances that all rules were followed while the country was in tier 4 lockdown in December 2020, not just by him but his team as well, but also his voice coach Leonie Mellinger?”

Though he did not repeat the claim he made in Brussels on Monday that no rules were broken, a furious Sir Keir hit back: “In December 2020, I was in my office working on the expected Brexit deal.

“With my team we had to analyse the deal as it came in at speed, prepare and deliver a live statement at speed on one of the most important issues for our country in recent years. That’s what I was doing.

“What were they doing? Suitcases of food into Downing Street, partying and fighting, vomiting up the walls, leaving the cleaner to remove red wine stains. That’s the difference: I was working, they were partying.”

But a spokesman for the Tory leader responded: “The key question here is: is a voice coach a key worker who can travel from Tier 4 to Tier 3 during lockdown?

“It doesn’t matter if you’re part of a core team, that is the question. Now, Keir Starmer said that lawmakers can’t be lawbreakers. It is almost unimaginable to disagree that that was a clear breach of the COVID rules.”

And asked if Mrs Badenoch thought police should investigate, he said: “Yes, she does.”

Some years after the Carole Caplin controversy, Sir Tony wrote in his memoirs that she was “a good friend and reliable confidant” for his wife, but he should have acknowledged at the beginning that she was working for them.

And as for Sir Keir, the threat of a police investigation into allegations of breaking lockdown rules did not last long.

“We can confirm we have received a report,” said a Met Police spokesperson. “The specific legislation that would be used by police forces dealing with offences during COVID has a three-year deadline for initiating proceedings.

“As this alleged incident falls outside of this timeframe, no action will be taken.”

Politics

Another tantrum from the Labour backbenches is inevitable

Published

6 hours ago

July 6, 2025

admin

Rachel Reeves hints at tax rises in autumn budget after welfare bill U-turn

In common with many parents across the country, here’s a conversation that I have with my young daughter on a semi-regular basis (bear with me, this will take on some political relevance eventually).

Me: “So it’s 15 minutes until your bedtime, you can either have a little bit of TV or do a jigsaw, not both.”

Daughter: “Ummmm, I want to watch TV.”

Me: “That’s fine, but it’s bed after that, you can’t do a jigsaw as well.”

Fast-forward 15 minutes.

Me: “Right, TV off now please, bedtime.”

(Pause)

Daughter: “I want to do a jigsaw.”

Now replace me with the government, the TV and jigsaw options with axing welfare cuts and scrapping the two-child cap, and my daughter with rebellious backbenchers.

Politics latest: Former Labour leader calls for wealth tax on assets above £10m

That is the tension currently present between Downing Street and Labour MPs. And my initial ultimatum is the messaging being pumped out from the government this weekend.

In essence: you’ve had your welfare U-turn, so there’s no money left for the two-child cap to go as well.

As an aside – and before my inbox fills with angry emails lambasting me for using such a crude metaphor for policies that fundamentally alter the lives of some of the most vulnerable in society – yes, I hear you, and that’s part of my point.

For many in Labour, this approach feels like the lives of their constituents are being used in a childish game of horse-trading.

So what can be done?

Well, the government could change the rules.

Altering the fiscal rules is – and will likely remain – an extremely unlikely solution. But as it happens, one of Labour’s proverbial grandparents has just popped round with a different suggestion.

A wealth tax, Lord Neil Kinnock says, is the necessary outcome of the economic restrictions the party has placed on itself.

Ever the Labour storyteller, Lord Kinnock believes this would allow the government to craft a more compelling narrative about whose side this administration is on.

That could be valuable, given one of the big gripes from many backbench critics is that they still don’t really understand what this prime minister stands for – and by extension, what all these “difficult decisions” are in aid of.

The downside is whether it will actually raise much money.

The super-rich may have lots of assets to take a slice from, but they also have expensive lawyers ready to find novel ways to keep their client’s cash away from the prying eyes of the state.

Or, of course, they could just leave – as many are doing already.

In the short term, the future is a bit easier to predict.

If Downing Street is indeed now saying there is no money to scrap the two-child cap (after heavy briefing in the opposite direction just weeks ago), an almighty tantrum from the backbenches is inevitable.

And as every parent knows, the more you give in, the harder it becomes to hold the line.

Politics

UK restores diplomatic ties with Syria

Published

12 hours ago

July 6, 2025

admin

The UK has re-established diplomatic ties with Syria, David Lammy has said, as he made the first visit to the country by a British minister for 14 years.

The foreign secretary visited Damascus and met with interim president Ahmed al Sharaa, also the leader of the rebel group Hayat Tahrir al-Sham (HTS), and foreign minister Asaad al Shaibani.

It marks the latest diplomatic move since Bashar al Assad’s regime was toppled by rebel groups led by HTS in December.

In a statement, Mr Lammy said a “stable Syria is in the UK’s interests” and added: “I’ve seen first-hand the remarkable progress Syrians have made in rebuilding their lives and their country.

“After over a decade of conflict, there is renewed hope for the Syrian people.

“The UK is re-establishing diplomatic relations because it is in our interests to support the new government to deliver their commitment to build a stable, more secure and prosperous future for all Syrians.”

The Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office has also announced a £94.5m support package for urgent humanitarian aid and to support the country’s long-term recovery, after a number of British sanctions against the country were lifted in April.

While HTS is still classified as a proscribed terror group, Sir Keir Starmer said last year that it could be removed from the list.

The Syrian president’s office also said on Saturday that the president and Mr Lammy discussed co-operation, as well as the latest developments in the Middle East.

Since Assad fled Syria in December, a transitional government headed by Mr al Sharaa was announced in March and a number of western countries have restored ties.

In May, US President Donald Trump said the United States would lift long-standing sanctions on Syria and normalise relations during a speech at the US-Saudi investment conference.

He said he wanted to give the country “a chance at peace” and added: “There is a new government that will hopefully succeed.

“I say good luck, Syria. Show us something special.”

Politics

Secret Service seizes $400M in crypto, cold wallet among world’s largest

Published

14 hours ago

July 6, 2025

admin

Secret Service seizes 0M in crypto, cold wallet among world’s largest

Secret Service quietly amasses one of the world’s largest crypto cold wallets with $400 million seized, exposing scams through blockchain sleuthing and VPN missteps.