Since last year’s general election, Sir Mel Stride has become a familiar face for those of us who like our politics.

During the campaign, he regularly found himself on breakfast TV and radio. So much so, Sir Mel was referred to as the “minister for the morning round” by some of our industry colleagues.

By our count, he was on Sky News Breakfast at least 10 times during the campaign’s 43 days.

👉 Tap here to follow Electoral Dysfunction wherever you get your podcasts 👈

Following the election, and losing the Conservative leadership race to Kemi Badenoch, Sir Mel now puts questions to Rachel Reeves as shadow chancellor.

Still seen as a safe pair of hands, Sir Mel’s penchant for doing the “morning round” hasn’t slowed down either, making regular appearances on breakfast TV and radio.

Luckily, he found some time between all that to sit down for an interview with Sky’s Beth Rigby for the Electoral Dysfunction podcast. He spoke about his transition to Opposition, taking on Reform, and the most controversial topic in Westminster – lunch.

Here’s what we learned:

1. Opposition isn’t ‘awful’ – but it is like ‘warfare’

Before the election, Sir Mel served as work and pensions secretary. Shifting to the Opposition was not “awful”, despite losing the muscle of the civil service.

“But it is like guerrilla warfare,” he said.

“You suddenly lose all the trappings of government. Somebody once said to me, ‘when you get in the back of a car and you sit down and it doesn’t go anywhere, that’s when you realise you’re no longer a minister’.

“So it is that sort of sense of being looked after that disappears.”

There’s also a smaller team of Conservatives in the Commons. Before the election, Rishi Sunak had 343 MPs behind him.

Ms Badenoch currently only has 119.

“When you’re down to 120 MPs – and some set piece events, there might be only a fraction of those people there – it’s much quieter.

“What I actually often do is I can be quite provocative of the Opposition to get them going, because then at least you get something to feed off. Sometimes I do that to, just get the energy in the chamber.”

2. Being at the despatch box on big days can be ‘tricky’ – but he has a ‘secret’

You may remember Sir Mel’s lively response to Rachel Reeves’s spring statement in March. He revealed that, on those big political days, he isn’t told what the chancellor will say until about half an hour before it’s said in the Commons.

“It does give you and your team literally 10 or 15 minutes to… work out what the main things are,” he said.

However, he tells Electoral Dysfunction that you do have to be able to think on your feet in that scenario.

He said: “You are thinking about ‘what are the attack lines I’m going to use?’… and amend what you’re going to do.”

He added that he doesn’t get nervous. That might have to do with Sir Mel having been president of the Oxford Union debating society “many, many years ago”.

“Now the secret’s out. The secret is out Beth, and you’re the first to have gleaned that secret from me,” he said.

To be fair, it is on his website.

3. He’s not a huge fan of Reform

As the Conservatives battle with Reform for the right, Sir Mel didn’t have many positive words for Nigel Farage’s party.

“With Reform… these are populists, who peddle fantasy economics,” he said.

“‘Take everybody out of income tax up to £20,000 costs about £80bn according to the IFS [Institute For Fiscal Studies].”

The IFS has said it needed “more detail” to exactly cost Reform’s proposal, but “it could easily be in the range of £50 to £80bn a year”.

“I think ultimately,” Sir Mel says, “people will see through a lot of the populism that Reform stands for.”

He added that he believed that Reform’s 2024 manifesto, was, economically, “a work of fiction”.

“I mean, it’s quite dangerous, actually. I think if they’d been elected… the economy would have gone into a very bad place,” he said.

4. His ideal lunch? A cheese and ham toastie

Sir Mel also addressed the most pressing issue of all – lunch.

If you’re unaware, this has proven a controversial subject in Westminster. Ms Badenoch told The Spectator in December she was “not a sandwich person… lunch is for wimps”.

In March, however, Ms Reeves gave a rebuttal to Electoral Dysfunction, revealing she whips up a cheddar sandwich in 11 Downing Street when she can.

Read more from Sky News:
Labour MP hits out at ‘farce’ anti-corruption trial in Bangladesh
Lammy refers himself to watchdog after fishing with JD Vance

Sir Mel falls more in line with his opposite number than his leader.

“I’ve always liked a sandwich, particularly a toasted sandwich,” he said.

“I’d go with the Cadillac, the Rolls Royce of sandwiches, a ham and cheese.”

Sir Mel has previously, however, been partial to some more peculiar fillings.

“Do you remember those Breville toastie makers? When I went to university, I had one of those, or whatever the equivalent was,” he said.

“You could put baked beans in, eggs in, and all sorts of things.

“It was fantastic.”

To each, their own.

Electoral Dysfunction unites political powerhouses Beth Rigby, Ruth Davidson, and Harriet Harman to cut through the spin, and explain to you what’s really going on in Westminster and beyond.

Want to leave a question for Beth, Ruth, and Harriet?

Email: electoraldysfunction@sky.uk

WhatsApp: 07934 200444

👉 Click here to listen to Electoral Dysfunction on your podcast app 👈

Nigel Farage’s Reform won more than 40% of seats at May’s council elections. The Conservatives lost control of 16 English councils and won 20% of seats – one of the lowest proportions in the past two decades.

How do the Tories make sure they keep right-wing voters at future elections?

Beth talks to shadow chancellor, and former work and pensions secretary, Mel Stride on this episode about that challenge.

He also talks about adapting to life on the opposition benches and why he believes Kemi Badenoch is the right leader for his party.

Interview with Mel Stride recorded on 15 July.

Remember, you can also watch us on YouTube.

Labour MP Tulip Siddiq has called her anti-corruption trial a “farce” which is “driven by a clear political agenda” as proceedings began on Wednesday in Bangladesh.

In a statement seen by Sky News, Ms Siddiq has said the case was “built on fabricated accusations”.

The Bangladesh authorities allege the Labour MP “exerted pressure and influence” on her aunt, the country’s ousted former prime minister, Sheikh Hasina, to get planning officials to appoint them 7,200sq ft of land.

When Ms Hasina was removed as prime minister last year and replaced by the current government, hundreds of protesters were killed during the uprising.

Ms Siddiq resigned from her Treasury job in January after facing calls to step down over links to her aunt, who is being investigated by Bangladesh’s Anti-Corruption Commission (ACC) over charges including crimes against humanity.

Politics latest: Reeves ‘considering tightening inheritance tax’

Ms Siddiq previously denied all the allegations against her through lawyers, saying the prosecution is politically motivated.

Bangladesh’s ACC claims the Labour MP received the land in a diplomatic zone through “abuse of power and influence”.

The trial in Dhaka began in the early hours of UK time, with Ms Siddiq on trial alongside her mother and siblings. The family are being tried in absentia as they have not returned to Bangladesh for the proceedings.

The court opened with ACC prosecutors laying out the case against Ms Siddiq.

Read more:
What are the allegations against Siddiq?
Siddiq boasted of links with Hasina

In her statement, Ms Siddiq said: “The so-called trial now under way in Dhaka is nothing more than a farce, built on fabricated accusations and driven by a clear political vendetta.

“Over the past year, the allegations against me have repeatedly shifted, yet I have never been contacted by the Bangladeshi authorities once. I have never received a court summons, no official communication, and no evidence.

“If this were a genuine legal process, the authorities would have engaged with me or my legal team, responded to our formal correspondence, and presented the evidence they claim to hold.

“Instead, they have peddled false and vexatious allegations that have been briefed to the media but never formally put to me by investigators.

“Even my offer to meet Bangladesh’s chief adviser Muhammad Yunus during his recent visit to London was refused. Such conduct is wholly incompatible with the principles of a fair trial that we uphold in the UK.

“I have been clear from the outset that I have done nothing wrong and will respond to any credible evidence that is presented to me. Continuing to smear my name to score political points is both baseless and damaging.”

Responding to Ms Siddiq’s statement, Bangladeshi prosecutor Mohammad Sultan Mahmud highlighted the difference between the British and Bangladeshi legal system.

This includes Ms Siddiq only being able to receive a court summons if she returns to Bangladesh.

The Labour MP’s legal team are understood to have sought legal advice regarding the Bangladeshi prosecutor’s response.

Sky News understands the MP’s lawyer requested to attend the trial in Bangladesh on her behalf but was denied access.

We also understand the Bangladeshi authorities did not tell Ms Siddiq of a date change for the trial, and she only found out when Sky News contacted her lawyer about it.

On the other points, Mr Mahmud denied there was any political motivation to the case.

He added that Mr Yunus likely rejected meeting Ms Siddiq due to a busy schedule and not wanting to interfere in the proceedings.

The prosecutor went on to claim he had “a lot of evidence” against Ms Siddiq and her family, and intends to bring further cases against her.

A separate anti-corruption allegation into Ms Siddiq’s family has also been launched, with allegations they were involved in brokering a 2013 deal with Russia for a nuclear power plant in Bangladesh, in which large sums of money were said to have been embezzled.

Ms Siddiq’s aunt, Ms Hasina, was ousted last year following student protests, having been in power for more than a decade. She has since fled to India.

Hundreds of protesters were killed during the uprising, and Ms Hasina now faces charges including crimes against humanity.

👉Listen to Politics at Sam and Anne’s on your podcast app👈    

Nobel Peace Prize laureate Muhammad Yunus took over as interim leader and vowed to prosecute Ms Hasina.

Allegations have also been made about Ms Siddiq and a house she rents in north London, which is owned by a businessman reportedly linked to Ms Hasina’s Awami League Party.