𝓤𝓷𝓲𝓽𝓮𝓭 𝓝𝓮𝔀𝓼

Sir Keir Starmer might sack Rachel Reeves in a reshuffle after May’s local elections as ministers insist there is “no proof” the Prime Minister has done anything wrong over the Lord Mandelson scandal. According to reports the embattled Prime Minister is considering sacrificing his Chancellor as part of sweeping changes to his top team, scheduled for just days after the May 7 local elections.

One source, speaking to the Mail on Sunday, branded it “one final roll of the dice” as No10 scrambles to re-establish Sir Keir’s authority if predictions of a Labour bloodbath at the council elections ring true. A senior Labour source told the paper: “This is the last gasp of a dying man. He’s going to have to be dragged out of No10 with his fingernails clinging to the wallpaper.”

But Starmer ally Darren Jones told journalists this morning that he found the Mandelson situation regrettable, but added that it had “been shown not to be the case” that Sir Keir “had lied or misled the House or had done any wrongdoing here”. Mr Jones, 39, denied that the Prime Minister was in “trouble” over the appointment and told the BBC’s Laura Kuenssberg that it had never come up whilst he was speaking to members of the public.

Lord Mandelson, 72, was sacked from his plum Washington posting after further information regarding his relationship with the convicted paedophile Jeffrey Epstein came to light. Sir Keir has been accused of misleading the House of Commons after he repeatedly informed MPs that “due process was followed” in the appointment.

He even sacked the head of the foreign office, Sir Olly Robbins, for not informing him sooner that the former Labour peer had failed his security vetting. It has been reported that Lord Mandelson had business connections with Russian oligarchs, and that his lobbying firm – which he divested himself of earlier this year – even did business with a company linked to the Chinese military.

Labour have branded calls for the Prime Minister to resign, as well as accusations that he misled the House, as politically motivated. Mr Jones told Sky News this morning: “My point is that there’s been no wrongdoing on behalf of the Prime Minister that has been proven.

He added: “Opposition parties want to try and make as much of this as possible, and that’s why they’ve accused the Prime Minister of things that have been shown not to be true.” It follows extensive accusations by the opposition parties, as well as some Labour MPs, that Sir Keir must also face the powerful privileges committee that brought down former Prime Minister Boris Johnson.

Mr Jones said the “opposition is just using tactics” and again dismissed claims that Sir Keir had misled the House saying there “was no case to answer”. Speaking to the Sunday Times, Sir Keir insisted the “vast majority” of Labour MPs support him and want him to continue doing his job as Prime Minister.

He told the paper: “In politics, you get this sort of thing all of the time, there is always talk. What you never hear from are all the people who are supportive, loyal and just want to get on with the job. And that is the vast majority of people in the Parliamentary Labour Party.”