Nandy on BBC: Streeting EU Call “A Bit Odd”; Leadership Talk “Froth”
Culture Secretary Lisa Nandy dismissed Labour leadership talk as “froth and nonsense” on Sunday with Laura Kuenssberg and called Wes Streeting’s Saturday EU-rejoin pitch “just a bit odd”. “I listened to what Wes had to say very carefully yesterday, and I know that he’s got a strong view about this…” she said. “Frankly, that’s one that I share. I campaigned for remain, I think it was a mistake, and I think the Brexit deal has been a real problem for us. But I don’t really understand why the sudden focus on Europe.” Asked whether Starmer would run in a contest, Nandy said: “He’s shown before that he’s up for a fight.”
Streeting allies hit back quickly, telling the Guardian that Nandy’s unwillingness to talk about EU membership was “symptomatic” of the wider reluctance to take political risks that has made Starmer so unpopular. “There is no point in trying not to upset anybody, that’s what got us into this problem,” one Streeting ally said. “Sometimes you have to be willing to upset people to get things done.” Conservative leader Kemi Badenoch said the row was a “sign of the Labour party that does not have a plan for the country”, adding: “They want to go back and refight wars, which were settled a long time ago.” Nandy was the first Cabinet minister to join Burnham on the Makerfield campaign trail in Winstanley on Saturday.