At a glitzy fundraising gala for one of Labour’s rising stars on Monday night, the mood was buoyant. The party faithful cheered speakers including Lord Mandelson, now ambassador to Washington, Business Secretary Jonathan Reynolds and Chief Secretary to the Treasury Darren Jones.
Unusually, another figure who prefers to lurk in the shadows was spotted at the event, where tickets cost up to £200. Standing quietly to the side in the Ev Turkish restaurant in Southwark was Morgan McSweeney, 48, the No 10 chief of staff. Labour insiders tell me that McSweeney is the real Deputy Prime Minister, wielding far more clout than the hapless Angela Rayner, who carries that title ‘in name only’.
Perhaps McSweeney’s attendance was unsurprising. After all, the purpose of the event was to raise money for his wife: Imogen Walker, the Labour member for Hamilton and Clyde Valley. She became an MP only at last year’s election, but is already rising fast. She is parliamentary private secretary to Chancellor Rachel Reeves, so McSweeney has eyes and ears in the heart of the Treasury as well as at No 10.
Today, as Labour’s civil war escalates over the Government’s plan to cut billions from the ballooning disability benefits bill, McSweeney’s unshakeable grip on the party machine – and his reputation as one of the canniest operators in Westminster – appears to be collapsing.
