Everyone around PM agrees ‘chaos’ at No 10 has to be sorted, but there are competing factions trying to gain upper hand
With three vacancies opening up at the very top of Keir Starmer’s operation, there is already a battle over who will win the war for his ear – and the direction of the government.
The departure of Starmer’s most important political advisers – his chief of staff, Morgan McSweeney, who was focused on the fight against Reform in Labour’s working-class heartlands; and Tim Allan, the director of communication, considered a Blairite – has immediately raised hopes on Labour’s soft left of a shift in their favour.
At the same time, Starmer’s decision to get rid of the bureaucratic Chris Wormald as cabinet secretary has opened the door for a more radical replacement to drive through some of the Whitehall reforms and policy changes the prime minister has been calling for.
The frontrunner for cabinet secretary is understood to be Antonia Romeo, the dynamic permanent secretary of the Home Office, who has impressed Shabana Mahmood, but other possible names floated include Minouche Shafik, Starmer’s economic adviser, and Louise Casey, the lead non-executive director for the government, who has previously said she would not be suited to the job.
