Why Starmer's desperate ‘global statesman’ rebrand isn't fooling anyone

Amid more dire polling for Labour and the revelation that both he and the Defence Secretary were on holiday as Donald Trump threatened to wipe Iran off the map at the weekend, Keir Starmer has now disappeared to the Middle East for meetings with Gulf state leaders.The Telegraph’s political editor Tony Diver tells Camilla and Tim that, despite him having no say in ceasefire talks, this is a desperate, last-ditch strategy to portray Starmer as an international statesman by Number 10, with a local election wipe-out on the cards in May. Elsewhere, Tony also talks Camilla and Tim through his exclusive research that shows the UK is more divided than ever before.🚨 LIVE EVENT: The Daily T will be going on the road to London (April 27), Cardiff (April 28), Warwick (April 29) and Worthing (April 30) ahead of May’s critical local elections, where you'll have a chance to put your questions to Camilla and Tim.🎟️ Tickets are limited, book yours now!: https://www.telegraph.co.uk/politics/0/live-event-the-daily-t-on-the-road/We want to hear from you! Email us at [email protected] or find @dailytpodcast on TikTok, Instagram and X► Sign up to our most popular newsletter, From the Editor. Look forward to receiving free-thinking comment and the day's biggest stories, every morning. telegraph.co.uk/fromtheeditorProducers: Lilian Fawcett and Georgia CoanSenior Producer: John CadiganExecutive Producer: Charlotte SeligmanVideo Producer: William WaltersStudio Operator: Meghan SearleSocial Media Producer: Nada AggourEditor: Camilla Tominey Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Just as the Middle East appeared to be on the brink of an uncontrollable conflict, the US and Iran have announced a two-week ceasefire. The Pakistan-brokered deal will reopen the Strait of Hormuz – though with Tehran-imposed caveats – and offers “a chance at real peace”, says Pete Hegseth, the US defence secretary.Sir Keir Starmer is now jetting off to the Gulf, apparently to boost the morale of British troops there. But, Camilla Tominey and Tim Stanley ask, what is the point of his Lawrence of Arabia-style jaunt if he had nothing to do with the truce – and indeed had insisted throughout that this was “not our war”?Later, Gen Lord Dannatt, the former Army chief, told The Daily T that Britain has been “embarrassed” and “humiliated” by the Iran crisis and what it has revealed about our depleted defence capabilities.🚨 LIVE EVENT: The Daily T will be going on the road to London (April 27), Cardiff (April 28), Warwick (April 29) and Worthing (April 30) ahead of May’s critical local elections, where you'll have a chance to put your questions to Camilla and Tim.🎟️ Tickets are limited, book yours now!: https://www.telegraph.co.uk/politics/0/live-event-the-daily-t-on-the-road/We want to hear from you! Email us at [email protected] or find @dailytpodcast on TikTok, Instagram and X► Sign up to our most popular newsletter, From the Editor. Look forward to receiving free-thinking comment and the day's biggest stories, every morning. telegraph.co.uk/fromtheeditorProducers: Lilian Fawcett and Georgia CoanExecutive Producer: Charlotte SeligmanVideo Producer: William WaltersStudio Operator: Meghan SearleSocial Media Producer: Nada AggourEditor: Camilla Tominey Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Where the hell is Sir Keir Starmer? The Prime Minister has stayed out of the spotlight as the Middle East crisis escalates, holidaying while Donald Trump threatens to bomb Iran “back to the Stone Age”.Camilla and Tim debate whether the PM’s absence during such a critical moment is leadership or negligence. They also break down Trump’s Easter weekend spectacle with a giant bunny and his expletive-laden posts on Iran.And as Kanye West, the US rapper, is blocked from entering the UK after his controversial booking to headline Wireless Festival this summer, they ask whether the festival organisers were right to give West a “second chance” after his anti-Semitic comments which he has blamed on his bipolar disorder.🚨 LIVE EVENT: The Daily T will be going on the road to London (April 27), Cardiff (April 28), Warwick (April 29) and Worthing (April 30) ahead of May’s critical local elections, where you'll have a chance to put your questions to Camilla and Tim.🎟️ Tickets are limited, book yours now!: https://www.telegraph.co.uk/politics/0/live-event-the-daily-t-on-the-road/We want to hear from you! Email us at [email protected] or find @dailytpodcast on TikTok, Instagram and X► Sign up to our most popular newsletter, From the Editor. Look forward to receiving free-thinking comment and the day's biggest stories, every morning. telegraph.co.uk/fromtheeditorProducers: Lilian Fawcett and Georgia CoanExecutive Producer: Charlotte SeligmanVideo Producer: William WaltersStudio Operator: Meghan SearleSocial Media Producer: Nada AggourEditor: Camilla Tominey Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Prince William’s personal faith has been thrust into the spotlight, after a former royal chaplain accused the Prince of taking a “strategic and political” approach to religion.Camilla and Tim are joined by former Chaplain to Queen Elizabeth II, Gavin Ashenden, to debate whether the future King’s “quiet faith” is a sign of honesty, or a worrying shift away from the deeply Christian leadership embodied by the late Queen.They discuss claims that the Prince of Wales may not be “particularly religious,” how aides insist his beliefs “run deep” despite being private, and whether his focus on the Church’s social action - from food banks to homelessness - is enough for a future Supreme Governor of the Church of England.We want to hear from you! Email us at [email protected] or find @dailytpodcast on TikTok, Instagram and X► Sign up to our most popular newsletter, From the Editor. Look forward to receiving free-thinking comment and the day's biggest stories, every morning. telegraph.co.uk/fromtheeditorProducer: Georgia CoanSenior Producer: John CadiganExecutive Producer: Charlotte SeligmanVideo Producer: Andy MackenzieStudio Operator: Meghan SearleSocial Media Producer: Nada Aggour Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

This time last year, after Reform won nearly 700 council seats, Nigel Farage told voters: if you want to know how Reform would run the country, look at your local council.The party now runs 10 county councils and expects to gain more in May. They say they have taken on woke, slashed waste and saved residents money on their council tax.But critics argue they’ve been bogged down in racism rows and broken their promises on tax.Camilla and Tim dig into the truth about Reform’s record in local government, interviewing the council leader in Kent, and ask: what does this all mean for Farage’s chances of reaching No 10?We want to hear from you! Email us at [email protected] or find @dailytpodcast on TikTok, Instagram and X► Sign up to our most popular newsletter, From the Editor. Look forward to receiving free-thinking comment and the day's biggest stories, every morning. telegraph.co.uk/fromtheeditorLead Producer: Lilian FawcettProducer: Georgia CoanExecutive Producer: Charlotte SeligmanVideo Producer: Andy MackenzieStudio Operator: Meghan SearleCamera Operator: James EnglandSocial Media Producer: Nada Aggour Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Donald Trump has attacked Keir Starmer once again, telling the Telegraph that King Charles have backed him on Iran, in reference to the PM's dithering over intervention in Iran.Tim and Rachel are joined by the Telegraph’s deputy Royal editor Victoria Ward to ask if it's now up to King Charles to save the special relationship on his upcoming state visit.They also consider if Princesses Beatrice and Eugenie and being ostracised over their parents’ association with Jeffrey Epstein, and whether the latest developments in Harry’s legal battle with the Daily Mail are bad news for the Prince.Read Connor Stringer's interview with Donald Trump hereWe want to hear from you! Email us at [email protected] or find @dailytpodcast on TikTok, Instagram and X► Sign up to our most popular newsletter, From the Editor. Look forward to receiving free-thinking comment and the day's biggest stories, every morning. telegraph.co.uk/fromtheeditorProducers: Georgia Coan and Lilian FawcettExecutive Producer: Charlotte SeligmanVideo Producer: Andy MackenzieStudio Operator: Meghan SearleSocial Media Producer: Nada Aggour Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

The BBC has admitted to the Telegraph that it knew of allegations against Scott Mills almost a year ago but failed to investigate.The corporation had claimed it terminated the Radio 2 presenter's contract as soon as it learned of the allegations of serious sexual offences against a teenage boy between 1997 and 2000.But as The Telegraph's associate editor Gordon Rayner tells The Daily T, a former BBC presenter contacted the corporation in May 2025 to say she had received information about alleged “inappropriate communications” involving Mills.She did not receive a response, and today the BBC admitted her information “should have been followed up and we should have asked further questions”. We explore what this latest scandal means for the beleaguered broadcaster.We want to hear from you! Email us at [email protected] or find @dailytpodcast on TikTok, Instagram and X► Sign up to our most popular newsletter, From the Editor. Look forward to receiving free-thinking comment and the day's biggest stories, every morning. telegraph.co.uk/fromtheeditorProducers: Georgia Coan and Lilian FawcettSenior Producer: John CadiganExecutive Producer: Charlotte SeligmanVideo Producer: Andy MackenzieStudio Operator: Meghan SearleSocial Media Producer: Nada Aggour Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

The Government could cut your energy bills by drilling more in the North Sea, says shadow energy secretary Claire Coutinho, but chooses not to; ideologically wedded to net zero, they instead prefer to view production of oil and gas as “climate vandalism”.Coutinho scriticises Ed Milliband for failing to use Britain’s own resources to keep energy cheap, and that in many cases his drive for net zero has ‘eradicated common sense’ when it comes to energy policy.Elsewhere, Gordon Rayner updates Tim and Rachel on the latest in the Morgan McSweeney stolen phone saga, with the Met Police announcing that they are reopening the investigation into the theft.We want to hear from you! Email us at [email protected] or find @dailytpodcast on TikTok, Instagram and X► Sign up to our most popular newsletter, From the Editor. Look forward to receiving free-thinking comment and the day's biggest stories, every morning. telegraph.co.uk/fromtheeditorProducers: Georgia Coan and Lilian FawcettSenior Producer: John CadiganExecutive Producer: Charlotte SeligmanVideo Producer: Andy MackenzieStudio Operator: Meghan SearleSocial Media Producer: Nada Aggour Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Labour has promised a tougher approach to migration, but it seems too little, too late.On Friday, Shabana Mahmood has unveiled new restrictions on visas and asylum rules as pressure grows to tackle record numbers of migrants in taxpayer-funded accommodation. Yet proposals to offer failed applicants up to £40,000 to leave the UK have triggered a backlash within Labour, with figures such as Angela Rayner questioning the approach.Rachel Johnson and Tim are joined by Zia Yusuf, Reform’s home affairs spokesman, to discuss whether the Government has lost control its immigration system, and what a more robust alternative might look like if his party gets into power.He also argues for a ban on face coverings in public, saying it would improve security and strengthen social cohesion in a “western liberal democracy”.We want to hear from you! Email us at [email protected] or find @dailytpodcast on TikTok, Instagram and X► Sign up to our most popular newsletter, From the Editor. Look forward to receiving free-thinking comment and the day's biggest stories, every morning. telegraph.co.uk/fromtheeditorProducers: Georgia Coan and Lilian FawcettSenior Producer: John CadiganExecutive Producer: Charlotte SeligmanVideo Producer: Andy MackenzieStudio Operator: Meghan SearleSocial Media Producer: Nada AggourEditor: Camilla Tominey Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Sir Keir Starmer has called for Nick Timothy, the shadow Lord Chancellor, to be sacked after he described a Ramadan prayer event in Trafalgar Square as “an act of domination” from an “Islamist playbook”.The row has exposed divisions within the Conservatives. Leader Kemi Badenoch backed Mr Timothy, while James Cleverly, a fellow shadow secretary, distanced himself from the remarks.Tim Stanley and Rachel Johnson are joined by the man himself to unpack the political fallout of his comments for the first time since they were posted and ask whether this is a debate about integration and public religion – or a misstep that risks deepening community divisions.We want to hear from you! Email us at [email protected] or find @dailytpodcast on TikTok, Instagram and X► Sign up to our most popular newsletter, From the Editor. Look forward to receiving free-thinking comment and the day's biggest stories, every morning. telegraph.co.uk/fromtheeditorProducers: Georgia Coan and Lilian FawcettSenior Producer: John CadiganExecutive Producer: Charlotte SeligmanVideo Producer: Andy MackenzieStudio Operator: Meghan SearleSocial Media Producer: Nada AggourEditor: Camilla Tominey Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.