'He's getting desperate!' Keir Starmer handed scathing takedown by top Tory as sleaze probe vote looms

Georgia Pearce
Tue, 28 Apr 2026 10:55:06 +0000

Alex Burghart has accused Sir Keir Starmer of "getting desperate" ahead of a key vote on a possible sleaze probe investigation.

Speaking to GB News, the Shadow Chancellor of the Duchy of Lancaster claimed that "a lot of Labour MPs are absolutely furious" with the Prime Minister for being "serially dishonest".

Ahead of the vote this afternoon into whether Sir Keir should be formally investigated into whether he misled MPs over the appointment of Lord Peter Mandelson, Mr Burghart declared it is "very obvious" what happened.

He told GB News: "The Conservatives have been leading on this, but we're working with all of the other opposition parties as well, because it's very obvious what's happened here. The Prime Minister has misled the House.

TRENDING

Stories

Videos

Your Say

"The Prime Minister lied to Parliament and then refused to admit that he'd done anything wrong, and so we're starting this formal process."

The Tory MP argued that it is "very clear" that Sir Keir has "something to hide" regarding the controversial appointment.

He said: "The vote today is just on whether that will be formally investigated by a cross-party group of MPs, and the fact that the Labour Party doesn't want that investigation to go ahead, it’s very clear that they've got something to hide, very clear that the Prime Minister's got something to hide.

"He's getting desperate, because he knows that if that committee looks into it, he'll be found guilty."

Turning to the Labour backbenchers, Mr Burghart accused the party whips of being "so uncertain" with how MPs are going to vote today.

He told GB News: "Nobody will know what the numbers are until we have the vote, because the Labour whips are clearly so uncertain that their MPs will support him that they've been calling them all night.

"Let's wait and see what happens later. We know that there are a lot of Labour MPs who are absolutely furious with this Prime Minister.

"They think he's been serially dishonest, they think that he's let the country down. They think he's let the Labour Party down."

LATEST DEVELOPMENTS

Ex-Foreign Office chief breaks silence on Lord Mandelson scandal as pressure mounts on Keir Starmer

Keir Starmer branded a 'dead duck' Prime Minister in scathing takedown by Tory MP

Tory declares the 'chickens are coming home to roost' as Keir Starmer faces vote: 'Nowhere to hide!'

Mr Burghart remained hopeful that some Labour backbenchers will take the opportunity to "do the right thing" and support an investigation.

He declared: "This is an opportunity for them to say, ‘Look, you need to be investigated. You've lied to the House, and you need to be held to account’.

"The Labour Party MPs on the backbenches have an opportunity to do the right thing today. We hope that they will."

Defending Sir Keir, Environment Secretary Emma Reynolds told GB News that it had been "categorically proven" that the Prime Minister neither lied to nor misled Parliament.

She made clear: "I do think that the Conservatives and other opposition parties are playing silly political games.

“As a Government, we have presented all the documents necessary to comply with the humble address. That process is ongoing. It has been categorically proven that the Prime Minister has not lied to Parliament."

A No10 spokesman told GB News: "The Government is engaging with the two parliamentary processes that are already running on Peter Mandelson’s appointment with full transparency.

"This is a desperate political stunt by the Conservative Party the week before the May elections because they have no answers on the cost of living or the NHS. Their claims have no substance."