No 10 insiders answer your questions on how Westminster really works – from pressure on the PM to political infighting

A.With Labor facing the worst local election results of any party this century, readers turned to former Downing Street insiders Helen MacNamara and Cleo Watson earlier this week for an inside look at the political pressures facing Keir Starmer, No 10 and the wider Westminster establishment.

Recently, at our Ask Me Anything event, the duo said, Independentpolitics podcast in the room – answered questions on everything from Starmer’s leadership and Labour’s communications struggles to the rise of Reform and the Greens, as well as the culture of No 10.

Helen offered an illuminating look at how power operates at the top of government, with Helen describing how civil servants react when they sense a prime minister is weakened and Cleo describing the “fearful and upset” atmosphere that can descend on Downing Street during political crises.

Readers also asked questions about Westminster’s drinking culture, the growing influence of social media on politics and whether Parliament is equipped to deal with misinformation in the digital age.

On Labor, both warned that the party faced deeper problems than messaging alone; Cleo argued that the government came into office without a proper implementation plan, while Helen said ministers struggled to make a convincing public case for their policies.

Other questions included Nigel Farage’s ambitions, the future of Brexit, whether Labor will eventually move towards rejoining the EU and what really determines whether a prime minister can survive politically.

Here are some of your questions and answers in a special Q&A.

The interior of No 10 and Westminster culture

Question: What’s the most surprising thing about working at No 10?

loz

Helen: How messy it probably is. The State Rooms don’t really stand up to close scrutiny, and are far away from them, behind the scenes, like a three-star hotel that’s gone a bit to seed…

Cleo: I think there’s an incredible amount of culture and history just sitting there. I remember once, while talking on the phone in the garden, I realized I was casually leaning against a Henry Moore statue.

There are some really cool details, like a piece of Moon rock gifted by the United States, or a note from Chilean miners in 2010 wrapped around a rock: “We’re all doing well in the bunker, 33.” A British team was instrumental in the rescue and another great thing floating around that you don’t often realize you’re running around being busy and important…

Q: What do you miss about working at Downing Street and what are you glad to avoid now?

Anonymous

Cleo: This time of year, the Army band is practicing for the Colored Troop in the Horse Guard. It becomes quite unnerving on the 50th listen, but it makes for a nice and rather strange backdrop to what is often a very worrying day.

In almost every respect, I don’t miss the job at all. Especially if your boss is having a terrible time and the atmosphere is fearful and sad. Especially, I don’t like being responsible for the WhatsApp message section of Mütevazı Address…

Helen: I’m not missing much and I don’t really want to go back there. However, it has been a real privilege to work on the big problems and issues facing the country and try to make things better, so I’m very glad I did it.

I have also met and worked with wonderful people who are dedicated public servants. And there was a lot of laughter along the way, too.

And I’m still working with Cleo!

Q: Is there a problematic drinking culture in Westminster?

Anonymous

Cleo: I saw this culture at its worst at my old job.

However, having a drink with colleagues can be a great way to build relationships, especially when you’ve been waiting all evening. While parliament works this way (starting late and finishing late), other formats don’t really work for people.

Frankly, there is too much alcohol around. Some people have sensible rules for themselves about not drinking “at work”; I did that and people didn’t really care.

People who turn to problematic behavior are often people who struggle with the culture of Parliament in general. Maybe reasonable hours could help with this.

Power, media and political survival

Question: What actually determines whether a Prime Minister will survive politically?

Anonymous

Helen: It may seem strange, but I think this mainly has to do with the character of the Prime Minister; it’s about what they already have in the bank in terms of goodwill with the people around them.

Mrs May lasted much longer than she could have because people didn’t like her that much and they didn’t have a better plan.

Before I saw it up close, I thought politics and government were determined by external forces. Now I think it depends a lot more on people and is a lot more random and chance-based than you might think.

Question: Do civil servants behave differently when they think a Prime Minister is weakening?

Robbie

Helen: Yes, in my experience they do; just like other people in the workplace dynamic.

For something that peddles power, the Civil Service isn’t well-versed in talking about it. If you think the Prime Minister is weak and what is asked of you is not exactly in line with what you think your Secretary of State or department is right to do, you will be less likely to be discouraged to deliver.

I imagine there’s some watching and waiting going on right now.

However, most civil servants work for their departmental bosses and are likely to respond to signals from them; So it depends on whether the Cabinet members act as if the Prime Minister is weak.

Question: Do politicians now care more about social media than newspaper front pages?

Anonymous

Helen: I think we can see from the reactions to Zack Polanski’s tweets last week how much of the debate is in brief synapse responses during the day.

I can’t imagine it’s possible for politicians to only care about the next day’s headlines anymore. It means less when fewer people actually buy the article in person. The front page attracted much more attention when moved or left at home all week.

It’s all very loud, and part of the point is that even if politicians themselves stay off social media, the people around them will tell them about the backlash, so it’s hard to ignore.

Question: Is Parliament equipped to deal with fake news?

Anonymous

Helen: That’s one of the things I worry about; It’s not just fake news, it’s how far we are from people having access to reliable sources.

It is worrying how much of parliamentary responses have been cropped to create the wrong impression on social media. It is possible to do the opposite using the truth image.

I think it is even more important that MPs tell the truth and set the record straight. More powers for the House of Commons Library to correct the record and hide the truth.

Labor, Starmer and the changing political landscape

Question: What happens internally if Labor performs poorly in local elections?

Anonymous

Cleo: Ultimately, it will be a weekend where we will wait and see.

Potential contestants can then decide whether to make a move. But no one will want to go first, and the moment may pass before you know it.

One thing worth thinking about is that if the results are as bad as predicted for Labor, the internal party machinery is in trouble. Councilors are crucial to winning elections because they do a lot of preparation. Anger levels (less likely to be reported to the media) will turn into a red warning sign lit at number 10.

Question: Why does Labor struggle to publicize its achievements?

Anonymous

Helen: Often “communication” is an excuse used when ideas or policies are bad.

I think Labor has done some good things but they are stuck in the old way of announcing things and moving on when they should be making a case for their arguments.

I don’t think they chose the right things to highlight. Investing in social housing is great but where are the stories about how the homes are built?

They need simpler messages and are trying to win some arguments.

Question: Is Labor still shaped by the Blair era?

ChittieChat

Cleo: I think the real problem is that Labor has not come up with a proper plan.

You can have ideas – this is where I think the Blair gang made themselves useful as they prepared for government – ​​but you also have Day 1, Day 10 etc to implement them. You also need plans.

On the “special relationship” issue, we are certainly slow to identify where power is shifting. But most importantly, we are emotional. Common language and history may perhaps carry us through when it comes to economics.

Q: What do you think about the claims about Labor Together and the “10 commitments”?

JeeJ

Cleo: We recently prepared an episode of Labor Together. A very interesting organization.

My experience with similar books focusing on conservatives is that a certain amount of salt needs to be toned down.

People don’t pay attention to these things unless they really want to or something changes the public’s interest in a story.

Q: What decision can Starmer not afford to make wrong in the next six months?

Anonymous

Helen: Focus on the consequences of the oil crisis, how to minimize the impact and how to benefit from it.

If, instead of seeing governments make smart choices in anticipation of the inevitable, they have to listen to a prime minister explain why everything is terrible next winter, this will further destroy people’s faith in government and democracy.

Question: Can Labor commit to rejoining the EU?

Anonymous

Helen: From where we stand right now, I wouldn’t be that surprised if they did that.

Considering the polls in the EU, this could be a good differentiator for them in the next election. They go much closer than I thought possible; Dynamic alignment with the EU is a far cry from the kind of Brexit that Parliament voted for in 2019/20.

Four years ago I would have said it was impossible, but now I think it is possible.

Opposition and the wider political landscape

Question: Could the Greens become as big a problem for Labor as Reform?

Anonymous

Cleo: Yes definitely. The strategy so far has clearly focused on moving away from Reform, but the Greens are coming and the problem for the Prime Minister is that most of his own MPs will agree with much of what he has to say.

This week in the capsule we talked a little bit about Trump and Mamdani in New York. They are very different ends of the spectrum but – perhaps a metaphor for the Labor Party – they got along quite well when they met at the White House!

Question: Could Kemi Badenoch or Nigel Farage realistically become Prime Minister?

Anonymous

Cleo: Unless something strange happens, I can’t see the Conservatives returning to government for a long time.

Kemi Badenoch appears to be making progress, but I think the Conservatives are delusional if they think she has a realistic chance of becoming Prime Minister.

By all accounts Nigel Farage is considering a more serious plan to govern than the current Labor government did before taking office; but if the character is destiny, we just need to look at how his team fights on a regular basis.

As a result, I do not foresee “strong and stable leadership” yet…

These questions and answers were part of a study. ‘Ask Me Anything‘ Hosted by Helen MacNamara and Cleo Watson On Wednesday, May 6. Some questions and answers have been edited for this article. You can read the full discussion here original article.