Exits from PM's team reveal dysfunction in Downing St

The departure of Nin Pandit, the third senior figure to quit in just 10 months, reflects a government struggling to keep on top of the agenda, writes political editor David Maddox

- David Maddox

Nin Pandit, who was the principal private secretary in No 10 and ran the prime minister's team, was not a household name by any means, but nevertheless she was an important cog in Sir Keir Starmer’s Downing Street operation.

Her departure came while the prime minister was away on holiday in what might be a poor attempt at keeping his fingerprints off it, but her sudden exit has underlined a growing sense of dysfunction at the core of this Labour government.

After all, this is now the third senior figure in Starmer’s inner circle effectively to be shown the door in less than a year.

Last October, Sue (now Baroness) Gray was forced out after what appeared to be a power struggle with her replacement, Morgan McSweeney.