'PM's relaunch was plunged into chaos by his colourful deputy...his first 14 months have been an abject failure. He's decided to tear up his plan and start again'

THIS was the week that Sir Keir Starmer hoped to relaunch his Government and put the disasters of his first 14 months in power behind him.

- JONATHAN WALKER

He announced the start of “Phase 2”, with a focus on “delivering” for the British people. It was a bit of spin designed to suggest bringing a new team into No10 was all part of a long-term plan rather than a devastating admission of failure.

But Sir Keir’s Government was plunged into chaos by his colourful deputy Angela Rayner after she was forced to resign for failing to pay £40,000 in stamp duty that should have gone to the taxman.

The Prime Minister has now been forced to carry out a comprehensive reshuffle, something he had been hoping to put off. Britain today has a new Foreign Secretary, Home Secretary and Justice Secretary.

Ms Rayner has her fans. She’s a working class northern woman who struggled against adversity after becoming a single mum at 16. She did not reach the highest levels of Government without a lot of hard work. But many people at Westminster found it hard to sympathise. She was first in the queue to point the finger at Tories, who she famously described as a “bunch of scum” when they were accused of wrongdoing.

Even so, Ms Rayner’s resignation makes Sir Keir’s problems worse. She was a valuable ally and her presence around the Cabinet table reassured traditional Labour activists who liked her, but struggled to warm to Sir Keir, a lawyer who grew up in leafy Surrey.

And even before she fell on her sword, the Prime Minister’s relaunch was not fooling anybody. He set out the Government's three priorities on Tuesday, telling his Cabinet to focus on economic growth that people “feel in their pockets”, secure borders and improving the NHS. The task of overseeing “delivery” now falls to Darren Jones, previously No2 in the Treasury and this week appointed to the newly-created role of Chief Secretary to the Prime Minister.