25/04/2026
The Week in Westminster
BBC
4.0 • 258 Ratings
🗓️ 25 April 2026
⏱️ 28 minutes
🧾️ Download transcript
Summary
George Parker analyses the latest developments at Westminster.
To discuss the ongoing row over the appointment of Peter Mandelson as US Ambassador, and what it means for the Prime Minister's authority, George is joined by Labour MP, Preet Gill, and former Conservative Attorney General, Dominic Grieve.
This week the Assisted Dying Bill was finally laid to rest after it ran out of time in the House of Lords. To discuss whether the legislative campaign is over George speaks to one of the Bill's supporters, Green MP Ellie Chowns, and Ruth Fox, director of the Hansard Society.
The Commons and Lords were engaged in some parliamentary ping pong this week on the issue of banning social media for under 16s. Former Conservative Schools Minister, Lord Nash, debates with Labour MP, Helen Hayes, chair of the Education Select Committee.
And, as the Government announces that its new complaints system for upholding free speech in universities will come in to force later this year, George brings together former Conservative Cabinet minister, Sir Jacob Rees-Mogg, and Professor Alison Scott-Baumann of SOAS University of London.
Transcript
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| 0:00.0 | Welcome to this edition of the week in Westminster with me, George Parker from the Financial Times. |
| 0:12.3 | The political fever is rising at Westminster and nobody knows when or if it's going to break. |
| 0:19.3 | It's impossible to talk to any minister or MP |
| 0:21.8 | without swiftly coming to that very big question. |
| 0:25.2 | How long can the Prime Minister survive? |
| 0:28.2 | Secure Starmes planning to pull the plug on this session of Parliament next week. |
| 0:32.5 | Prorogation in the jargon. |
| 0:34.2 | Sending MPs back to their constituencies for a couple of weeks before the King's speech. |
| 0:39.1 | That means they won't be at Westminster, backbiting and plotting against his leadership, |
| 0:44.0 | on either side of what looked like treacherous elections for Labour in Scotland, Wales and England on May 7th. |
| 0:51.4 | We'll be looking at the last-minute legislative flurry taking place |
| 0:54.8 | before the shutters come down on Parliament. But we have to start with the biggest talking point, |
| 1:01.2 | the Mandelson Vessing Affair, the political fallout and its potential impact on Sarkir Stama's |
| 1:07.0 | future. On Monday, the Prime Minister's explanation of this sorry saga was initially listened to by |
| 1:13.2 | MPs in respectful silence. |
| 1:16.0 | But then, Sarkir said this. |
| 1:17.8 | Mr Speaker, I know many members across the House will find these facts to be incredible. |
| 1:37.3 | To that, I can only say they are right. It beggars belief that throughout the whole timeline of events officials in the Foreign Office saw fit to withhold |
| 1:46.5 | this information from the most senior ministers in our system in government. Yes, MPs did find |
| 1:52.5 | the whole thing incredible. Why had Sir Keir appointed the scandal magnate Mandelson in the first |
| 1:58.3 | place? Why had Sir Ollie Robbins, the head of the Foreign Office, |
| 2:01.5 | not told Downing Street about the red flags raised in the vetting process? The next day, Sir Ollie, |
... |
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