The Keir Starmer Briefing Wars
Newscast
BBC
4.4 • 6.4K Ratings
🗓️ 13 November 2025
⏱️ 35 minutes
🧾️ Download transcript
Summary
Today we look at the latest in claims of briefings coming out of Number 10.
The prime minister's chief of staff Morgan McSweeney was not involved "directly or indirectly" in briefings against cabinet ministers and will not be leaving his job, sources have told the BBC.
Some in government have blamed McSweeney for being the source of the briefings.
McSweeney has not responded to calls for comment but people who have spoken to him have told the BBC: "He's done absolutely nothing wrong. He's not going anywhere."
To discuss it, Adam is joined by chief political correspondent, Henry Zeffman and Tom Baldwin, former senior Labour adviser and author of ‘Keir Starmer: The Biography’.
This episode of Newscast was recorded as part of our 25-hour Podcast-a-thon for Children in Need.
Newscast brings you daily analysis of the latest political news stories from the BBC. The presenter was Adam Fleming. It was made by Jack Maclaren with Anna Harris and Shiler Shiler Mahmoudi. The social producer was Grace Braddock. The technical producer was Hannah Montgomery. The assistant editor is Chris Gray. The senior news editor is Sam Bonham.
Transcript
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| 0:00.0 | BBC Sounds, Music, Radio, Podcasts. |
| 0:06.8 | Hello there, it's Adam in the Newscast Studio, and we're about to record this episode of |
| 0:11.4 | Newscast just before 3pm on Thursday. |
| 0:14.8 | Now, I've actually been in here since 8am on Thursday, because we've been doing this |
| 0:19.9 | Children in Need Challenge set for us by Pudsey |
| 0:23.5 | where he said could you do a 25 hour long episode of newscast? |
| 0:27.6 | So we have been streaming a constant supply of newscast-like material |
| 0:32.6 | on BBC Sounds and IPlayer since 8 o'clock this morning. |
| 0:36.7 | And in the middle of it all, we made the episode of Newscast that you're going to hear now. Newscast. Newscast from the BBC. Fat boy sliver me in the classroom doing our violin lessons. I was the tappletail in the class. Can I have an apology, please? I trust almost nobody. Then daddy has to sometimes do strong language. Next time in Moscow. I feel delulu with no salulu. |
| 0:56.6 | Take me down to Downey Street. Let's go have a tour. Blimey. |
| 1:01.7 | Hello, it's Adam in the newscast studio where I've been for many, many hours. And I'm very |
| 1:06.0 | pleased to say, Henry Zephman is joining me from Westminster to keep me company. Hello, Henry. |
| 1:10.3 | Hello, and I'm in a studio where I've been on and off for very many hours, but not constantly. |
| 1:14.7 | And yeah, I don't know how you're doing it. |
| 1:16.8 | Can I ask you a question, by the way, that I should have asked weeks ago? |
| 1:19.4 | Yeah. |
| 1:19.8 | Why is it 25 hours, not 24? |
| 1:22.1 | Because that is the number for children in need this year because it's 2025. |
| 1:25.8 | So do 25 for children in need this year because it's 2025. So do 25 for children in need. |
| 1:28.1 | I see. I bet you wish you podcasts had been invented in 2004. Well, four hours wouldn't really |
| 1:33.2 | be that impressive. Would have been then. Podcasting hadn't even been invented yet. I should |
| 1:38.7 | just say for anyone who hasn't seen the podcastathon, but we'd like to see where we've got up to |
... |
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