The prime minister says he "never authorised" attacks on Cabinet members, after briefings from Number 10 that Health Secretary Wes Streeting was mounting a leadership bid.
Speaking to MPs at Prime Minister’s Questions on Wednesday, Starmer said: "I’ve never authorised attacks on Cabinet members. I appointed them to their post because they’re the best people to carry out their jobs."
Starmer criticised the briefings as "unacceptable", and defended Streeting saying "the health secretary is getting on with his job and doing a very good job."
Conservative leader Kemi Badenoch said Starmer’s government has "descended into civil war",
She told MPs: “He says these attacks aren’t authorised, that means he’s lost control of Number 10, because that’s where they’re coming from.
“The real scandal is that two weeks from a budget, the government has descended into a civil war, instead of fixing the economy the mess they’ve made of the economy."
Speaking at the NHS Providers conference in Manchester, Streeting declined to say whether he believed Downing Street chief of staff Morgan McSweeney was responsible for the “toxic” culture in No 10.
Streeting said: “I am not going to add to the toxic culture by contributing to the toxic culture and going after individuals. I don’t think that is a constructive or positive thing to do.
“One thing I would say to Morgan McSweeney is there wouldn’t be a Labour government without him.”
Streeting has denied wanting to oust Starmer, calling for the Number 10 official he says is responsible for the briefings to be sacked.
Streeting has been at the centre of rumours that he was about to mount a bid to take Starmer’s job, but his spokesperson categorically denied such a move on Tuesday, and Streeting himself ruled it out on Wednesday.
Speaking to ITV News, Streeting said: "What we’ve seen from Downing Street overnight are a series of categorically untrue briefings, whoever’s behind this has been watching far too much Celebrity Traitors."
