Mandarin mayhem

Starmer’s judgment comes under scrutiny after more close aides leave office

An episode of the Political Fix podcast, hosted by Financial Times, titled "Mandarin mayhem" was published on February 13, 2026 and runs 31 minutes.

February 13, 2026 ·31m · Political Fix

Summary

After another torrid week for the prime minister, the focus has shifted from No 10 to Whitehall as the UK’s top civil servant is shown the door. Cabinet secretary Sir Chris Wormald had been in the job for less than 14 months, and his departure — following the resignations of Sir Keir Starmer’s chief of staff and communications director — has intensified questions about the PM’s judgment over key appointments.While Starmer’s cabinet appears to have rallied behind him in the short term, the impending release of further documents relating to Lord Peter Mandelson’s time as UK ambassador to the US looms large. Host Lucy Fisher is joined by the FT’s deputy opinion editor Miranda Green, columnist and writer of the Inside Politics newsletter Stephen Bush and public policy editor Chris Smyth.Follow: Lucy @LOS_Fisher and @lucyfisher.ft.com; Stephen @stephenkb and @stephenkb.bsky.social; Miranda @greenmiranda and @greenmirandahere.bsky.social; & Chris @Smyth_Chris and @chris-smyth.bsky.socialWant more?  Keir Starmer faces backlash over ousting of Britain’s top civil servantPolitical crises lead to ‘perma-purdah’ in WhitehallWestminster fears release of ‘embarrassing’ exchanges in Mandelson data dumpKeir Starmer’s route to recoveryThe Labour Party has become devoid of purposeSign up here for Stephen’s morning newsletter Inside Politics for straight-talking insight into the stories that matter, plus puns and tongue (mostly) in cheek views. Get 30 days free.Political Fix is presented by Lucy Fisher and produced by Clare Williamson. The executive producer is Flo Phillips. Audio mix by Sean McGarrity. Original music by Breen Turner. The FT’s head of audio is Cheryl Brumley. Our email address is [email protected] from Channel 4 News Read a transcript of this episode on FT.com Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Episode Description