logo
episode-header-image
Feb 2025
40m 10s

Labour WhatsApps: "If you’ve got racist ...

SKY NEWS
About this episode
Do MPs say one thing in public, and another in private? This week, Beth Rigby, Harriet Harman and Ruth Davidson ask what’s been going on with the two MPs suspended from the Labour party over WhatsApps messages containing offensive comments.  

Andrew Gwynne and Oliver Ryan both lost the whip after Sunday newspaper revelations. 
It’s been a difficult week for Harriet – she's worked with Andrew Gwynne for a number of years and says it’s made her question her judgement.  

Also – are we about to see by elections as a result? 

And in the week the assisted dying debate is back in the news, we discuss the repercussions of the plan to scrap the need for High Court approval after Beth speaks to the MP who has campaigned for the changes, Labour’s Kim Leadbeater. 

Email us at electoraldysfunction@sky.uk, post on X to @BethRigby, or send a WhatsApp voice note on 07934 200 444.     

Watch us on Youtube too - new videos every week here.
Up next
Jul 24
Is the Burnham government starting to feel like The Traitors?
In appointing his new cabinet Andy Burnham has removed many of Keir Starmer's faithfuls, including previously key figures like Rachel Reeves and Darren Jones.And critics feel 'traitors' who had tried to destabilise the recently departed PM are being rewarded for their disloyalty. ... Show More
45 m
Jul 22
Did a "difficult woman" upset Andy Burnham's cabinet plans?
We didn't get details of Andy Burnham's top team until most people had gone to bed... so why did it take so long?Beth, Jess, Harriet and Ruth discuss whether some ministers negotiated for different jobs – and whether nobody wanted to be justice secretary.Harriet also has stern wo ... Show More
38m 11s
Jul 17
Has Starmer done Burnham any favours?
We're in a transition as Andy Burnham becomes Labour leader three days before he becomes Prime Minister.In Ukraine, Beth Rigby asks the outgoing PM, Keir Starmer, about why he chose to see President Zelenskyy on his final foreign trip.Ruth Davidson and Harriet Harman hold the Ele ... Show More
45m 41s
Recommended Episodes
Feb 2019
Labour splits: what now?
tail spinning
32m 53s
Apr 2022
Misogyny in Parliament
MPs have condemned claims made about Labour's deputy leader, Angela Rayner, as misogynistic. MP Kim Leadbeater tells Adam why stories like this put women off politics and she shares her own experiences of Parliament. Also, millions of people in Beijing are being tested for Covid ... Show More
33m 7s
Jun 2023
'Partygate' rears its ugly head again
Today sees a moment of reckoning for Britain, as parliament votes on a report condemning former Prime Minister Boris Johnson for deliberately lying about how his own team flouted Covid rules. The result could have imposed a 90-day suspension on Johnson, but he pre-emptively resig ... Show More
56m 16s
Jul 2023
How To Punish Politicians
<p>Matt is joined by the Parliamentary Commissioner for Standards Daniel Greenberg, the man in charge of investigating politicians behaviour. He discusses whether MPs' conduct is getting worse or not, and the possible punishments he could hand down to those that break the rules.< ... Show More
43m 17s
May 2024
Starmer's left-wing problem
<p>Diane Abbott is barred from standing as a Labour candidate in the General Election...or is she? Camilla and Kamal address the confusion over whether the veteran MP will be allowed to stand for Labour in July and why the Labour left is still creating problems for Sir Keir Starm ... Show More
30m 44s
Feb 2022
WhatsApp Wagatha?
Vardy’s "nasty" messages were not about Rooney, apparently... Victoria Derbyshire sits in for Adam and chats to the Guardian Media Editor, Jim Waterson, about all things "Wagatha Christie". Prof Peter Openshaw (who advises the Government on Covid) tells us what he thinks about Bo ... Show More
29m 35s
Sep 2023
We need to talk about GB News
Laurence Fox's weird sexist rant last night on GB News got short shrift from the organisation which immediately suspended him from the platform, and followed on later by suspending their presenter, Dan Wootton.But GB news has still got plenty of presenters on its books who spout ... Show More
39m 51s