Starmer's Scandals Pile Up

This week on Craft Politics, we kick off our latest Issue Scan with a Prime Minister in crisis, a Conservative Party in retreat, and a Canadian housing announcement that somehow manages to add more bureaucracy to solve… bureaucracy. Plus, our favourite comms segment—Lipstick on a Gerbil—features an impossible task: defending Peter Mandelson. With Percy mostly frozen on screen (literally), Joseph and Holly carry the show. Here’s what’s inside: 🇬🇧 UK: Mandelson, Epstein, and the Labour Meltdown ❌ Peter Mandelson is sacked as UK ambassador to the US after emails surface linking him to convicted sex offender Jeffrey Epstein 🧨 Starmer’s judgment under fire—did he know more than he admitted during PMQs? 🗳 Backbench muttering begins. Is May 2026 the unofficial deadline for a leadership change? 📉 Labour infighting, ministerial fatigue, and growing pressure from Andy Burnham 🔁 Meanwhile, the Conservatives lose… to Reform 🧍‍♂️ MP Danny Kruger defects to Reform UK, declaring: “The Conservative Party is dead.” 🤷‍♀️ Holly isn’t so sure: is this the start of a cascade, or just posturing between conferences? 🇺🇸 US: The Shooting of Charlie Kirk 💥 A high-profile act of political violence rocks the U.S.—and spreads globally 📱 The power (and danger) of social media virality in shaping public fear 🛑 What it means for public office, political recruitment, and the future of civil discourse 🇨🇦 Canada: The PM’s Housing Blitz 🏘 Mark Carney launches Build Canada Homes, a new federal agency with a $13B mandate 📈 Goal: 4,000 factory-built homes across 6 sites, using federal land and Canadian materials 🏗 But is launching a new bureaucracy really the best way to fight bureaucracy? 💄 Lipstick on a Gerbil: The Matt Tapp Clip 🎤 Labour Minister Matt Tapp sent out to defend Peter Mandelson’s appointment… hours before the sacking 🐽 Did he even try to apply lipstick? Or did he wisely avoid putting his fingerprints on the mess?