Angela Rayner

The Convict had escaped, so the Tory and Labour deputies ran through the motions in a knockabout that was pure ritual.

Here was the chance for anyone in No 10 – or elsewhere – to come forward without being fearful of being nobbled by Johnson or the cabinet secretary for speaking out. I can list at least 10 times Boris has lied to MPs, the police and the country without breaking into a sweat. Shame Dom hadn’t bothered to listen to The Marriage of Figaro himself. First with Raab trying to think of all the things the Tories had done – er, keep inflation below 10%, increase the overall tax burden, that sort of thing – while insisting the Tories wanted Boris to stay leader longer than Labour wanted Keir, and with Rayner inviting the Conservatives to call a general election if they felt so invincible. All of which made for a somewhat low-key PMQs. With Starmer and the Convict there’s always a personal undercurrent. Rayner suggested the timing must have been perfect for Johnson as he was desperate to leave the country after two humiliating byelection defeats. He had his chance back in 2019 and the Tories wisely decided that having a not-very-bright psychopath with anger management issues was not the best look for their party. File this PMQs as occupational therapy for a minister who has reached the end of his political career in his 40s. And if the police do exonerate them, there will be no vacancy for Rayner to fill as Labour is highly unlikely to have another leadership contest before the next election. There was a time when a PMQs between the two deputies might have had some edge. Raab would probably have given PMQs a miss too if he had been given the chance. But with the Convict away in Madrid at the Nato summit, it was largely a B-list affair.

The two deputies offered nothing to inspire as they dragged up embarrassing quotations from their opponent's past.

Think about them for once instead of yourselves.” Indeed. But at least Rayner and Raab seemed to have a good time. Rayner and Raab were content to throw personal pot-shots and derivative talking points across the despatch box. It was the battle of the deputies at PMQs today.

The deputy Labour leader joked she 'would never unsee' the gesture made across the Commons floor.

“I’d revel in the opportunity for the people of this country to have more than just by-elections to see what they think of this Government,” she said. But Ms Rayner said it was “no wonder that the Prime Minister has fled the country and left the honourable member to carry the can” given the Tories dismal poll numbers. The Deputy Prime Minister suggested Ms Rayner was a “champagne socialist” for attending opera during the national rail walkout last week.

Labour deputy leader Angela Rayner warned Justice Secretary Dominic Raab to "cut out the snobbery" after PMQs clash in which he winked at her.

He accused Ms Rayner of having “flip-flopped” in her position on the strikes, then before winking at Labour's deputy leader, went on: “She talks about working people. The Prime Minister is at a NATO summit in the wake of losing both Wakefield and Tiverton and Honiton by-elections to Labour and the Lib Dems respectively. The Deputy Prime Minister, who winked at the Labour frontbencher in the Commons, was accused of sexism and snobbery after he attacked Ms Rayner over her visit to East Sussex's Glyndebourne opera house.

It came when he accused her of 'champagne socialism', saying she was at the opera while rail workers were striking. The comment was in response to Deputy Labour ...

We’re the ones supporting Ukraine with sanctions on Russia, with military support.’ He accused Ms Rayner of having ‘flip-flopped’ in her position on the strikes, adding: ‘She talks about working people. Where was she when the comrades were on the picket line last Thursday? Where was she when the Labour frontbench were joining them rather than standing up for the public?

Angela Rayner challenged Boris Johnson to call a general election as she claimed Britons will have endured 55 tax rises if he were to stay in post…

“Now, let’s imagine the Prime Minister is still clinging on into the 2030s. So, does he think the Cabinet will prop him up for this long?” It’s no wonder that the Prime Minister has fled the country and left the honourable member to carry the can.