Louise Haigh resigns: ‘If Starmer wanted to keep her, he would have done so'
Louise Haigh has resigned as transport secretary, over a ten-year-old incident involving a mugging and a mobile phone – but is there more to the story?
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Read time: 4 mins
In brief…
- Haigh stepped down, having told Starmer of the incident while he was leader of the opposition, but not again when she became transport secretary.
- The News Agents describe the situation as “odd” and “curious”
- They say this is a “developing story” and believe there are details that aresurrounded in mystery.
What's the story?
Louise Haigh has resigned as transport secretary, after a guilty plea she made in relation to a fraud charge 10 years ago became public knowledge.
Haigh told police in 2013 that her work mobile phone was stolen during a "terrifying" mugging, but later found it at home. She says that not telling her employer at the time was "a mistake".
The incident took place before she became an MP. Haigh will be replaced by Heidi Alexander on the government's front bench.
"I appreciate that whatever the facts of the matter, this issue will inevitably be a distraction from delivering on the work of this government and the policies to which we are both committed," Haigh wrote in her resignation letter.
She added she remains "totally committed" to Keir Starmer's government, and that she is "sorry to leave under these circumstances".
Starmer replied to say he believes Haigh still has a "huge contribution to make in the future".
It is believed that Starmer and the Labour leadership had been aware of the 2013 incident since 2020, but it was only reported in the press this week.
Haigh reportedly did not tell the government’s ethics team when she became a cabinet minister in the summer of 2024, allegedly believing having told Starmer while in opposition would suffice.
Why is this story of such interest?
Jon Sopel describes the situation as "odd", to Lewis Goodall, it's all a bit "curious".
Lewis says MPs are now "confused" by the situation, and that there are concerns Starmer is "setting the bar so low for resignation, that this is going to come and bite him."
He also says there are concerns from left-leaning Labour MPs, with Haigh having been considered one of the more liberal members of Starmer's government – before this week.
"With the Starmer leadership and Morgan McSweeney and so on, there is concern this was in some way factional, and that they were displeased with her," he adds.
"She had been the minister at the centre of the P&O ferries row, where she said that she would boycott them, and then had to walk that back.
"Perhaps this has been used as an opportunity to say goodbye."
Both Jon and Lewis describe this as a “developing story”, and one where the full details are not yet clear.
What’s The News Agents’ take?
Yet again, this doesn’t look good for Keir Starmer.
“Starmer does have a problem – he sounded great when he was in opposition, about the principles, cleaning up of the government, but then the reality of governing is always messy,” says Jon.
As opposition leader, he had criticised Boris Johnson, telling the former Tory leader that politicians cannot be both a lawmaker, and a law breaker.
“So we are to believe that Keir Starmer had in his cabinet – and was fully aware – a law breaker, and not just a kind of fixed penalty notice, but a criminal offense,” questions Jon.
“I think it's fair to say that if Starmer had wanted to keep her, he could have expended some political capital to do so,” says Lewis.
“But he clearly didn't want to expend any political capital at all.
“One way or the other, there is a reason for that.”