Politics latest: 'We've lost a true giant': Sir Keir Starmer pays tribute to John Prescott after he dies aged 86 (2025)

John Prescott's death has many looking back upon one of the most infamous moments of his political career.

In 2001, the then deputy prime minister was out on Labour's general election campaign trail in Rhyl.

He was attending a rally filled with supporters on the day the party had launched its manifesto, but first he had to get through a group of rural protesters outside that included one man, Craig Evans.

As he moved through the crowd, Evans launched an egg straight at Prescott's head, and in turn, he turned and, in his own words, gave him "an instinctive boxer's jab with the left fist".

Former Labour spin doctor Alastair Campbell recalled the moment with Sky News a little earlier...

We're bouncing between three live events in the Politics Hub this morning, including the prime minister in the Commons to the defence secretary facing his committee.

Lest we forget former health secretary Matt Hancock, who's up before the ongoing COVID Inquiry - here are a few titbits from him:

Interference from No 10

Mr Hancock has used his appearance to bemoan the "incredible difficulties" caused by Number 10 during the pandemic.

He was asked about previous comments in which he'd said there was "inappropriate political interference".

The biggest impact of that alleged interference was on testing, he said today, saying "some of the political appointees" in Boris Johnson's administration "caused incredible difficulties".

He didn't elaborate on who he was referring to.

Ruffled feathers

It's fair to say there were reports of some strained relations within government during the pandemic.

Noting again that allegation of "interference", Mr Hancock's told the inquiry he "ruffled some feathers" in order to protect the NHS from "people being difficult in Number 10".

He wanted to maintain the "independence" of the health service, he said, and saw his job as providing "a shield".

He denied trying to paint a "rosy picture" of how the NHS was doing during the pandemic, and said the "enormous pressure" it faced was a regular talking point with the then PM, Mr Johnson.

Challenging advice

One thing that was unclear as COVID emerged was whether it could be transmitted asymptomatically.

Mr Hancock has claimed today he was told in daily meetings that "tests won't work if people don't have symptoms".

"I challenged the advice from Public Health England repeatedly," he said, noting how the guidance was later changed.

While "the whole global clinical system was trying to say there's no asymptomatic transmission", Mr Hancock said he "kept seeing straws in the wind" that challenged that point.

We're now hearing from backbenchers in the Commons, who are posing questions to Sir Keir Starmer around foreign policy.

Tom Tugendhat, the Conservative MP, refers to the case of British citizen Jimmy Lai, who is detained in Hong Kong.

He says: "There are Hong Kongers here in the UK today who are threatened by the Chinese state... and it is his job to protect the people of this country, not to bow to Beijing."

In response, Sir Keir says: "Defending the people of this country is what we do every day.

"Raising these important issues is the right way to do it, I was very clear about what I raised."

This brings the prime minister's statement to an end.

Responding to Sir Keir Starmer, Conservative leader Kemi Badenoch accuses Labour of a "pick and mix of empty platitudes".

She says that the people of Ukraine remain in the UK's thoughts, but these thoughts must "translate into actions".

However, Ms Badenoch says: "At the G20 the prime minister was not able to achieve his goal of leaders doubling down on Ukraine support.

"As Chancellor Scholz said, 'it is too little when the G20 cannot find the words to make it clear Russia is responsible for the war'."

She adds that, after Sir Keir's meeting with Chinese President Xi, she was surprised not to hear the prime minister condemn the imprisonment of pro-democracy activists in Hong Kong.

Turning to COP29, the Tory leader asks when Sir Keir will publish the plans to "achieve this new target" to cut emissions.

"When this government does the right thing, well back it," she says.

"It is time for politicians to tell the truth, and it is time the prime minister provides some substance to back this costly rhetoric."

She says the prime minister's foreign policy is a "pick and mix of empty platitudes, unilateral commitments that he could have announced at home, and dangerous precedents".

Over in the Defence Select Committee, the Defence Secretary John Healey has painted a somewhat bleak picture of the situation in Ukraine.

He says the front line is "now less stable than at any time" since the early days of the invasion.

Mr Healey says there have been several escalations by Russia, including increased attacks on energy infrastructure ahead of winter, the deployment of at least 10,000 North Korean troops, the stepping up of attacks that have resulted in children being killed and the reported missile attack overnight.

The defence secretary does not confirm that the Russians fired a ballistic missile into Ukraine - merely saying it is being reported in the media.

But he says Russia has been planning to take such action for months.

In the wake of this, Mr Healey says the UK is stepping up its support for Ukraine.

Sir Keir Starmer now turns to his engagements at COP29 in Azerbaijan and the G20 in Brazil.

"We live in a dangerous and volatile world, we all wish that wasn't the case, but it is," he says.

"That means global problems are reaching into the lives of our constituents more and more. Climate change causes extreme weather, like the terrible floods we saw in September, and it drives down economic growth.

"Conflicts drive up the prices of fuel, of food and energy and threaten our stability and security.

"And both are drivers of migration," he says.

Sir Keir says at every meeting he had while abroad, he focused on these problems, to "deliver growth and security for the British people".

"At COP I made the case that we must act on climate change and nature loss, as some of the greatest long-term threats that we face," he says.

"And in doing so we must seize the opportunities of the low-carbon economy."

But, Sir Keir says, tackling climate change is a "global effort".

"So at the G20, together with Brazil and 10 other countries, I launched our global clean power alliance - to speed up the international roll-out of clean power."

Starmer hails 'constructive' talks with Chinese leader

The prime minister also mentions his bilateral meeting with Chinese President Xi, hailing the "first leader-level meeting between the UK and China for six years".

"We had a frank, constructive, pragmatic discussion as G20 economies and permanent members of the Security Council and at a time of huge volatility we both recognised the importance of engagement," Sir Keir says.

"I was clear that we will always act in our national interest.

"We need to work together on challenges like climate change and delivering growth. We agreed a new dialogue on these issues."

However, he says there will "continue to be areas where we don't agree, and we will address them clearly and frankly".

"We're better able to deal with problems, and the world is safer, when leaders talk."

UK 'won't be deterred' by Russian threats

Turning to Russian President Vladimir Putin, the prime minister says it "could not be more clear" that "this is a man that wants destruction, not peace".

"After 1,000 days of war... I am clear that we must double down in our support. We will not be deterred or distracted by reckless threats."

Sir Keir Starmer begins by paying tribute to former deputy prime minister John Prescott, who has died at the age of 86.

He says he awoke to the news that we have lost a "true giant in the Labour movement and of this House, a man who fought for working-class ambition because he lived it".

Sir Keir says Mr Prescott achieved a "rare thing" - he "changed people's lives and he set the path for us all to follow".

"I will always be grateful to him for that."

The prime minister adds that the former deputy did this all "in his own way", with "humour, pride, passion and total conviction - he truly was a one off".

We are leaving the COVID inquiry for a moment to focus on the House of Commons, where Sir Keir Starmer is giving a statement on his recent trips to Azerbaijan and Brazil.

Here, he attended the COP29 climate summit and the G20 gathering of international leaders.

We'll bring you updates on what the prime minister has to say - and you can watch live above.

In what is already a busy day in politics, the Defence Select Committee is questioning Defence Secretary John Healey this morning.

The session is well-timed for MPs on the panel - with the government announcing cuts to the armed forces yesterday.

These changes will surely come up, and the committee format gives a chance for more detail to be drawn from the secretary of state.

You can follow along at the link below.