Phillipson and Healey dominate airwaves from Starmer’s first cabinet

Bridget Phillipson and John Healey dominated the airwaves with the most broadcast rounds during Keir Starmer’s first cabinet, LabourList can reveal.

Analysis of morning broadcast rounds since Labour took office and the start of Keir Starmer’s first reshuffle last month found that the Education Secretary and Defence Secretary have been sent out to bat the most for TV and radio interviews, with 13 appearances each.

They were closely followed by four other ministers with 12 appearances; Health Secretary Wes Streeting, former Home Secretary Yvette Cooper, former Business Secretary Jonathan Reynolds and former Chancellor of the Duchy of Lancaster Pat McFadden.

A total of 55 ministers of varying seniority took part in the media morning round between July 5 last year and early September when the Prime Minister embarked on his first ministerial reshuffle.

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Ministers from the Home Office fielded the most broadcast rounds pre-reshuffle with 39 appearances, followed by the Treasury with 27, Education with 24, the Cabinet Office with 23 and Health and Social Care and Housing, Communities and Local Government tied with 22 each.

In the month after Starmer’s reshuffle at the start of September, Wes Streeting appeared on broadcast rounds the most with three appearances, followed by newly appointed Scottish Secretary Douglas Alexander with two and a selection of 17 other ministers with one each.

In the year to the end of September, John Healey, Jonathan Reynolds and Wes Streeting have made the most appearances on the airwaves, with nine broadcast round appearances each, followed by Bridget Phillipson, Matthew Pennycook and Yvette Cooper with eight each, and Heidi Alexander and Lisa Nandy with seven each.

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