Wes Streeting has said he felt he was “hitting up against a brick wall” when raising concerns about Gaza in government, following the release of private messages in which Peter Mandelson accused him of being “hysterical” on the issue.
The messages, disclosed as part of a huge document release relating to Mandelson’s appointment as ambassador to the US, showed Mandelson criticising Streeting to cabinet minister Pat McFadden. Mandelson described a message from Streeting as “a wild long hysterical message about Israel” and later called his intervention “pathetic”, suggesting Streeting was experiencing “an early mid-life crisis”.
Streeting, the former health secretary, told the Guardian he was “horrified by the war in Gaza” and had done everything he could behind the scenes to push for action. He shared a 22-page dossier containing graphic images of children with malnutrition and amputated limbs, compiled by doctors who had worked in Gaza.
“I wasn’t by any means the only cabinet minister pushing for action, but we often felt like we were hitting up against a brick wall. Our concerns and motives were dismissed,” Streeting said. He added that he was proud to be part of the government that eventually recognised a Palestinian state, but said “we took far too long to get there”.
Other messages revealed Mandelson describing Keir Starmer’s Downing Street as “beleaguered and bereft” and saying the prime minister “lacks verve”. McFadden also complained about Labour MPs asking “Who can we tax in order to pay benefits to others?”
Cabinet Office minister Nick Thomas-Symonds described the messages as “embarrassing” but said they were released due to the government’s commitment to comply with a humble address motion passed by MPs.
