Peter Walker

There was a world in which you could have clung on with a whole series of rolling cabinet resignations, you know, the kind of Boris Johnson way, but that's quite damaging for the party.

That's quite damaging for the country.

Walking up this street two years ago was the proudest moment of my life.

That was the kind of subtext he wanted to get across.

You lot are getting rid of me only two years after we won this massive general election.

One advantage for Berman is he's likely to take over just as the Commons recess kicks off.

I think he's going to be starting with a lot of goodwill from the parliamentary party, or at worst, people willing to give him a chance.

But to be fair, that was the position Keir Starmer was in a couple of years ago.

I was.

So I went down to Downing Street and it was already packed.

I mean, it's a usual thing.

You have the stills photographers with all their step ladders.

Then you have the TV crews or people broadcasting in Japanese, in French, in Chinese.

The Chinese state news agency was next to me.

There was not quite so many kind of print reporters like me.

There were people who wanted to be there and basically see the color because on the TV screen, you can't really tell quite what's going on.

It was a very brief speech.

It lasted about four or five minutes.

And when you have the transcript, it's only 750 words.

He packed quite a lot into it.