'As long as the Prime Minister wants me, I will carry on doing the job,' Health Secretary Wes Streeting tells LBC
Wes Streeting has told LBC that "as long as [the Prime Minister] wants me, I will carry on doing the job” when asked about reports that the PM may want to remove him from post at the next Cabinet reshuffle.
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Speaking on Tonight with Andrew Marr, the Health Secretary said people should “never underestimate Keir Starmer” as he has a "total core of steel”.
"What I've seen from him is someone who is in it for the right reasons, really believes in public service, doesn't want to let the country down."
He also sought to play down rumours Sir Keir had been urged to get rid of his "distracting" Health Secretary and reassert his authority within the Labour Party, as reported in the Telegraph.
Commenting on this and the upcoming Cabinet reshuffle, Mr Streeting said: "And Downing street absolutely stamped on it. And that's why when I saw the storey on the Sunday, it's kind of water off the ducks back. And I think people should focus on the jobs that the Prime Minister has asked us to do."
He was then probed on it by Marr who said "Are you sure that Keir Starmer doesn't want you out?"
He replied: "Yes, I am, actually. And I'm proud to work for Keir Starmer. I'm proud of the progress we're making, but my goodness, the job is far from done and I love this job.
"I think, as I've spoken to you about before, Andrew being the Health and Social Care Secretary means a lot to me personally. The NHS saved my life."
Mr Streeting also opened up about whether he had found the past few weeks in politics difficult on a personal level.
'It's funny, they've not being an easy few weeks, but honestly, in terms of the challenges I've had over the years, whether going through cancer and coming out the other side, or the experiences I had growing up, which I've written about and spoken about, no, not really, compared to those things.
He explainedL "When you've been through cancer and you've come out the other side, it just gives you a different perspective on things" adding that he was a "resilient person".
Commenting on his role, Mr Streeting said: "The Prime Minister has given me a very important job to do now and it is one that I relish and is one that I enjoy.
"I'm grateful to him for giving me this opportunity to serve our country in this way, and for as long as he wants me, I will carry on doing the job, and as long as I'm doing that, I'm supporting him, supporting the government, and supporting the whole team to deliver the change that we were asked to do by the voters."