THREAD: I thought it was hacked.
I had followed a link to a new UK maritime safety regulation, and in the corner was a wee tiny thumbnail picture of the minister ... who looked like he was 14 years old.
It reminded me of Malcolm Tucker in Washington DC, meeting a very young American official, and telling him that he looked like he should be still at school, with his head flushed down the toilet by the big boys.
But it turns out to be genuine. This is Keir Mather, the Labour MP for Selby.
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In September, Mather become the youngest government minister in the UK since William Gladstone in 1834. At just 27 years old, two years after been elected at a 2023 by-election aged 25.
There is usually some MP in their twenties, who gets the unofficial title Baby of The House. Mather was replaced as baby in 2024, but holders of the title tend to be high achievers. The list at https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Baby_of_the_House#United_Kingdom contains a lot of prominent names, including Roy Jenkins, Tony Benn, and Bobby Sands.
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Keir Mather is also a supporter of trans rights. (Or was, before he was elected).
But the good news ends there. He is also an Oxford graduate 🤮, a lifelong devoted fan of #NewLabour 🤮, and a protégé of Wes Streeting 🤮. His only job outside politics was as a researcher for the CBI 🤮. He could have been selected by Labour as a 2023 by-election candidate only if he was dissected and proven to be a 120% loyal #Starmtrooper.
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For now, Mather is Minister for Aviation, Maritime and Decarbonisation. That's a junior job in the Department of Transport.
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But #KeirMather has the look about him of a man who will rise up the career ladder, like previous Babies of the House.
A sort of English version of the cherub-faced Douglas Alexander, who narrowly missed out on the title, but rose to the cabinet without anyone figuring out why he existed ... and then returned after a 9-year gap, without any further clue of what he brings to politics apart from that now-ageing cherub face.
END THREAD
Claire McNab