In the end, Sir Keir bottled it and allowed Diane Abbott to stand, writes Eddie Ford. But will he have to pay a political price? Almost certainly, Sunak will exploit his dithering
Riling, obstructing and barring such figures serves to cloud the message, impairing an electoral effort that may, ironically enough, see the Ming Vase slip out of Starmer’s desperate hands.
Darren Rodwell, who was expected to be dropped, said while he "completely refutes" the claims against him, he "does not want this issue to become a distraction" in the general election campaign.