In an attempt to put an end to a series of damaging rows, Keir Starmer denied he had lost grip of his team and insisted he was "completely in control" of his No 10 operation.
Several senior ministers leaped to Gray's defence after a series of briefings about her pay, and her apparently acrimonious relationships with senior colleagues. They told the Guardian the briefing against her "has to stop".
Other allies said the role was always the "lightning rod" for discontent within government but that Gray just wanted to concentrate on getting on with the job.
Their intervention follows the revelation by the BBC that Gray had been given a salary of £170,000-more than Starmer - prompting the ire of more junior Labour colleagues who had taken lower pay since entering government.
The prime minister is under scrutiny over his more than £100,000 of freebies and gifts over the last parliament. He faces further questions about whether his £35,000 of free tickets from football clubs risks a conflict of interest as his government prepares to bring in a regulator opposed by the industry.
In a series of local radio interviews yesterday, Starmer was asked whether he had lost his grip on his senior team as a result of the pay row, which follows weeks of briefings over power struggles within No 10.
"I'm completely in control. I'm focused and every day the message from me is the same, which is we have to deliver. We were elected on a big mandate to deliver change.I am determined we are going to do that," he told BBC South East.
Denne historien er fra September 20, 2024-utgaven av The Guardian.
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Denne historien er fra September 20, 2024-utgaven av The Guardian.
Start din 7-dagers gratis prøveperiode på Magzter GOLD for å få tilgang til tusenvis av utvalgte premiumhistorier og 9000+ magasiner og aviser.
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Money hacks How to use your Christmas gift vouchers wisely
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'It's not job done' More change to come as M&S gets its spark back
M&S menswear, above, is starting to compete for style with specialist rivals while the company's menswear has successfully caught the attention of younger buyers
Taken to court ... as a victim of identity theft
A fraudulent phone contract has been taken out in my husband's name and he is now threatened with court action.
New start Is 2025 the right time to become your own boss?
Going freelance is not without risk but if you want to shed the shackles of your 9-5, then Suzanne Bearne can help you plan it properly
Feeling the heat British Gas hit by 400,000 complaints
It has been both astonishing and appalling in equal measure,\" says Jonathan Hattersley, 66, from Cambridgeshire.
Biden Blocks Japanese Firm's $15bn Bid for US Steel Over Security Fears
Joe Biden blocked a $14.9bn (£12bn) bid by Japan's Nippon Steel for US Steel yesterday, citing concerns the deal could hurt national security and following through on a pledge to keep the company domestically owned as he prepares to depart the White House.
We're like snipers' Lethal and cheap, drones dominate the frontline now
Denys, a soldier with Ukraine's Khyzhak brigade, describes a new kind of war. Standing in a barracks workshop with piles of basic Ukrainian first-person view (FPV) drones behind him, he says: \"There are fewer gunfights because there are more drone fights.\" Frontlines that were once a gunshot apart are now a killing zone several miles deep as Russian and Ukrainian drone squads hidden behind the frontlines target each other's forces with aerial attacks. \"Back in 2022, we were still running around with machine guns from the tree lines,\" Denys says, almost with nostalgia.
Profits at GB News owner's hedge fund plunge 64%
Profits at the hedge fund co-founded by the GB News and Spectator owner Sir Paul Marshall plunged by almost two-thirds last year, resulting in significantly reduced payouts for its partners.
Call to stick to tougher green targets amid record EV sales
Carmakers sold a record number of electric cars in the UK last year, prompting environmental groups to urge the government to stick to tougher green targets even as the industry argues they are unsustainable.
Handbags and watches help take Thailand PM's declared worth to £322m
Thailand's prime minister, Paetongtarn Shinawatra, has declared £322m in assets, including a collection of 217 designer handbags and 75 luxury watches in submissions on her wealth to a government body.
