SIR KEIR STARMER’S former chief of staff has told of the “unbearable” culture working inside No 10 in her first interview since resigning almost two years ago.

Baroness Sue Gray said that the “very, very difficult” briefing wars inside Downing Street led to fears someone was recording “everything you say.”

Lady Gray told Ed Balls on the Political Currency podcast that the briefings against her had started while Labour was in opposition.

She said that she would “read about things that I would have said or not said” and that this continued on into government.

Lady Gray, who was among 30 new Labour peers announced last December, added that she was “disappointed” that Sir Keir did not do more to tackle briefings against her to journalists.

“I had always taken a view as a civil servant and actually as a special adviser that you know you should be able to speak freely in rooms,” she said.

“And yet here I found myself, you know, stories about supposedly trying to move Morgan McSweeney to the back of the building.

“Actually, that was a genuine, ‘I can’t believe so many of you are going to sit in this small room, let’s find a better room for you’.”

Sir Keir’s government has faced criticism from Labour members, including the party’s deputy leader Lucy Powell, who described a “boys club” culture in No 10, with a pattern of “anonymous nasty briefings,” particularly against women.

Asked about the lack of positive vision in the early days of the Labour government and how much was her responsibility, Lady Gray added: “I think ultimately, you have a leader of the party, you have a prime minister, leader of the opposition.

“You have to set your vision, your agenda, and that is definitely what everybody is looking for.”

Andy Burnham kept anti-immigration Home Secretary and McSweeney ally Shabana Mahmood in post after taking over as PM last month.

A spokesman for Momentum said: “The Starmer project ran out of road partly due to the poisonous legacy of Morgan McSweeney and Peter Mandelson. 

“A democratic Labour Party with bold, socialist policies is the only way forward. It’s up to Burnham to build a real alternative.”