As leadership election launches ago, it was pretty inauspicious.

Fewer than a dozen Labour MPs were present as Angela Rayner got to her feet in the basement of a Whitehall pub to make it clear she wants to replace Keir Starmer as prime minister.

Addressing the soft-left campaign group Mainstream’s spring reception, the former deputy PM said the government was “running out of time” to deliver the change Labour promised before the election.

“It needs to be felt, and we have to show that it’s a Labour government that will deliver it,” Rayner declared, before going on to take aim at home secretary Shabana Mahmood’s immigration crackdown.

Plans to double the length of time it takes for migrants – including two million who are already in the UK – to be granted permanent residency are “un-British”, Rayner said.

“That would not just be bad policy, but a breach of trust,” she told those present. “The people already in the system who made a huge investment now fear for their future.

“We cannot talk about earning a settlement if we keep moving the goalposts because moving the goalposts undermines a sense of fair play.”

Sources close to Rayner have also let it be known that the HMRC investigation into her tax affairs – the main impediment to any leadership bid – will be dealt with in time for the UK-wide elections on May 7.

By happy coincidence, that is when Starmer is expected to face moves to unseat him, assuming the results in Scotland, Wales and England are as catastrophic for the party as the opinion polls suggest.

Labour MP Karl Turner told HuffPost UK this week: “If we do badly in Scotland, Wales and up and down regions of England the PM will undoubtedly face a challenge.”

Rayner’s blatant manoeuvring has triggered an angry backlash from many Labour figures, not least those who saw her up close when she was the Secretary of State for Housing, Communities and Local Government.

“She wasn’t up to running her department, never mind the country,” said one former aide. “She couldn’t even get the bins emptied in Birmingham.”

That is a reference to the long-running strike by refuse workers in England’s second biggest city.

“She used to sit in meetings and ask why the strike was going on, when ending it was literally her job.”

Even if she is cleared by the taxman, the fact that she was forced to resign from government for failing to pay the right amount of stamp duty will continue to haunt her.

A Labour source said: “Making Angie prime minister isn’t going to make things any better for the party because most voters think she doesn’t pay her tax.”

One senior party insider said they were baffled that Rayner had chosen to criticise Mahmood’s immigration reforms.

“The public support for what Shabana is doing is enormous, it’s probably the most popular thing the government is doing,” he said.

“The party will struggle to get a hearing if it suddenly changes its mind on something with such strong public support. There is absolutely no sign out there that the public think this is something that they have to change.

“This is the territory Labour gets itself into all the time – talking to itself rather than to the country at large.”

Writing in The Guardian, Rayner pointed out that centre-left parties in Canada, Australia and Norway “surged back to win again” in the face of challenges from right-wing populists.

“They showed they would tackle the issues that mattered most to people, and voters decided that a progressive government that puts people first and lowers costs for ordinary people was the better choice,” she wrote.

But one Labour MP said: “Her comparisons to Norway, Australia and Canada undermine her fundamental thesis – that there needs to now be a change because time is of the essence.

“In each country Rayner cites, the governing party bounced back in the final year of the parliamentary term before going on to win.

“This is a view which seeks to falsely cherry pick countries, ignoring the dramatic fall in support for centre left parties across advanced democracies in Europe – whether it be in France, in Germany or in Italy.”

Another backbencher said: “Where’s Angela’s vision? It’s all very well criticising, but there’s no substance.

“What would she do to tackle the energy crisis, the geopolitical headwinds, or young people not in work, education or training? She’s got nothing to say on any of those things.”

Although it may still seem unlikely, there is a small but growing body of opinion within Labour that Starmer may still be leader long after May 7.

“At the moment, he’s the least worst option,” a Labour veteran told HuffPost UK.

“A lot of people doubt whether Rayner’s up to it, and there’s a suspicion that Wes [Streeting] is all style and no substance. Andy Burnham can’t even get a seat so he’s out of the equation.

“Out of them all I’d probably favour Shabana, but the immigration stuff puts me off. Sending girls back to Afghanistan is beyond the pale, in my opinion.”

“There is definitely a world in which Keir is still there at the end of the year,” said a former Labour adviser.

“The right of the party have worked out none of their candidates stand a chance of winning with the members, and the left are getting everything they want from Starmer anyway, so why bother changing it?”

Angela Rayner has fired the starting gun on the race to succeed Starmer. It is yet to be seen whether she will make it to the finishing line.

Comment provided by Kit Delamain, head chef at Circus Pizza, Panzer’s, Stuart Gillies, chef-owner for Number Eight, Sevenoaks and Bank House, Chislehurst, and Zoe Gill, development chef at Brakes Foodservices.

Great news for fellow bakers – though we’re reaching the end of winter’s forced rhubarb harvest, most other varieties are almost in season, and will remain at their best until June.

The tangy treat, which is technically a vegetable, is a favourite among home cooks and chefs alike. So, we thought we’d ask some pros, namely, chefs Stuart Gillies, Zoe Gill, and Kit Delamain, to share their favourite dish involving rhubarb.

“At this time of year, rhubarb really takes centre stage, and I like to use it in a crumble with apple and oats,” Gillies told us.

That way, “its natural sharpness is the hero, balanced gently with sweetness and finished with a crisp, buttery topping”.

We’ve written before at HuffPost UK about why you should consider baking, rather than stewing, your rhubarb, as well as the best crumble topping we’ve tried so far.

Sweet is not the only option here, the chef told us.

“Rhubarb is a great ingredient to pair with a pork dish. When cooked down into a compote, it works really well as a substitute for pear or apple sauce,” she explained.

“Its tangy, sharp taste acts as a great contrast to the fattiness of a pork belly or chops, especially with a touch of honey and herbs.”

Then, there’s the nutritional element to consider.

“Rhubarb is also high in fibre, vitamin C and calcium, so it can be considered a healthy accompaniment,” Gill said.

“I would recommend serving with seasonal vegetables like asparagus, carrots or broad beans and a side of roasted or boiled Jersey royal potatoes.”

The pizza chef, who really seems to stand by his craft, said: “We went up to Leeds in February to secure the pink gold, the English champagne, Yorkshire forced rhubarb.

“We could see no better use for it than to spruce up our already divisive custard pizza, made with vanilla to pair with our limited rhubarb. It’s a big pink custard tart.”

If you don’t fancy proving your own dough, though, a custard and rhubarb tart is a beautiful and surprisingly simple thing: BBC Good Food’s gingery recipe is incredibly well-reviewed.

(Don’t tell the chefs, but both us and them recommend premade shortcrust for the job).

Claudia Winkleman had an unfortunate slip of the tongue during a recent appearance on the Heart Radio breakfast show.

On Friday, the Traitors host joined Amanda Holden and Jamie Theakston in the Heart radio show, where she spoke via video-link with Finley, a young fan who conducted a brief interview with her in his school uniform.

After the conversation was over, Claudia gave him a rapturous round of applause, while Jamie told listeners: “We’ll have more from our special guest Claudia Winkleman right after this.”

“Oh no,’ the former Strictly Come Dancing presenter joked in response to Jamie’s outro. “Fuck’s sake.”

Unfortunately, what she didn’t realise was that young Finley was still on the call, prompting her to issue a hasty apology.

“Finley, do not be me,” she instructed him, after the realisation began to sink in. “Ever! I’m so sorry, Finley!”

Claudia is currently on the promo trail for her new BBC talk show, which returns for its second episode on Friday night.

The first instalment aired last week, with Hollywood legend Jeff Goldblum, three-time Emmy nominee Vanessa Williams and comedy fave Jennifer Saunders among Claudia’s inaugural guests.

While critical reaction to the first episode was a little on the lukewarm side, the host has already been defended by fellow talk show presenter Graham Norton, whose production company is behind Claudia’s latest venture.

For her second episode, she will be joined by guests including pop singer Niall Horan, musical theatre icon Rachel Zegler, actor Guz Khan and comedian Joanne McNally.

The first season will come to an end next month after a run of seven episodes, after which the BBC will decide whether to renew The Claudia Winkleman Show for more instalments.

Listen to more of Claudia Winkleman’s recent appearance on Heart’s breakfast show on the Global Player here.

Greg James was overcome with emotion after completing his latest mammoth physical challenge in aid of Comic Relief.

For the last eight days, the Radio 1 host had been pedalling 1,000km from Weymouth to Edinburgh in a fundraising effort in honour of Red Nose Day.

Over the course of the journey, there were tearful moments and star-studded surprises, and on Friday morning, the course came to an end at Murrayfield Stadium in the Scottish capital.

Radio 1 presenters Vick Hope and Jack Saunders noted that an “elated” Greg had crossed the finish line while “punching the air”, “waving at the crowd” and “soaking it all in” with tears “flooding down his face”.

“It’s overwhelming, I’m sorry,” Greg told the pair as they approached him at the finish line. “It’s too much! We did it!!”

Greg added: “I just keep bursting into tears. I actually can’t believe it. What a beautiful day! This is unbelievable. Weymouth to Edinburgh! What a stupid idea!”

He later beamed: “It feels amazing to complete that. It feels amazing to have done that adventure. It feels amazing to have pushed through it all. It feels amazing to be part of an amazing team. It feels amazing to have raised so much money. And it feels amazing to be finished.

“It’s been such a struggle at times – but everyone has got me through all of it, and the Radio 1 lot got me through it, and every smiling face.

“Aside from all the pain, and all the legs that are barely working – by the way that last 10km was so difficult – the thing I will remember the most is the joy of seeing everyone, and I just tried to push through the pain to get to that joy.”

At the time of writing, Greg’s efforts have helped raise more than £4 million for this year’s Comic Relief telethon.

His challenge was made all the more emotional by the fact his father suffered a stroke just days before it was due to begin.

Greg subsequently told his supporters he’d be going ahead with the cycling challenge, as it was something his father “really wanted me to do”.

Medical comment provided by Dr Giuseppe Aragona, GP and medical adviser for Prescription Doctor.

When I first began working out about 10 years ago, high-intensity interval training, or HIIT, was everywhere.

Now, it seems to have fallen out of fashion.

Is that deserved? We looked at the research into HIIT to see what science says, and asked GP and medical adviser Dr Giuseppe Aragona for his thoughts, too.

HIIT, which involves short bursts of incredibly high-intensity exercise interspersed with rest periods, makes you reach about 80-100% of your maximum heart rate.

We’re talking burpees. We’re talking squat jumps. Rowing counts, too (HIIT is considered a form of cardio).

“High-intensity interval training, or HIIT, can be a very effective and time-efficient form of exercise, but like most things in medicine, the benefits and risks depend heavily on the individual, their baseline fitness, and how the training is implemented, rather than the concept itself being inherently good or bad,” Dr Aragona told us.

Some argue that HIIT can be hard on your body, especially if your form isn’t perfect (and given that some very fast-paced HIIT workouts demand multiple complex moves, like jumping lunges, in short intervals, it might be hard to perform all of them to the ideal standard).

But a 2026 study from University Hospital Rigshospitalet and the University of Copenhagen found that HIIT workouts were well-tolerated by (meaning they didn’t cause harm to) people with mild to moderate knee osteoarthritis over a 12-week period. Training sessions happened three times a week.

“From a musculoskeletal point of view, poor technique, insufficient warm-up, or pre-existing joint issues can increase the risk of strain or injury,” Dr Aragona said.

If structured well, though, HIIT can sometimes be tolerated by those with e.g. sore knees, “as the intermittent nature of the exercise reduces sustained load through the joint compared with continuous activity”.

Some research says excessive HIIT may harm our mitochondria, which help to generate energy from cells, and possibly lower our glucose tolerance.

But per the GP, “the idea that HIIT ‘damages mitochondria’ is somewhat overstated in the mainstream discussion, as in reality moderate amounts of high-intensity exercise tend to stimulate mitochondrial biogenesis and improve metabolic health”.

“Excessive volumes without recovery may contribute to oxidative stress and fatigue, which is where the perception likely comes from, so the issue is less about HIIT itself and more about overtraining,” he said.

Some research suggests that doing HIIT too close to bed can ruin your sleep, and that it might be a lot worse than lower-intensity activity for helping older people with existing poor sleep.

But others say it can improve sleep efficiency and perceived sleep quality.

Dr Argaona agreed that negative changes to sleep are only expected if you do HIIT “late in the evening or on consecutive days”: otherwise, you’re likely in the clear.

A common critique of HIIT is that it doesn’t build muscle, as it’s a predominantly cardiovascular exercise. But one paper found 12 weeks of HIIT increased lean leg muscle in participants.

“It is generally less effective than structured strength training for building significant muscle mass or bone density, where progressive overload and mechanical loading are more important,” Dr Aragona said ― in other words, it’s true that HIIT won’t build as much lean muscle as strength training.

However, “weight-bearing HIIT can still play a supportive role in maintaining bone health, especially when combined with resistance exercise,” he added.

“HIIT is very effective at improving aerobic capacity and VO2 max because it repeatedly pushes the cardiovascular system close to its upper limits,” Dr Aragona told us. That can help us to use oxygen more efficiently when we work out.

“It is also worth noting that high-intensity training has broader systemic benefits, including improvements in insulin sensitivity and vascular function,” said the GP.

That can even have benefirs for those with erectile dysfunction (ED) “by enhancing cardiovascular health, boosting testosterone, and increasing blood flow… regular, intense, short-duration workouts performed perhaps twice per week can strengthen the pelvic floor and improve vascular function”.

It depends on your fitness levels, said the doctor.

He explained: “I generally suggest that for most people two to three HIIT sessions per week is sufficient to gain cardiovascular benefits, particularly improvements in VO2 max, which is one of the strongest predictors of long-term health and mortality… beyond that point the incremental benefit diminishes while the risk of overuse injury and burnout increases.”

If you already do cardio and strength training, “it should be viewed as a supplement rather than a replacement, perhaps used once or twice a week to improve cardiovascular fitness and add variety”.

Many of the harms linked to HIIT come about when it’s overdone. Dr Aragona said that some of the signs you’ve been going too hard include:

• persistent tiredness
• declining performance
• irritability
• sleep disturbance.

There are “clear groups in whom caution is warranted, including individuals with uncontrolled hypertension, significant cardiovascular disease, advanced joint problems, or those who are completely unaccustomed to exercise,” said the doctor.

Consider speaking to your doctor and starting slowly, if deemed appropriate, if you’re considering HIIT.

If you’re new to working out, “suddenly introducing very intense activity can increase the risk of cardiac events or musculoskeletal injury, and in these patients a gradual build-up with lower intensity work is far safer and more sustainable”.