LONDON >> The weekly session in which the British prime minister is questioned by lawmakers in Parliament can be an ordeal for the government leader. For Cabinet members, it’s usually simply a matter of backing their boss.

But Wednesday the spotlight ended up on Chancellor of the Exchequer Rachel Reeves during the Prime Minister’s Questions session because it became evident that she was crying as she sat beside Prime Minister Keir Starmer.

It’s not known what triggered the tears. They came as Starmer sought to fend off attacks that his year-old government was losing its authority and that he was about to fire Reeves to regain the initiative.

Traders got spooked, with the interest rate charged on the U.K.’s 10-year benchmark bond in the markets up sharply, and the pound down. The moves were a sign investors had lost confidence in U.K. financial assets.

Reeves had become associated with fiscal discipline, in particular a rule of covering day-to-day government spending with tax revenue, said Andrew Wishart, an economist at Berenberg Bank.

“The markets are concerned that if the Chancellor goes, such fiscal discipline would follow her out of the door,” he added.

With Starmer insisting Thursday that Reeves would remain in post, the markets calmed down.

Prime Minister’s Questions can come as close to a gladiatorial contest as is possible in a modern legislative chamber. Very little deference is given to whoever’s holding the highest office in the land.

The prime minister is considered first among equals. Like all other members of Parliament, the prime minister represents one of 650 constituencies. Nowhere is that shared connection more noticeable than at noon Wednesdays in the House of Commons.

Starmer stands for half an hour every week to be quizzed by friends and foes. He may get soft balls, but there’s always a potential zinger around the corner.

The leader of the biggest opposition party, currently the Conservative Party’s Kemi Badenoch, has the best chance to knock the prime minister off course. With six questions, she can lay traps and go for the jugular.

The weekly shouting match is consistently the most-watched parliamentary event, viewed around the world, including on C-Span in the United States.