The past week of British politics has been a whirlwind of rumours, accusations and resignations, with five ministers now having stepped down from Prime Minister Sir Keir Starmer's government. All eyes have been on No 10 Downing Street after the disastrous local election result for Labour plunged the party into political soul-searching and finger-pointing. Starmer fended off calls to step down all week as the Labour drift deepened.
It took until Thursday afternoon for Cabinet minister Wes Streeting's move to quit to trigger a leadership challenge. But four other ministers took the plunge before him in an apparent bid to build momentum. Here is a roundup of all the ministers who have resigned and what they said about the PM.
Wes Streeting
First up is Streeting, the biggest household name and a divisive figure outside the Westminster bubble. His lengthy resignation letter to Sir Keir started with an outline of his successes as Health Secretary and the falling NHS waiting lists. Towards the bottom, Streeting told the PM he had 'lost confidence in your leadership' and that he could no longer stay on because 'it would be dishonourable and unprincipled to do so.'
Miatta Fahnbulleh
The very first to quit on Tuesday morning was the communities minister Fahnbulleh, the MP for Peckham. Her resignation seemed like a U-turn as she had been seen smiling and championing next to Sir Keir days before the local election. Six days after making a doting social post from the election event showing the PM with volunteers, Fahnbulleh announced her resignation on X. She said that she and the public had no confidence in Sir Keir to lead change and urged him to 'do the right thing' by making plans for an 'orderly transition.'
Jess Phillips
Phillips, a safeguarding minister in the Home Office and in Sir Keir's cabinet, was the next to step down, seen as one of the most influential figures to do so before Streeting. The Birmingham Yardley MP referred to the Mandelson saga in her piercing letter before accusing the PM's 'desire not to have an argument' meaning progress is 'stalled and delayed.' She said: 'I think you are a good man fundamentally, who cares about the right things, however I have seen first-hand how that is not enough.'
Alex Davies-Jones
The Welsh MP for Pontypridd and minister for tackling violence against women and girls joined the camp calling for Sir Keir to go. In her letter, she told the PM that she felt she had 'no choice' following a 'catastrophic' election result for Labour, including losing to Plaid Cymru in the Welsh senate. She said: 'I implore you to act in the country's interest and set out a timetable for your departure.'
Zubir Ahmed
The final name to quit was the junior health minister Zubir Ahmed, an MP for Glasgow South West. Dr Ahmed, a qualified surgeon with two decades of experience in the NHS, worked closely with Streeting in Parliament. In his scathing resignation letter, he said the government's achievements are being 'dwarfed and undermined by a lack of values-driven leadership at the centre.' 'It is clear from recent days that the public across the UK has now irretrievably lost confidence in you as prime minister,' he added.
