Sir Keir Starmer will hold a crunch Cabinet meeting this morning after ministers joined calls for him to resign. The Prime Minister is facing a mutiny from his closest allies after Shabana Mahmood and other ministers told him to set a deadline for his departure.
More than 70 Labour MPs have now publicly told Sir Keir to go, with as many as five government aides resigning to make their point. The Prime Minister, whose attempted reset speech yesterday failed to buy him time, is said to be weighing up his options.
Key ally Darren Jones said on the morning round that Sir Keir was ‘listening’ and ‘it is for the PM to decide what he may or may not want to do in the future’. His Cabinet are due to assemble at 9.30am, just days after Labour suffered devastating local election results that saw the party lose more than 1,400 councillors.
Who Could Take Over from the Prime Minister if He Resigns?
More than 70 Labour MPs have now called for a new Prime Minister to enter Downing Street. Metro breaks down who the key contenders are and what is stopping them from running.
Starmer ‘Listening’ to Rebellious Cabinet Ministers
One of the Prime Minister’s closest allies has said this morning that Sir Keir is ‘listening’ to colleagues urging him to resign. Darren Jones, the PM’s chief secretary, was coy when asked about his boss’s future in office. Asked if Sir Keir would be leading Labour into the next election, Jones replied: ‘I’m not going to get ahead of any decision that the Prime Minister may or may not take.’ As many as four of Jones’ colleagues in Cabinet have privately told Sir Keir to set a timetable for resigning, reports suggest.
Westminster is waking up to another day of civil war within the Labour Party after a group of Cabinet ministers urged the PM to step down last night. It will all come to a head at an unprecedented meeting of the government top team this morning.
