Sir Keir Starmer is facing renewed pressure to step down as Prime Minister after several of his most senior Cabinet Ministers refused to publicly endorse him. The Labour leader is confronting a rebellion from party MPs following catastrophic local election results that saw the party lose over 1,400 council seats.
Cabinet Ministers Stay Silent
A coordinated effort was underway last night to secure supportive messages from Sir Keir's Cabinet, but four prominent Labour figures declined to back him. Former leader Ed Miliband, now Energy Secretary, described the Labour wipe-out as 'devastating' and issued what has been termed a 'non-endorsement'. He stated: 'Voters are making clear their anger at a broken economic and political status quo.' Miliband also demanded the government 'must go further in delivering the mandate for change that Labour won in 2024 – and show how we will answer the call for change in our country.'
Home Secretary Shabana Mahmood called the results 'a verdict on us not them,' noting that Labour was beaten in her home city of Birmingham. Without explicitly supporting Starmer, she added: 'The PM has rightly said we must do better. It is a privilege to serve the British people and we must live up to it.' Cabinet Member Lisa Nandy also declined to row in behind the PM, only saying 'we must rise to meet this moment.' Foreign Secretary Yvette Cooper called for 'serious, calm-headed reflection' and stressed that the party must 'listen and respond, but do so in a steady, thoughtful and reflective way.'
Electoral Catastrophe
Labour lost hundreds of English council seats to Reform UK on Thursday and saw the collapse of stronghold councils including Tameside, Blackburn, Gateshead and Sunderland. The party was almost wiped out in Wales, losing control of the Senedd for the first time and seeing leader Baroness Morgan lose her seat. These results have intensified speculation about a potential challenge to Sir Keir's leadership.
Health Secretary Wes Streeting, who reportedly already has enough MPs lined up to launch a coup, issued a coded leadership pitch this morning, saying Labour had 'bucked the trend' in his area of Redbridge. Allies of Andy Burnham, the mayor of Greater Manchester, have led calls for Sir Keir to leave Downing Street. Louise Haigh, his former transport secretary, stated that Sir Keir could not lead the party into the next election unless he delivers 'significant and urgent change.'
Defiant Starmer Vows to Stay
Despite the mounting pressure, Sir Keir remains defiant, saying he is 'not going to walk away.' He vowed: 'Days like this don't weaken my resolve to deliver the change that I promised.' However, a chorus of backbench MPs have demanded he set out a timetable for his departure. Many of these come from left-wing factions allied with former leader Jeremy Corbyn. Ian Lavery, a former party chairman, warned that Labour faced 'utter annihilation' and said Sir Keir would face a leadership coup if he did not agree to stand aside. Richard Burgon, a central figure within the Socialist Campaign Group, stated: 'The defeat has Keir Starmer's name written all over it. The party should now work towards a timetable for an orderly transition to a new leader by the end of this year.'
Other senior Labour MPs have also aimed their fire at the PM. Clive Betts, one of the party's longest-serving MPs, said that 'people have made their mind up' about Sir Keir and hoped he recognises that leaving Number 10 would be 'for the good of the country.' Calls for his resignation have also come from workers' unions closely aligned with the Labour party. Andrea Egan, general secretary of Unison, Britain's largest union and one of Labour's biggest financial backers, warned that the party faced 'oblivion' unless Sir Keir stepped down. She called for a change to 'not just the leader but the entire approach.' Sharon Graham, the boss of Unite the Union, said Sir Keir faced a choice to 'change or die,' fearing the local election drubbing 'could be the beginning of the end for the party itself.'
