London, United Kingdom. Prime Minister Keir Starmer faced the prospect of a leadership challenge on Thursday amid reports that health minister Wes Streeting was ready to resign and comments from former deputy Angela Rayner urging him to “reflect” on his position.
Calls for a timetable after election losses
Starmer has said repeatedly he would fight to keep his job, but has been unable to halt calls for him to set a timetable for his departure after Labour suffered some of its worst losses in local elections last week.
The number of calls for him to resign eased on Wednesday when his government turned to King Charles to set out its agenda for a new parliamentary term, but Thursday was expected to bring another confrontation for the prime minister.
Report of possible resignation by health minister
The Times newspaper reported that Streeting, described as a centrist health minister, was expected to resign later on Thursday to try to launch a leadership campaign, although Starmer’s allies questioned whether he had the required number of backers.
Rayner cleared over tax affairs and urges Starmer to “reflect”
Rayner said she had been cleared of deliberate wrongdoing over her tax affairs and stated that Britain’s tax authorities found no tax avoidance, with no fine or penalty applied. She said the decision exonerated her “of the accusation that I deliberately sought to avoid tax”.
Rayner did not say whether she would launch a bid to oust Starmer. She told the Guardian newspaper that she had told Starmer it was “a really significant moment for our party and the country” and said the pace of change had not been enough for voters to see, while mistakes had damaged confidence, adding that he should “reflect on” stepping aside.
On her own leadership ambitions, Rayner, 46, said: “I’ll play my part in doing everything we possibly can to deliver the change, because it’s not a personal ambition, I know the difference it makes.”
Starmer’s response and cabinet support
Starmer, 63, had hoped to end calls for his resignation that began at the weekend following the scale of losses in elections to councils in England and the parliaments in Scotland and Wales.
He has adopted what was described as a “business as usual” approach and has received support from the majority of his cabinet. Sources close to him said he is determined to run if a leadership contest is triggered.
What do you think Starmer should do in response to the calls for him to set a departure timetable?