Sir Keir Starmer latest: Prime Minister insists he will continue despite ministers resigning
Sir Keir Starmer is facing calls to resign after a disastrous set of local election results, with Labour losing its majority in six Yorkshire councils.
Sir Keir Starmer is defying mounting calls for him to quit, telling a meeting of his Cabinet that the country “expects us to get on with governing” and “that is what I am doing”.
The Prime Minister’s woes deepened today as three ministers - including Jess Phillips - resigned from his Government urging him to go, and as the number of Labour MPs telling him to set out a timetable for his departure grew to 75.
This includes several from Yorkshire, including Doncaster Central’s Sally Jameson, Doncaster East and the Isle of Axholme Lee Pitcher and Colne Valley’s Paul Davies.
According to Downing Street, Sir Keir told his Cabinet: “As I said yesterday, I take responsibility for these election results and I take responsibility for delivering the change we promised.
“The past 48 hours have been destabilising for government and that has a real economic cost for our country and for families.
“The Labour Party has a process for challenging a leader and that has not been triggered.
“The country expects us to get on with governing. That is what I am doing and what we must do as a Cabinet.”
The meeting was expected to be fraught, with some ministers said to be joining calls for the Prime Minister to go.
Earlier, housing, communities and local government minister Miatta Fahnbulleh told the Prime Minister “to do the right thing for the country and the party and set a timetable for an orderly transition” as the public had lost trust in him because of issues such as the scrapping of the winter fuel payment.
This afternoon, Safeguarding Minister Jess Phillips, who was leading the grooming gangs response, sent a letter to the Prime Minister announcing her resignation.
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. The desire not to have an argument means we rarely make an argument, leaving opportunities for progress stalled and delayed.”
She added: “I know you care deeply, but deeds, not words are what matter. I’m not sure we are grasping this rare opportunity with the gusto that’s needed and I cannot keep waiting around for a crisis to push for faster progress.
“I want a Labour government to work and I will strive as I always have for its success and popularity, but I’m not seeing the change I think I, and the country expect, and so cannot continue to serve as a minister under the current leadership.”
Ms Davies-Jones, the Victims Minister, stood down, saying: “I have been proud to deliver some monumental changes which will help save lives and shift the dial on the conversation.
“However, we have needed to do more and therefore it is with a very heavy heart that I feel I have no choice but to resign.”
And one of Sir Keir’s closest aides declined to say whether he would lead his party into the next general election.
Cabinet minister Darren Jones, the Chief Secretary to the Prime Minister, said: “I’m not going to get ahead of any decision the PM may or may not take.”
However, after the Cabinet meeting a number of ministers publicly backed Sir Keir. Defence Secretary John Healey took to X to reiterate his support for the Prime Minister, warning “more instability is not in Britain’s interest”.
The crisis has erupted just one day ahead of the King’s Speech, where the Government is supposed to set out its legislative agenda for the next session of Parliament.
Yet, disastrous local election results have caused more than 80 MPs to call for Sir Keir to set out a timetable to replace him.
In Yorkshire, Labour lost its majority on six of the eight councils up for election, including in Leeds.
It also lost power in Wakefield and Barnsley for the first time since the local authorities were created in 1974.
In Sheffield, Labour won just three of the 28 councillors up for election.
Dozens of MPs have now called for the Prime Minister to resign. Doncaster Central’s Ms Jameson said: “The message from last week’s elections was stark.
“Britain faces enormous challenges and we need a Labour government that can deliver change on the scale that my constituents in Doncaster Central and the wider public want to see.
“It is clear that the Prime Minister no longer has the confidence of the public to lead that change.”
Mr Davies commented: “In my constituency and across the country, there has been a clear message – we have to have bolder, progressive measures in place to address the cost of living crisis that so many people still face. They cannot wait until the end of this parliament or another term. This crisis is with us now.
“I believe we have the capability within the Labour Party to do this. However, it is now very clear that it is not possible with the current leadership left in place.
“In particular, I do not believe that the Prime Minister is the person who is able to rebuild trust with our citizens and lead the party and country in making these urgent changes.
“So, regrettably, I feel there is no alternative but to ask the Prime Minister to do the right thing for the country and arrange for an orderly handover of his role once his replacement has been duly selected.”
Leeds Central and Headingley MP Alex Sobel became the latest MP to call for the Prime Minister to resign. He said: “The Prime Minister has to do what is best for the country and the party, not what is best for himself.
“I want to give him the time and space to make that decision, but the message is now very clear. There’s a deeper issue here about leadership, character and integrity. Integrity matters in politics. You cannot tell people their lives are better if they don’t feel it."
Mr Sobel added: "The Prime Minister’s speech yesterday did not challenge the status quo and failed to articulate the radical societal change the Country needs. The Prime Minister needs to announce a date for his departure so we can have an open contest and an orderly transition."
All eyes will now be on whether Ms Phillips’ departure prompts similar moves by ministerial colleagues, potentially triggering a wave of resignations similar to the exodus that led to Tory premier Boris Johnson’s downfall.
Senior ministers are split over how best to move forward, with Home Secretary Shabana Mahmood and Foreign Secretary Yvette Cooper reportedly among those to have told Sir Keir to consider his position.
Meanwhile potential leadership challenger Andy Burnham, the Greater Manchester Mayor, was spotted arriving in London. Mr Burnham will need to become an MP again to become Labour leader.
But Housing Secretary Steve Reed warned against the chaos of a leadership change, writing on X: “This is not a game. This instability has consequences for people’s lives. The people who will be hurt most will be those that elected us less than two years ago. We must unite behind the Prime Minister.”