appConfigEntityId

bodyType

customContents

entityId

entityUuid

isVideo

articlePageQuery

article

articleSchemaContent

content

hooksArticlePageAdvertisementConfigArticle

appConfig

filter

json

liveArticle

Reuters

British Prime ⁠Minister Keir Starmer’s position ⁠is under serious threat after ⁠dozens of his own lawmakers called for him to set out a timetable for his departure, or resign, in the wake of heavy losses in local elections.
Here’s what could happen next:
Has a leadership contest been triggered?
Not yet.
On ‌Monday, several ministerial aides stepped down and more than 70 Labour lawmakers publicly called for Starmer’s departure after his appeal for another chance seemingly fell on deaf ears.
Some senior cabinet ministers, according to media reports, have told Starmer to announce a plan for his exit.

Isn’t that enough?
No. Labour has strict rules governing the removal ⁠of a party leader and the system requires lawmakers to coalesce around specific candidates rather than ‌just express “no confidence” in their current leader.
At the moment most of those against Starmer have called for him to set out a timetable ‌for his own departure – effectively asking him to resign without needing to be ⁠forced out.
One former ⁠junior minister, Catherine West, has made a formal attempt to gauge support for Starmer’s exit but this ‌is not the same as a leadership challenge and she has not declared her intention to stand to replace him.
How would a challenge work?
Any candidate wishing to make a challenge would ‌need to secure the support of 20 per cent of Labour members of parliament. With Labour currently holding ⁠403 seats, that equates to 81 backers.
Candidates also must meet thresholds for support from grass roots ⁠Labour Party organisations, and from affiliated organisations such as trade unions.
Starmer would have an automatic right to be on the ballot paper, if he chose to ‌fight the contest.
If only ‌one candidate qualifies, there is no vote: the candidate is elected unopposed as Labour leader and becomes prime minister.
If more than one candidate qualifies, the winner is decided by a ballot of all Labour Party members and affiliates. The winner then becomes prime minister.
Is there precedent?
Unlike the Conservative Party, which has a history of getting rid of leaders such as Margaret Thatcher in 1990 and Boris Johnson in 2022, Labour does not have that muscle memory.
No Labour prime minister has ever been dislodged, though Tony Blair announced his plan to resign in 2007 after a series of low-level resignations.
Who else is in the wings?
Those considered to harbour leadership ambitions include Health Secretary Wes Streeting, and former deputy prime minister Angela Rayner, who had to resign last year after acknowledging that she did not pay enough tax on a house purchase. An investigation into that is ongoing.
Andy Burnham, the popular mayor of Greater Manchester, is widely perceived as one of the strongest candidates. But he is not eligible to stand at present, because he is not in Parliament. Earlier this year, Labour officials blocked him from running in a special parliamentary election.
However, if Starmer indicates that he’s intending to stand down - for example, at Labour’s annual conference in September - a way could be found for Burnham to return to the House of Commons. A Labour lawmaker in a relatively safe seat could quit, opening up another chance for Burnham.
Additional reporting by Associated Press


UK radio station mistakenly reports death of King Charles

SMILE in space: China, EU joint planet defence satellite defies earthly tensions

Fuel-thirsty UK relaxes Russian oil sanctions, leaving Ukrainians ‘very let down’

Trump’s H-1B visa squeeze paves way for Indian tech exodus

Britain

Starmer is fighting to stay in power. Here’s what could happen

Larry the cat outside No 10 Downing Street in London. While the 'Chief Mouser' remains a permanent fixture, Prime Minister Keir Starmer’s own future is in doubt. Photo: Reuters

Britain’s Prime Minister Keir Starmer. Photo: AP

UK’s Starmer under renewed pressure to quit as lawmaker revolt grows

Britain’s Prime Minister Keir Starmer on Monday. Photo: PA via AP

Larry the cat outside 10 Downing Street in London. Photo: Reuters

Home Secretary Shabana Mahmood. Photo: Reuters

Ex-minister tells UK cabinet to boot Starmer or she’ll challenge him herself

Britain’s Prime Minister Keir Starmer reacts as he prepares to leave the Elysee Presidential Palace in Paris in April. Photo: AFP

Labour lawmaker Catherine West, a former minister, is seen in an official portrait. Photo: UK Parliament

British Prime Minister Keir Starmer (left) speaks with former prime minister Gordon Brown on the steps of 10 Downing Street on Saturday. Photo: PA Wire via dpa

Defiant Starmer digs in after UK Labour’s local election drubbing

British Prime Minister Keir Starmer and his wife arrive at a polling station in London on Thursday. Photo: Xinhua

Reform UK party leader Nigel Farage (centre) arrives at Havering Town Hall in London on Friday. Photo: EPA

A man carrying a child leaves a polling station in the Golders Green area of north London on Thursday. Photo: AFP

Will Starmer’s election woes force a shake-up in the UK’s ties with China?

British Prime Minister Keir Starmer visits the Forbidden City during his visit to China on January 29.  Starmer has pursued a reset in China-UK relations, hoping that Beijing’s economic clout can bolster his country’s sluggish economy. Photo: Pool via Reuters

Prime Minister Keir Starmer speaks to Labour Party members at a church hall in west London on Friday. Photo: AP

Starmer was right about political change. But this is not what he planned

Britain’s Reform UK leader Nigel Farage reacts next to newly elected councillors at the Havering Town Hall, following the results of the local elections, in the London Borough of Havering, Britain on Friday. Photo: Reuters

News

World

Europe

Unlike the Conservative Party, which has a history of getting rid of leaders, Labour does not have that muscle memory. Could that change soon?


Starmer is fighting to stay in power. Here’s what could happen

.css-1c6uqr6{color:inherit;font-weight:inherit;font-size:inherit;font-family:inherit;line-height:inherit;overflow-wrap:break-word;}Unlike the Conservative Party, which has a history of getting rid of leaders, Labour does not have that muscle memory. Could that change soon?

Has a leadership contest been triggered?

Isn’t that enough?

Unlike the Conservative Party, which has a history of getting rid of leaders, Labour does not have that muscle memory. Could that change soon?