Keir Starmer clings on as another aide quits and Scottish Labour leader urges him to step down after ‘too many mistakes’
Sir Keir Starmer continues to cling to power with the support of key figures in his cabinet, despite being shaken by the departure of his second key aide and public demands for the resignation of the Labor leader in Scotland.
When previously loyalist Anas Sarwar called on him to resign over the Mandelson scandal, saying he had made “too many mistakes”, the prime minister was backed by colleagues including former MP Angela Rayner.
In a day of drama, the Prime Minister was also rocked by the resignation of Downing Street communications director Tim Allan, less than 24 hours after the resignation of chief of staff Morgan McSweeney.
But Sir Keir insisted: “I’m not going anywhere.”
As the embattled prime minister prepares to address parliamentary Labor in a bid to save his premiership, leading pollsters have suggested his departure has become “inevitable”.
It all appeared to be unraveling when his controversial aide, Mr McSweeney, resigned on Sunday following Lord Peter Mandelson’s recommendation that he be appointed ambassador to the United States despite his ongoing relationship with convicted pedophile financier Jeffrey Epstein.
Ahead of the crucial Holyrood elections in May, Mr Sarwar, whose Scottish Labor Party follows both Reform and the SNP, held a press conference to say Sir Keir should now also resign.
He said his “friend” had called on him to resign “with sadness”.
“The distraction needs to end and the leadership in Downing Street needs to change,” he told reporters.
“We cannot allow failures at the heart of Downing Street to mean continued failures here in Scotland, because May’s election is not without consequences for the lives of Scots.”
But no sooner had he spoken than health secretary Wes Streeting, once accused by Downing Street officials of plotting against the Prime Minister, said: “Give Keir a chance.”
Chancellor Rachel Reeves shared: “With Keir as our Prime Minister, we are turning the country around.”
Deputy Prime Minister David Lammy added: “Keir Starmer won a major five-year mandate 18 months ago to deliver the Labor manifesto that we all stood by.”
As ministers lined up to pledge loyalty, former deputy prime minister Angela Rayner, who is running to replace Sir Keir, also appealed for calm.
“I invite all my colleagues to come together, remember our values and implement them as a team. We have the full support of our Prime Minister in achieving this goal.”
Labor leader Alan Johnson warned that sacking the Prime Minister would “turn Labor and the country into an international laughing stock”.
But amid the heated atmosphere in Westminster, one Labor MP said: “It’s all over. It’s just a matter of when, not if.”
Some MPs on the Labor left have described his position as “indefensible” and there were plans to heckle the prime minister at a Labor event in Parliament on Monday evening.
Meanwhile, pollster Professor Sir John Curtice said: “We are at the stage where unplanned events could result in Keir Starmer leaving. MPs could move to chief whip or a member of the cabinet could eventually resign, such as Boris Johnson, and that could start to accelerate.”
The only thing that helped Sir Keir, he suggested, was that “he had no obvious successor”.
He said Ms Rayner’s tax problems and the ongoing HMRC investigation made it difficult for her to return to government immediately, while Mr Streeting was also damaged by the Mandelson scandal and home secretary Shabana Mahmood “probably didn’t even get the support of 80 MPs to run”.
He predicted that, given a lack of options, Labor could turn to the former leader, energy minister Ed Miliband.
Meanwhile, another pollster, Lord Robert Hayward, said: “I am increasingly convinced that change is inevitable but Labor, like the Conservative Party, has reached the ‘we can try something else’ stage.
A Downing Street spokesman said: “Keir Starmer is one of only four Labor leaders to win a general election. He has a clear five-year mandate from the British people to deliver change and that’s what he will do.”
