Keir Starmer on brink as his own MPs warn he’s ‘only got weeks left’ | Politics | News

Keir Starmer’s leadership rivals were jockeying for position tonight following a row over the government’s crackdown on immigrants. The embattled Prime Minister has sparked speculation he could be on the verge of another U-turn after refusing to say No 10’s tough immigration plans would go ahead.

It follows a stinging attack from his former deputy Angela Rayner – often tipped as a future leader – who branded the overhaul of settlement rules “un-British”. Home Affairs Minister Shabana Mahmood, another Cabinet member with leadership aspirations, insists measures to double the time it takes for immigrants to gain permanent residence by five to 10 years are needed to address growing social unrest.

The reforms will apply to people who have arrived in the UK since 2021.

Ms Rayner said in a speech on Tuesday night that the planned changes would be a “breach of trust”.

Manchester Mayor Andy Burnham, who is also seen as having leadership ambitions, quickly backed him, saying the party should “listen” to what he said.

But Ms Mahmood’s allies hit back, insisting the plans were “fully consistent with Labor values”.

Another wannabe leader, Wes Streeting, also defended the plans.

Responding to Sir Keir’s criticism of his leadership during the PMQs, Kemi Badenoch said: “I’m shocked because his former deputy has fired the starting gun in the race to replace him.

“And I will tell him something; he and I agree that a strong woman must take the place of this weak man.”

Despite having one of the largest Commons majorities in history, Sir Keir has been forced to endure numerous humiliating blows, including abandoning proposed cuts to welfare spending, the winter fuel rebate and the Farm Tax.

Ms Rayner’s intervention comes as signs grow that Sir Keir’s rivals are preparing to attack.

The former Housing Secretary has reportedly been courting the City in recent weeks in a bid to ease concerns he will borrow even more money to splurge on the public sector.

He also appears to be building a war chest with lucrative speaking engagements and a rumored £100,000 advance for a memoir.

But opponents are trying to undermine his position by pointing out that he has not yet concluded negotiations with HMRC over the unpaid tax that led to his resignation in September.

A Labor MP told the Express: “This was the opening salvo from Angela. Don’t get me wrong, now Angela is firing at him.”

Another MP claimed the Prime Minister had “only weeks left” if Labor was destroyed as expected in local, regional, Welsh and Scottish elections on May 7.

“During the PMQs you could see the fight was completely out of Keir, there was nothing going on and the reserves knew it so they weren’t really backing him.

“We’re seven or eight weeks away from the May election, and I expect someone to come out on top shortly after that.”

A Government spokesman said: “The Government’s position has not changed.

“We will always welcome those who come to this country and contribute to our national life. But the privilege of living here forever must be earned, not automatic.

“Between 2021 and 2024, this country experienced levels of immigration it has historically seen in four decades. We must be honest about the scale and impact of hundreds of thousands of low-skilled immigrants reaching settlement.”

“The government will double the path to resolution from 5 to 10 years. As announced in November, we are consulting to apply this change to those who are in the UK today but have not achieved settled status. We are currently reviewing 200,000 responses and will summarize our response in due course.”