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Starmer ‘unpopular’ but Labour must stop ‘internal-facing nonsense’, says minister
Good morning and welcome to our live coverage of UK politics.
Housing secretary Steve Reed, a close ally of Keir Starmer, has been on the media round this morning urging Labour colleagues to put the “country first, party second”, even as he admits the prime minister is “unpopular”.
When asked by Sky News whether replacing an unpopular prime minister is something the party should consider, he said: “Each of the last four prime ministers, in turn, has been the most unpopular prime minister we’ve ever had.”
He added: “What we need to do is all of us come together behind the prime minister and focus on how we can deliver the change the British public want to see faster.”
A leadership challenge seems all but inevitable, with Greater Manchester mayor Andy Burnham potentially throwing his hat in the ring, but Reed rather bluntly stated “there is no leadership challenge” and hit out at the “internal-facing nonsense” plaguing the party.
He told the BBC: “If people wanted to gather the nominations then it’s open for them to do that – they would need to find enough Labour MPs that wanted to endorse them but nobody has done that.
“It’s been a very difficult week but we need to take a breath now, take this weekend to reflect on what’s going on, and come back next week and focus on the country we were elected to serve.”
Commenting on reports suggesting Starmer was considering his position last night, Reed told Times Radio “that isn’t true”, adding: “The Labour party will not copy the chaos we saw under the Conservatives.”
Labour MP Josh Simons announced yesterday that he would stand down from his constituency in Makerfield to make way for Burnham to stand as a candidate in a byelection.
Simons said he believed Burnham could “drive the change our country is crying out for”.
“We have lost the trust of those our party was built to serve. It is my unwavering belief that nothing short of urgent, radical, courageous reform will make a difference,” he told BBC Radio Manchester this morning.
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Key events
What would potential Labour leadership candidates do differently to Starmer?
Wes Streeting’s resignation as health secretary, and the resignation of former minister Josh Simons as an MP to clear a path for Andy Burnham to return to parliament, has brought the prospect of a Labour leadership race one step closer, even if he has not triggered a contest himself.
Almost every critic of Keir Starmer has accused the prime minister of not being sufficiently “bold” in his policy choices. But what would his possible replacements actually do differently? In this explainer, the Guardian’s policy editor Kiran Stacey looks at the stances on key issues of Andy Burnham, Wes Streeting, Angela Rayner and Ed Miliband:
The new health secretary, James Murray, was pictured in Downing Street this morning on his first full day in the role.
He was appointed last night after Wes Streeting stepped down from the position, saying it would have been “dishonourable” to remain in post after he had lost confidence in prime minister Keir Starmer.
Outgoing Labour MP spoke to Burnham’s team about Makerfield ‘earlier this week’
Labour MP Josh Simons, who stood down from his seat in Makerfield to pave the way for Andy Burnham’s return, said his decision was one of the “most difficult” he’s made, but that he’s “absolutely” confident the Greater Manchester mayor can win a byelection.
He told the BBC he spoke to Burnham’s team “for the first time seriously about this earlier this week”, adding: “It’s all been incredibly fast.”
The outgoing MP, whose wife recently had their third child, said he will spend more time with his family and help Burnham with his campaign.
To find out more about Simons, who has only been an MP for two years, the Guardian’s Whitehall editor Rowena Mason has put together a profile here:
Starmer ‘unpopular’ but Labour must stop ‘internal-facing nonsense’, says minister
Good morning and welcome to our live coverage of UK politics.
Housing secretary Steve Reed, a close ally of Keir Starmer, has been on the media round this morning urging Labour colleagues to put the “country first, party second”, even as he admits the prime minister is “unpopular”.
When asked by Sky News whether replacing an unpopular prime minister is something the party should consider, he said: “Each of the last four prime ministers, in turn, has been the most unpopular prime minister we’ve ever had.”
He added: “What we need to do is all of us come together behind the prime minister and focus on how we can deliver the change the British public want to see faster.”
A leadership challenge seems all but inevitable, with Greater Manchester mayor Andy Burnham potentially throwing his hat in the ring, but Reed rather bluntly stated “there is no leadership challenge” and hit out at the “internal-facing nonsense” plaguing the party.
He told the BBC: “If people wanted to gather the nominations then it’s open for them to do that – they would need to find enough Labour MPs that wanted to endorse them but nobody has done that.
“It’s been a very difficult week but we need to take a breath now, take this weekend to reflect on what’s going on, and come back next week and focus on the country we were elected to serve.”
Commenting on reports suggesting Starmer was considering his position last night, Reed told Times Radio “that isn’t true”, adding: “The Labour party will not copy the chaos we saw under the Conservatives.”
Labour MP Josh Simons announced yesterday that he would stand down from his constituency in Makerfield to make way for Burnham to stand as a candidate in a byelection.
Simons said he believed Burnham could “drive the change our country is crying out for”.
“We have lost the trust of those our party was built to serve. It is my unwavering belief that nothing short of urgent, radical, courageous reform will make a difference,” he told BBC Radio Manchester this morning.
Read more here:
