In the wake of the local election results, Keir Starmer faced calls to stand down after voters handed a damning verdict on the Labour party.
Starmer took responsibility after Labour lost hundreds of councillors in England and suffered humiliation in Wales, but he made clear that he would not quit, saying “tough days like this don’t weaken my resolve”.
Some Labour MPs have come out demanding his resignation, but members of Starmer’s cabinet have rallied around the prime minister.
Health secretary Wes Streeting, who is widely seen as a likely candidate in a potential leadership race despite publicly denying such ambitions, said Starmer had his “support”.
View image in fullscreenKeir Starmer speaks to members of the media in London following the local elections. Photograph: Leon Neal/Getty Images“I’ll continue putting my shoulder to the wheel as the health and social care secretary, who’s getting the NHS back on its feet and making sure it’s fit for the future,” he said.
Home secretary Shabana Mahmood acknowledged "a devastating night” for Labour but said the prime minister “has rightly said we must do better”.
But several backbench MPs have called on Starmer to set out a timetable to resign. Clive Betts, MP for Sheffield South East, said Starmer has to go “in the not too distant future”, while Sarah Owen, MP for Luton North, said it’s “do or die for the Labour leadership”.
Labour suffered a historic loss in Wales, where the party’s 27 years in power has come to an end with Plaid Cymru winning the largest number of seats, though still short of a majority. In Scotland, the SNP is emerging as the victor.
View image in fullscreenReform UK leader Nigel Farage speaks to reporters as he arrives at a gathering for party supporters at Chelmsford City Racecourse, Essex. Photograph: Jordan Pettitt/PAArguably the biggest winner on Thursday was Reform UK, having gained more than 1,200 seats and control of 12 councils in England, according to the Press Association’s tally of the results. Reform leader Nigel Farage declared he had ushered in “a truly historic shift in British politics”.
The Liberal Democrats and Green party also made gains at the expense of Labour, with Greens leader Zack Polanski announcing the era of two-party politics “is not just dying, it is dead and it is buried”.
