7 h. ago Keir Starmer dismisses Andy Burnham coup talk as 'wasted' time and PRAISES Greater Manchester mayor

The Greater Manchester mayor has repeatedly refused to rule out challenge Sir Keir for the leadership of the Labour Party

Events

8 h. ago Starmer rebuffs renewed talk of Andy Burnham leadership challenge

PM says Burnham doing ‘really good job’ as Manchester mayor and urges colleagues not to brief against each otherKeir Starmer has attempted to dampen the latest round of speculation about his leadership, insisting that one of his potential rivals, Andy Burnham, is doing a “really good job as mayor of Manchester” and warning colleagues not to waste their time briefing against each other.The prime minister gave his backing to Burnham on Thursday night as he travelled to the G20 summit in Johannesburg, after the Manchester mayor repeatedly failed to rule out challenging Starmer for his party’s leadership during interviews on Thursday. Continue reading...

Politics

32 h. ago Double blow for Starmer as Burnham refuses to rule out leadership challenge and PM popularity hits record low

Most Labour voters see the PM and Chancellor Rachel Reeves negatively (52% and 57% respectively), according to a new YouGov poll

Events

34 h. ago Andy Burnham refuses to rule out challenging for Labour leadership

The Greater Manchester Mayor has been touted as a possible successor to the Prime Minister

Politics

35 h. ago Burnham refuses to rule out challenging for Labour leadership

The mayor of Greater Manchester suggested questions over his leadership ambitions are part of the problem with Westminster culture.

Politics

35 h. ago Andy Burnham refuses to rule out Labour leadership challenge

The Mayor of Greater Manchester was grilled over a move against the PM, and repeatedly deflected while claiming he could not 'rule out what might or might not happen'

Politics

36 h. ago Andy Burnham refuses to rule out challenging Keir Starmer as PM amid leadership coup speculation

Asked whether he could rule out challenging the prime minister, Andy Burnham repeatedly dodged the question

Politics

53 h. ago Labour MP hints he would give up seat for Andy Burnham to mount Starmer leadership challenge

It comes amid reports that MPs on the left of the party are pushing on with preparations for a potential leadership race

Politics

54 h. ago Labour MP 'willing to give up seat for Andy Burnham to challenge Sir Keir Starmer for leadership'

An MP has suggested he would be willing to give up his parliamentary seat as the Greater Manchester Mayor has been touted as a possible successor

Politics

63 h. ago Starmer’s squandering of a historic election victory is a tragedy nearing its finale | Rafael Behr

The tactics that gave Labour its huge majority in 2024 were no preparation for government – and the prime minister has proved he has nothing more to offerThe mood among Labour MPs these days follows Edgar’s law. This states that the scale of any misfortune can only be measured against unknown future disasters. As Shakespeare has the banished son of the blinded Earl of Gloucester say in King Lear: “The worst is not, so long as we can say ‘this is the worst’.”According to Edgar’s law, there is no opinion poll so gloomy for Labour that it can’t be followed by one even bleaker; no fiscal forecast so bad that the Treasury can’t aggravate it with contradictory signals on tax; no misgivings about Keir Starmer that can’t be amplified by malevolent briefing about a leadership challenge; no social policy so nauseating to the party faithful that it can’t be made grosser still with a relish of cruelty.Rafael Behr is a Guardian columnist Continue reading...

Politics

4 d. ago Labour has entered its musical chairs era. Don’t fall for another pointless death spiral | Nesrine Malik

Briefing wars, toxic infighting, paranoid office politics: we’ve seen it all before. And once again, the drama at No 10 has absolutely nothing to do with us Sorry, what just happened? Before we hurtle on to the next instalment of Labour government drama, let’s pause for a second to recap. So Keir Starmer’s allies briefed against Wes Streeting accusing him of plotting a leadership challenge, then Streeting denied the claims, and Starmer apologised for them, before belatedly claiming the briefing had not come from Downing Street at all. A claim so implausible that a government source said journalists “must have all been tricked by several impostors posing as No 10 staff”.If this sounds farcical, vaguely embarrassing for all concerned and massively irrelevant to your life, you would be right. But in between the first chapter and the last (or perhaps the penultimate, given the aftershocks still reverberating through No 10), the episode acted as a masterclass in the patterns that define ...

Events

4 d. ago Labour has entered its musical chairs era – and we’re sucked into another pointless death spiral | Nesrine Malik

Briefing wars, toxic infighting, paranoid office politics: we’ve seen it all before. And once again, the drama at No 10 has absolutely nothing to do with us Sorry, what just happened? Before we hurtle on to the next instalment of Labour government drama, let’s pause for a second to recap. So Keir Starmer’s allies briefed against Wes Streeting accusing him of plotting a leadership challenge, then Streeting denied the claims, and Starmer apologised for them, before belatedly claiming the briefing had not come from Downing Street at all. A claim so implausible that a government source said journalists “must have all been tricked by several impostors posing as No 10 staff”.If this sounds farcical, vaguely embarrassing for all concerned and massively irrelevant to your life, you would be right. But in between the first chapter and the last (or perhaps the penultimate, given the aftershocks still reverberating through No 10), the episode acted as a masterclass in the patterns that define ...

Events

5 d. ago Labour MP pledges to continue to challenge party leadership after whip restored

Brian Leishman vowed to continue fighting for ‘fairness, equality and social justice’.

Politics

6 d. ago Wes Streeting still 'backs himself' as future PM after Starmer allies accuse Health Secretary of plotting leadership challenge

The Health Secretary did not deny that he would like to lead Labour in the future as he said he had to 'back himself' following a vicious internal briefing war.

Politics

8 d. ago Labour Traitors War: Starmer will sack No10 briefer who tried to 'kneecap' Streeting, says minister

The Health Secretary has slammed Downing Street sources for ‘self-defeating and self-destructive behaviour’

Politics

8 d. ago Allies of Sir Keir Starmer warn coup plotters if they oust the PM it will trigger a General Election that would see the party annihilated

As rumours of a leadership challenge swirled at Westminster, friends of the beleaguered Prime Minister claimed any new leader would 'need their own mandate' from the voters.

Events

9 d. ago Labour Traitors War: Keir Starmer to 'investigate' who in No10 briefed against Wes Streeting amid coup frenzy

The Health Secretary has slammed Downing Street sources for ‘self-defeating and self-destructive behaviour’

Events

9 d. ago Keir Starmer latest: Half of Britons want Starmer to quit as Labour leader now after ‘coup attempt’, finds poll

The new YouGov polling revealed just over a quarter (27 per cent) of respondents think the PM should remain Labour leader and the other 23 per cent don’t know

Politics

9 d. ago A word of warning to the hounds circling Starmer: be careful what you wish for | Martin Kettle

With this level of unpopularity, the question of the PM’s future may seem simple. But what comes next could be nastily complicatedBe absolutely clear. Keir Starmer is in very deep trouble indeed. Perhaps belatedly, he himself grasps this. His team and his ministers knew it already. His party and the public get it too. For this deeply unpopular Labour prime minister, the words approval rating are a contradiction in terms.The eruption of speculation about Starmer’s future this week may have taken people by surprise. Where did that suddenly come from? The short answer is that No 10 briefed the latest twist – that Starmer expects to face and defeat a leadership challenge – on Tuesday evening. The longer one is that the Starmer leadership issue has been steadily gaining traction and credibility among MPs since the summer. This story is not a Westminster confection. Politically, it is very real. Dismiss it at your peril.Martin Kettle is a Guardian columnist Continue reading...

Events

9 d. ago Streeting hits out at ‘juvenile’ No 10 claims he wants to replace Starmer as Labour leader: Latest

The Prime minister has condemned briefings against health secretary by senior Downing Street aides overnight

Politics