Inside Labour’s Secret Talks on Prompting Prime Minister Keir Starmer to Resign

Senior Cabinet members are meeting privately to decide when and how to ask Prime Minister Keir Starmer to step down. Sources say the request will likely be made after the 7 May local elections, with Home Secretary Shabana Mahmood identified as the likely messenger.

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The controversy follows Starmer’s handling of former Foreign Secretary Peter Mandelson’s appointment as U.S. ambassador, which has drawn criticism over security vetting. Polls predict Labour could lose over 2,000 council seats, its Welsh Senedd majority and fail to unseat the SNP in Scotland in the 7 May elections.

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Potential challengers include Health Secretary Wes Streeting, former Deputy Prime Minister Angela Rayner—under an HMRC stamp-duty probe—Mayor Andy Burnham, who lacks a parliamentary seat, and Energy Secretary Ed Miliband, who has positioned himself as a kingmaker. The Home Secretary, Shabana Mahmood, is being discussed as the official who might convey the resignation request.

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Early May 2024 – Starmer’s government faces criticism over Mandelson’s ambassadorial appointment. Tuesday – Starmer dismisses Foreign Office permanent secretary Sir Olly Robbins. Thursday – Cabinet Office Permanent Secretary Cat Little disputes Robbins’s claims. Friday – Starmer meets allies at Chequers on the King’s Speech. 7 May – Local elections. Next week – Former No 10 chief of staff Morgan McSweeney appears before the Foreign Affairs Select Committee.

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Polling suggests Labour could lose over 2,000 council seats, its Welsh Senedd majority and fall short of overtaking the SNP in Scotland. Government borrowing rose at its fastest pace since the Iran war, reflecting market anxiety about a possible left-wing successor and policy volatility.

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Starmer’s spokesman defended the Prime Minister, noting he is one of only four Labour leaders to have won a general election and that his government holds a five-year mandate to tackle cost-of-living crisis, cut NHS waiting lists and restore community pride. A spokesperson for Home Secretary Shabana Mahmood dismissed the resignation rumours as “tittle-tattle” and affirmed her focus on national security.

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Energy Secretary Ed Miliband and former adviser Polly Billington have criticised Starmer’s leadership. A Labour strategist warned the worst outcome would be a market wobble similar to Liz Truss’s tenure, followed by a less secure country under a left-wing successor.

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Sources disagree on who will deliver the resignation request—some name Home Secretary Shabana Mahmood, others leave the role undefined—and on the viability of potential successors, given Angela Rayner’s tax probe, Andy Burnham’s lack of a seat and Wes Streeting’s contested support.

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• “Even people in Keir’s inner circle are in despair,” — Cabinet aide

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• “This is just basically death by a thousand cuts,” — Labour MP

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• “One Tory texted me to say that something in the party dies as everyone splits into permanent camps,” — Labour MP

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• “Nothing has fundamentally changed over the last few weeks, none of the candidates has their act together yet,” — Labour MP

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