Story perspectives

70 MPs Push Starmer Resignation, Party Turmoil Rages

5/12/2026

Summary

Story summary

A Labour MP called the party’s post-election turmoil “devastatingly crap” amid calls for Prime Minister Sir Keir Starmer to resign.
Around 70 MPs signed a letter urging a September timetable for Starmer’s departure, prompting three parliamentary private secretaries to resign.
Former Labour leader Neil Kinnock warned that forcing a leadership change would harm the party and standing, noting insiders described Downing Street’s atmosphere as dire and feared a prime minister.

History

Historical Context

After the 12 December 2019 general election, the Conservatives won 365 seats under Boris Johnson’s premiership while Labour fell to 202 seats—the party’s worst tally since 1935—prompting Jeremy Corbyn’s resignation and Keir Starmer’s 2020 leadership win. In 2024, about 70 Labour MPs have rebelled, echoing the post-2019 internal dissent that reshaped the party’s fortunes.

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Story summary

A Labour MP called the party’s post-election turmoil “devastatingly crap” amid calls for Prime Minister Sir Keir Starmer to resign.
Around 70 MPs signed a letter urging a September timetable for Starmer’s departure, prompting three parliamentary private secretaries to resign.
Former Labour leader Neil Kinnock warned that forcing a leadership change would harm the party and standing, noting insiders described Downing Street’s atmosphere as dire and feared a prime minister.

1 / 2