Minister Quits And Calls For Keir Starmer To Resign
4 min read
Faith and communities minister Miatta Fahnbulleh is the first minister to resign and call for the Prime Minister to quit.
Fahnbulleh's resignation comes after four ministers' aides quit on Monday evening.
At the time of writing, more than 70 Labour MPs have called on Keir Starmer to set out a timetable for a leadership election to take place.
In a letter to Starmer posted on X, Fahnbulleh, who is the MP for Peckham, said "we have not acted with the vision, pace and ambition that our mandate for change demands of us".
Fahnbulleh continued: "Our country faces enormous challenges and people are crying out for the scale of change that this requires.
"The public does not believe that you can lead this change - and nor do I.
"Therefore, I urge you to do the right thing for the country and the party and set a timetable for an orderly transition so that a new team can deliver on the change we promised the country."
Former minister Catherine West has emailed Labour MPs looking for names to support a leadership election that would see a new leader in place before September.
The list of names urging for the Prime Minister to resign includes Milton Keynes North MP Chris Curtis, co-chair of the Labour Growth Group, and North Northumberland MP David Smith, a member of the Blue Labour caucus.
On Monday, Starmer attempted to shore up his position with a speech focused on his vision for the Labour Party, saying his government must go beyond “incremental change” and be the party of a “stronger and fairer” Britain.
He promised a stronger youth guarantee for jobs and apprenticeships, to nationalise British steel and move Britain closer to Europe while maintaining red lines.
However, his backbenchers remain far from reassured, particularly those on the soft left who have been calling for a more left-ward tilt.
At the Communications Workers Union conference, Angela Rayner criticised Starmer and the NEC from preventing the Greater Manchester mayor Andy Burnham from running as a candidate in the Gorton and Denton by-election. She told the audience “it was a mistake that the leadership of our party should put right”.
She also said the government’s agenda “isn’t working and it needs to change”.
Some Labour MPs told PoliticsHome Starmer's decision to reject calls to allow Burnham back into Parliament had been “his greatest misstep”.
“[He] would have come out stronger if he said NEC shouldn’t block Burnham. That single line could have saved his premiership. That could have just been his greatest misstep,” said one.
Culture Secretary Lisa Nandy has also said Andy Burnham would be an asset in Westminster. She told Sky News that Burnham was a politician who “goes out and fights for people and people see it and appreciate it”.
Meanwhile the mood amongst MPs – even those who have not called for the Prime Minister to go publicly – remains febrile, with a number of influential MPs telling PoliticsHome they remained unimpressed with the speech.
A furious northern MP told PoliticsHome: “I’m as pro-Europe as they come, but why is our solution to a Reform landslide (in very Leave areas) when they actually didn’t really breakthrough in Remain areas, to say we should be closer to Europe!? Total two fingers to people.”
“Needed to be back to basics, wages, prices, jobs, boats, security, common sense working class politics and instead it was for Guardian readers.”
Another Labour MP said: “Nothing new to be honest. Same old same old. Rather uninspiring. Note that he’s determined to hang on come what may. Basically no change so the ship continues to sink.”
Those of the soft left of the party were unimpressed by Starmer’s offering too. One told PoliticsHome the Prime Minister is “deluded”.
“Warm bath Keir. He thinks he's right, but the man is deluded.
Another joked: “A speech so bad that Luke Akehurst has begun recruiting for the impending leadership contest.”
