Starmer Allies Warn Leadership Plot Could Force General Election

Starmer is now reported to have the lowest approval ratings of any modern Prime Minister this early in their premiership.

Allies of Keir Starmer warned Labour MPs on Wednesday night that any move to depose the Prime Minister could “trigger a general election”, amid escalating infighting and claims of an attempted “kneecapping” of Health Secretary Wes Streeting.

Rumours of a leadership challenge circulated at Westminster after days of chaos in Downing Street, where a series of hostile briefings against Mr Streeting, widely blamed on the Prime Minister’s chief of staff, Morgan McSweeney, caused uproar in the party.

With Labour polling below 20 per cent, several MPs fear that the fall of a sitting Prime Minister could plunge the country into an election that would cost “hundreds” of Labour seats.

One ally of Sir Keir said a new Labour leader would “need their own mandate” from the electorate. Although there is no constitutional requirement for a new Prime Minister to call an election, the source argued: “In the modern age, you need your own mandate. We saw under the Tories, and even with Gordon [Brown], that the public hate the idea that political parties can stitch up the choice of a new PM without them. Anyone thinking of moving against Keir should consider that very carefully.”

How a Labour Leadership Challenge Works

Under Labour Party rules:

A challenger to a sitting leader must secure nominations from 20 per cent of Labour MPs to reach the ballot.
With Labour currently holding 411 MPs, a challenger would therefore need at least 82 nominations.
The sitting leader is automatically on the ballot if challenged.
Party members and affiliated supporters then vote in a full leadership election.

While the Parliamentary Labour Party can hold an internal vote of confidence, this has no binding effect under Labour rules; only the nomination process and membership ballot can remove a leader.

Starmer allies stressed that if a challenger reached the ballot, the political pressure from voters and the media could make an early general election “almost unavoidable”, even though it is not required in law.

Downing Street Briefing Backfires

The crisis began after No 10 briefings accused Mr Streeting of plotting a coup and labelled Labour MPs “feral”. The move prompted demands for sackings and an investigation ordered by Labour Party chair Anna Turley. One friend of Mr McSweeney admitted he was “100 per cent behind” the briefing and added: “He’s toast.”

Mr Streeting hit back, saying the briefing was “totally self-defeating… not least because it’s not true”, and urged Starmer to end the “toxic culture” in Downing Street.

He mocked suggestions that he might challenge for the leadership, telling Sky News: “Yes, and nor did I shoot JFK. I don’t know where Lord Lucan is, had nothing to do with Shergar, and I do think that the US did manage to do the moon landings.”

Sir Keir told MPs the unauthorised briefing was “completely unacceptable” and insisted he had “never authorised attacks on Cabinet members”. He later spoke with Mr Streeting by phone, with the PM understood to have apologised.

Opposition Attacks and Rising Tensions

Conservative leader Kemi Badenoch said the Government had “descended into civil war”, adding: “He says that these attacks are not authorised. The truth is that means he has lost control of No 10, because that is where they are coming from.”

Reform UK leader Nigel Farage told the Daily Mail: “This is a government that is all at sea, without a rudder. The sooner we have an election, the better it will be for the country.”

Labour figures believe the briefing spree was a pre-emptive strike by No 10 amid fears that MPs may turn on Starmer after the 26 November Budget, which is expected to include an income-tax rise breaking the party’s manifesto pledge.

One source told the Guardian that as many as “50 frontbenchers” were ready to resign if the Budget went badly and Starmer refused to quit, a claim Mr Streeting dismissed as “bizarre”.

Despite the turmoil, No 10 insisted Starmer still had confidence in Mr McSweeney. The PM told MPs that his aide was “focused” on delivering the Government’s priorities, though the support was notably restrained.

A former Labour MP told the Post: “Starmer having confidence in McSweeney isn’t saying much. Everyone Keir Starmer has ‘confidence’ seems to be gone days later. I’d be surprised if McSweeney lasts the month.”

Speculation Over Starmer’s Successors

Labour MPs believe several senior figures are positioning themselves for a possible future race, including:

Health Secretary Wes Streeting
Home Secretary Shabana Mahmood
Former deputy PM Angela Rayner
Energy Secretary Ed Miliband
Manchester Mayor Andy Burnham

However, few MPs believe a coordinated attempt to remove Starmer is imminent. Although Nigel Farage predicts Keir Starmer “won’t make it past July” after local and devolved elections in which Reform expects to damage both major parties next year.

‘Lost the Plot’

Some Labour MPs accused No 10 of “manufacturing a leadership crisis” at a time when the party is struggling in the polls. Starmer is now reported to have the lowest approval ratings of any modern Prime Minister this early in their premiership.

For now, the Labour leader’s allies say he is preparing to fight any challenge. One No 10 source said: “Keir knows he is already fighting a leadership contest. When it comes, he won’t resign. He will fight it. He thinks it’s fantasy politics.”

Mr Streeting, despite being the focus of the briefing war, credited Mr McSweeney with helping Labour win power and declined to criticise him personally.

This article (Starmer Allies Warn Leadership Plot Could Force General Election) was created and published by Conservative Post and is republished here under “Fair Use” with attribution to the author CP

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