Labour MPs were last night debating when – not if – Keir Starmer would resign, as the PM sank yet further into a political disaster of his own making.
Backbenchers are discussing between themselves the mechanism that would see Sir Keir removed from office after further details emerged about his appointment of Peter Mandelson as US ambassador.
Publicly taking on the Prime Minister, Sir Olly Robbins yesterday told a parliamentary committee that Downing Street had put ‘constant pressure’ on him to approve Mandelson for the role.
One senior Labour MP told the Daily Mail that Sir Olly had been ‘treated disgracefully’ by No 10.
‘If the Prime Minister is saying he wasn’t informed but had given him strict instructions to get it done, the Prime Minister is not in charge of events, I’m afraid.
‘If he gets a drubbing at the local elections, I’m pretty sure they’ll move against him,’ the MP said of Labour backbenchers.
Under Labour’s rules, a leader can be challenged if at least 20 per cent of the party’s MPs (80) nominate a single candidate to succeed him.
But Labour MPs are hoping the PM ‘can be persuaded his time is up’, the MP added, as putting names to a document supporting another candidate is ‘not the Labour way’.
Labour MPs were last night debating when – not if – Prime Minister Keir Starmer would resign, as the PM sank yet further into a political disaster of his own making Pictured: Sir Keir visited the British Museum on Tuesday to view the the design recommendations for the Queen Elizabeth Memorial
Scottish Labour leader Anas Sarwar yesterday continued his calls for Sir Keir to resign, telling the BBC there had been ‘far too many missteps’ and the ‘tipping point’ had been the Mandelson scandal Pictured: Sir Keir stood on stage with Mr Sarwar at the Scottish Labour Party Conference held in Edinburgh in 2023
They added: ‘Most of us wouldn’t sign it. It’s not how we live our lives. It’s not like we’re cowards or anything else – you just want people to see that their own writing is on the wall.’
Scottish Labour leader Anas Sarwar yesterday continued his calls for Sir Keir to resign, telling the BBC there had been ‘far too many missteps’ and the ‘tipping point’ had been the Mandelson scandal.
Senior Labour MP Sarah Champion said a leadership challenge was ‘absolutely the last thing that we want right now’, but admitted that Sir Keir was fundamentally disliked by voters.
‘People don’t like Keir on the door but it’s not over this Mandelson thing. They don’t like him personally,’ she told BBC Radio 4’s Today programme.
Sir Keir said he was ‘furious’ he was not told Mandelson had failed his security vetting, but Labour MP Andy McDonald said he had warned the PM of the risks associated with the disgraced former peer.
‘I said to the Prime Minister about Mandelson, ‘Distance yourself from this fella. Don’t touch him with a barge pole. He’s toxic’,’ he said.
A female MP said Sir Olly’s testimony ‘speaks to some wider issues in terms of ‘jobs for the boys’ culture within the top of No 10. The original sin was the decision to appoint Mandelson. Nothing that’s really been said today changes that’.
While they said Sir Olly’s testimony hadn’t ‘tipped the balance’ to trigger a move to replace Sir Keir immediately, ‘everyone’s focus’ was on next month’s local elections.
