Streeting urged to speak out against Starmer ahead of King’s Speech

by James Tapsfield, UK Political Editor

Keir Starmer had a ‘blink and you miss it’ showdown with Wes Streeting today as the PM suffered more body blows – and the King is dragged into Labour’s meltdown.

A grim-faced Health Secretary walked out of Downing Street barely 15 minutes after he entered through the famous black door.

The brevity of the encounter will spark speculation that there was no meeting of minds over Mr Streeting’s coup attempt in the wake of disastrous local elections.

Wes Streeting has left Number 10 after a meeting with Sir Keir Starmer.

The Health Secretary was inside for less than 20 minutes.

Mr Streeting did not respond to questions from journalists as he walked back down Downing Street.

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by Dan Hodges

‘The Labour Party has literally gone insane.’ These words – from a senior backbencher – accurately described the day Britain’s governing party stared into the abyss, took a deep breath, then hurled itself straight in.

I had the privilege of a front-row seat to the fall of Tony Blair. I chronicled the Brexit wars; Boris Johnson being deposed by a slice of birthday cake; and Liz Truss’s own quick-fire descent into oblivion.

But nothing compares to the complete madness of the last 24 hours, and the way Keir Starmer contrived to defy his party – and reality – and send them hurtling towards political and electoral destruction.

The mayhem began, ironically enough, with the Prime Minister finally accepting his fate. According to one of Starmer’s allies, as Monday’s trickle of MPs calling for his resignation turned into a flood, he finally acknowledged that his position had become untenable.

UK long-term borrowing costs have eased back after reaching a 28-year high yesterday as Sir Keir Starmer continues to defy calls to stand down.

The yield on 30-year UK Government bonds – also known as gilts – was down by four basis points to 5.74 per cent in early trading on Wednesday.

Yields had jumped as much as 13 basis points to around 5.8 per cent on Tuesday amid the uncertainty over the Prime Minister’s future.

The yield on 10-year gilts was also down by four basis points to 5.066 per cent on Wednesday.

Gilt yields move counter to the value of the bonds, meaning their prices fall when yields rise.

Meanwhile, the pound was stabilising after the previous day’s falls. The currency was more or less flat against the US dollar, at 1.353, and up about 0.1 per cent against the euro, at 1.155.

by James Tapsfield, UK Political Editor

Mr Streeting has arrived in Downing Street for a showdown meeting with the PM over the coup attempt in the wake of disastrous local elections.

He opted to stride in through the famous black door instead of one of the more discreet entrances.

The PM’s band of allies have dismissed the encounter as a ‘quick coffee’, jibing that Mr Streeting does not have the numbers or the ‘nerve’ to challenge.

But the peril remains – with claims unions are poised to say Sir Keir cannot fight the next election.

Ominously, the next batch of Mandelson documents is due to be released as early as next week.

Manchester mayor Andy Burnham and Angela Rayner are both circling as the question of who will succeed Sir Keir dominates MPs’ discussions.

High drama at Westminster yesterday saw four Labour ministers resign, saying they no longer had confidence in the premier.

The number of Labour MPs calling for him to go rose to 90, and Home Secretary Shabana Mahmood was forced to deny she is on the brink of quitting after telling the PM to set out a timetable for his departure.

Cabinet Office minister Nick Thomas-Symonds has said he doesn’t think talks between Wes Streeting and Sir Keir Starmer will be ‘awkward’.

Mr Thomas-Symonds insisted Sir Keir’s Cabinet is ‘united and determined’, and said the Prime Minister’s door is ‘very much open’ to hearing any leadership concerns.

‘The Prime Minister has said he’ll speak to any members of the Cabinet about any concerns they may have. His door is very much open in that regard,’ he told Times Radio.

He said Sir Keir’s mood on Tuesday evening was one of ‘real steely determination’ and commitment to delivering the mandate he got in the 2024 election.

As Wes Streeting is due to meet Sir Keir on Wednesday morning, Mr Thomas-Symonds insisted any Cabinet minister can go for a ‘quick coffee’ with the Prime Minister and said ‘I don’t think that will be awkward at all’.

Wes Streeting has arrived in Downing Street for a meeting with the Prime Minister amid calls from within Labour for Sir Keir Starmer to resign.

The Health Secretary has tipped as a possible leadership contender in the event Sir Keir does decide to step aside.

He did not respond to journalists shouting questions as he walked along Downing Street and entered Number 10.

A minister who quit the government over Sir Keir Starmer’s leadership has called on Cabinet members privately dissatisfied with the Prime Minister to say so publicly.

Zubir Ahmed, who is said to be an ally of Wes Streeting, said the situation was ‘unsustainable’.

Speaking on BBC Radio 4’s Today programme, he said:

I think it is very telling, just as ministers have stepped forward in the junior ministerial ranks to articulate their dissatisfaction – some of us publicly, but more of us privately – that the whole of the Cabinet has not, on this occasion, been able to articulate support for the Prime Minister in the full-throated way that perhaps would have had happened in the past.

I think, therefore, that there is a responsibility in all of us, on all of us, in parliamentary ministerial office to be honest with ourselves and with the Prime Minister at this time.

He went on to say ministers who are articulating their unhappiness with Sir Keir should so in public and directly to him.

Good morning and welcome to our live politics coverage as Keir Starmer’s premiership remains engulfed in crisis on the day of the King’s Speech.

The Prime Minister is set to have talks with Wes Streeting, the Health Secretary and potential leadership challenger, this morning inside Downing Street.

The pair will meet ahead of the King’s Speech, a centuries old tradition to mark the start of a new parliamentary session.

Stick with us throughout the day as we bring you the latest on the Labour leadership saga and the King’s Speech as Charles enters Parliament.