Unions pile in on Starmer after election catastrophe: Live updates

Following Unite chief Sharon Graham’s scathing attack on Keir Starmer this morning, Dave Ward – the general secretary of the Communication Workers Union (CWU) – has now also come out against the Labour premier.

Speaking to delegates at the party’s conference in Bournemouth, he said:

There’s nobody in this room who doesn’t understand that that wasn’t down to the work of Labour councillors out on the ground.

That was down to the simple fact and truth that Labour has completely and utterly misread a lot of the situations that it faces and it has disconnected from working-class people.

Labour MP Josh Simons has added his name to a growing list of disillusioned party representatives calling on Sir Keir Starmer to go.

Formerly considered a Starmer loyalist, Mr Simons is a previous director of the Labour Together think tank, which was important to Sir Keir’s rise to power.

Sharing his article for The Times to social media, Mr Simons admitted the piece was ‘not easy to write’.

But in a rallying call, he added, ‘We Labour MPs must square up to the truth. These elections were not a normal mid-term drubbing, they were an unequivocal judgement that our actions do not meet the moment.’

He wrote in The Times:

Putting the people I represent and the country I love first, I do not believe the prime minister can rise to this moment.

He has lost the country. He should take control of the situation by overseeing an orderly transition to a new prime minister.

Alarm has been raised that Ms West’s threat to launch a ‘stalking horse’ challenge to Sir Keir as early as tomorrow could put Wes Streeting – seen as on the Blairite wing of the party – in No10.

Some believe the Health Secretary’s allies want to force a leadership crisis before Manchester mayor Andy Burnham, favoured by many on the Left, can find a way of returning to the Commons.

Having neutralised Mr Burnham, Mr Streeting would then try to see off the challenge from his other big rival Angela Rayner – who is still wrangling with HMRC over her unpaid stamp duty.

Richard Burgon, Labour MP for Leeds East, appears to share the view of many other Starmer-skeptics in his party.

He believes Keir Starmer should resign – but that Catherine West’s leadership bid plot is not the answer.

Speaking to Sky News, he said:

We need a full process which doesn’t just involve members of the cabinet or MPs but involves our trade unions as well, party members and Labour councillors – and those who through no fault of their own lost their seat.

Crucially, Starmer’s cabinet are remaining loyal to him despite Thursday’s election losses.

Bridget Phillipson, the education minister, said she was confident the prime minister could turn things around, telling Sky News today that Sir Keir would set out a ‘fresh direction’ for Britain in a speech on Monday.

Among his vocal supporters outside the cabinet are deputy party leader Lucy Powell who yesterday said Labour must ‘listen’ and ‘change’ approach but stick with Starmer.

It is a similar line taken by several Labour MPs such as the likes of Tom Hayes for Bournemouth East who has warned against ‘blaming the boss’.

The leader of the Labour party in Scotland has blamed a ‘national wave’ against the party for its worst result of devolution, which saw only 17 MSPs elected.

Anas Sarwar accepted the outcome as ‘disappointing and hurtful’ but added he ‘absolutely’ intends to stay in post.

Labour is now tied with Holyrood newcomers Reform UK for second place in the Edinburgh Parliament.

Speaking on BBC Scotland’s Sunday Show, Mr Sarwar said:

The reality is we believed we could cut through the national noise, we had a campaign designed to try to cut through the national noise, but we failed to do so and ultimately that is why we got the result we did.

In case you missed it, here is Labour backbencher Catherine West demanding her ‘excellent’ colleagues pluck up the courage to oust Sir Keir Starmer as leader.

Ms West revealed she will go public with a leadership coup on Monday if the Cabinet hasn’t moved against the Prime Minister by her deadline.

You can hear her full thoughts below.

Sir Keir Starmer has assured the general public that there will be ‘no holding back’ in calling for the UK to be ‘closer to Europe’ – ahead of his big reset speech tomorrow.

In his highly-anticipated address to MPs, the Prime Minister will also attempt to offer evidence he is responding to the scale of defeat inflicted on Labour in this week’s local elections.

He has now also signalled, in an Observer interview, that building a closer relationship with the EU will form part of his message tomorrow.

Shadow housing secretary James Cleverly has meanwhile insisted the Conservative party is doing better under Kemi Badenoch’s leadership – describing Reform UK as a ‘cult of personality’.

He told the BBC’s Laura Kuenssberg that Reform are ‘not the biggest party on the right’ and ‘being angry at stuff is not a policy’.

It follows an interview on the show just moments earlier with deputy Reform leader Richard Tice who defended Mr Farage amid criticism over an undeclared £5million gift.

Do you agree with Mr Cleverly’s view on the Conservative Party? Let us know in the comments.

So far, 36 Labour MPs have backed calls for Sir Keir Starmer to quit.

The latest, Josh Simons, is likely to cause particular concern for the premier as Mr Simons was once touted as a future star in a Starmer administration.

Other names include some of the usual suspects such as Labour veteran John McDonnell – as well as those who might still have a bone to pick with Sir Keir like former transport minister Louise Haigh.

However, the MPs are not necessarily signalling support for the leadership bid proposed by backbencher Catherine West.

In a social media post, Mr McDonnell clarified he ‘does not think this is the right approach’.

He added: ‘We need to discuss how we go forward and I worry some in shadows want to exploit her (Ms West’s) concerns and bounce us before we have a proper democratic process.’

Reform did well in the local elections – but this might not be the triumph it first appeared to be.

The party was easily beaten by Plaid in Wales, and won fewer seats in Scotland than it had hoped.

Although victorious in parts of England, it performed poorly in university towns and prosperous urban areas, and sometimes didn’t figure at all.

A general election could be three years away. But sensible people on the Right should be asking themselves what happens if, as seems likely, Reform fails to win outright.

You can read the full analysis by Stephen Glover here:

The hosts at the Rest Is Politics podcast have turned their attention to the Green Party’s Zack Polanski – noting the telltale signs he might be chronically online.

It comes as an investigation by the Economist found he liked 35,000 posts on one social media site in a 12-month period.

Around a third of the posts were said to have included his name.

Alastair Campbell said: ‘That’s a lot. That’s a lot of activity.’