Thirty Labour MPs have defied their leader and called on Sir Keir Starmer to resign as Labour losses hit 1,400 overnight.
The Prime Minister suffered an atrocious 24 hours at the polls after Welsh First Minister Eluned Morgan lost her seat and her party fumbled their 72-year-long grip on the country.
Labour also lost hundreds of councillors across England to Nigel Farage’s Reform UK as they watched their grasp on stronghold authorities crumble before their eyes.
Tameside, Blackburn, Gateshead and Sunderland, all in former Labour heartlands, including Angela Rayner’s backyard, surrendered control to the populist party on Friday.
Late on Thursday, it was revealed Energy Secretary Ed Miliband privately advised Sir Keir to set out a timetable to bow out of No10 with local elections looming.
On Friday, London Mayor Sir Sadiq Khan admitted the “threat to Labour is existential” without a radical overhaul.
And, now, more than 30 of Sir Keir’s juniors have followed suit and called for his head.
Richard Burgon, Graham Stringer and John McDonnell are among those calling for the Prime Minister to step down.
However, more surprising outcries come from former Transport Secretary Louise Haigh.
Simon Opher, the MP for Stroud, vowed Sir Keir could not carry Labour through the next general election – nor could he “stop the far right entering No10”.
Meanwhile, rebel Nadia Whittome slammed Labour top chiefs for “doubling down on Reform-lite policies”, calling for the return of Labour for working-class communities.
FOLLOW ALONG WITH GB NEWS FOR THE LATEST UPDATES THROUGHOUT THE DAY…
Donald Trump congratulates SNP leader John Swinney but doesn’t mention Nigel Farage after Reform surge
US President Donald Trump has congratulated John Swinney following the Scottish National Party’s fifth consecutive election win.
Mr Trump, who proudly boasts about his mother’s Scottish roots, said: “Congratulations to John Swinney on winning his Re-Election for First Minister of Scotland.
“He is a good man, who worked very hard, along with the King and Queen of the United Kingdom, with respect to Tariff relief for Great Scottish Whiskey — and deserves this Big Electoral Victory! President DONALD J TRUMP.”
The SNP secured the most seats in Holyrood, winning 58 out of 129.
READ THE FULL STORY HERE.
Nigel Farage issues fiery warning after Blairite grandee returned to No10
Nigel Farage has issued a fiery warning after Gordon Brown was appointed to a top No10 role this morning.
His appointment comes as part of Sir Keir Starmer’s “reset” following a devastating set of election results.
The Reform UK chief said: “An unpopular Prime Minister who lost a general election is now seen by Starmer as being the saviour. Labour are doomed.”
Meanwhile, party economics spokesman Robert Jenrick chimed in with a damning response as well.
“Genius,” he sarcastically slung. “Bring back the guy who gave away our gold reserves to advise on ‘economic resilience’.
“What could possibly go wrong?”
Gordon Brown appointed as PM’s Special Envoy on Global Finance in bid to ‘reset’ party
Gordon Brown has been appointed as the Prime Minister’s Special Envoy on Global Finance in bid to “reset” the party’s outlook.
It comes as part of Sir Keir Starmer’s attempt to renovate his team following a set of historic losses at the polls.
Downing Street added Sir Keir is committed to boosting the UK’s security and resilience and Mr Brown’s appointment will come as part of that effort.
“As part of the role he will engage with international leaders and finance institutions as well as private finance partners to establish multilateral finance mechanisms,” he said.
Gordon Brown meets PM in Downing Street as part of PM’s ‘next steps’ plan
Gordon Brown has been spotted outside No10 as he met with Sir Keir Starmer to discuss the PM’s “next steps”.
He could be seen shaking hands with the leadership embattled PM on the steps on No10.
GB News’s Charlie Peters pointed to the possibility Sir Keir could bring Mr Brown back to Government to unite his team – just as former PM Rishi Sunak brought back David Cameron as Foreign Secretary during his premiership.
Keir Starmer appoints Harriet Harman as PM’s adviser on Women and Girls
Keir Starmer has appointed Harriet Harman as the Prime Minister’s Adviser on Women and Girls in a Cabinet revamp.
A Downing Street spokesman said: “Keir Starmer said yesterday he would set out the next steps in his plan to build a stronger and fairer Britain in the coming days.
“Today he has appointed Harriet Harman as the Prime Minister’s Adviser on Women and Girls.
“The PM committed to do more to eradicate structural misogyny and achieve a cultural change. This appointment will help to accelerate progress.”
Plaid Cymru and SNP victories leave UK under threat as pro-independence parties hatch plot to break up Union
Northern Ireland’s First Minister Michelle O’Neill has admitted she intends to work with her expected counterparts in Scotland and Wales to break up the United Kingdom.
The Scottish National Party secured yet another landslide win in Scotland, while Plaid Cymru is on the cusp of gaining power in Wales for the first time.
Throwing her support behind John Swinney and Rhun ap Iorwerth, Ms O’Neill said that it was “the first time ever there could be three pro-independence First Ministers across these islands”.
She also claimed that the election results show that the “growing demand for independence cannot be ignored”.
READ THE FULL STORY HERE.
Sadiq Khan calls for change as he warns Labour faces ‘existential threat’
Sir Sadiq Khan has called for change as he warned Labour is facing an “existential threat”.
Following the devastating set of local election results, the Mayor of London said the city’s results “speak to a far-reaching disillusionment and fracturing in our politics, which cannot be downplayed, spun or dismissed”.
“Without a change in course and an acceleration in delivery, the threat to Labour is existential,” he declared.
“We risk a repeat in London, Wales and across England of what happened in Scotland, where we have still not recovered.”
RECAP: The winners and losers of the local elections so far
Reform surged across the nation, gaining more than 1,442 seats, while the Greens also made hundreds of unprecedented gains, reaching 515 councillors so far.
Meanwhile, Labour lost 1,406 seats in a historic set of electoral losses for the longstanding party.
The Conservatives’ loss was not as staggering, although the Tories lost some 557 representatives across the country.
The Liberal Democrats made a gain of 151 councillors, winning the title of third place behind Reform UK and Labour.
ENGLAND COUNCIL RESULTS:
- Reform: 1,444 (+1,442)
- Labour: 997 (-1,406)
- Liberal Democrats: 834 (+151)
- Tories: 773 (-557)
- Green: 515 (+374)
- Independents: 199 (+27)
Boris Johnson pours praise on Kemi Badenoch’s ‘bounce and zap’ during campaign
Boris Johnson has poured lavish praise over his successor Kemi Badenoch’s “bounce and zap” during the local election campaign.
“She seems fresher and more full of bounce and zap than her rivals,” the former Prime Minister noted.
“She has a fearlessness and knowledge of her own mind that are enjoyable to watch – and a positive tonic by comparison with the stammering glottal machine language of the Prime Minister. At the time of writing, she also seems to have done better than forecast at the ballot box,” he added, writing in the Daily Mail.
Mr Johnson also ceded that Reform “did well – but not as well as expected” while appearing keen that Mrs Badenoch can “close the gap”.
Keir Starmer demands ‘break with status quo’ after devastating local election losses
Sir Keir Starmer has demanded a “break with the status quo” after a devastating set of local election losses.
The PM added he would take “responsibility” for the loss of more than 1,400 councillors across the nation, ceding he had made “unnecessary mistakes” during his premiership.
“This time things will be different. We must break with the status quo once and for all by building a stronger and fairer country,” he said, writing in The Guardian.
“A stronger country – where family finances are not at the whim of tyrants such as Vladimir Putin, and where we stand shoulder to shoulder with our European allies to rebuild our defences, grow our economy and secure our future.
“And a fairer country – where every child has the chance to thrive, where opportunity is not reserved for those who are born with it, and where people can look at their town, their workplace and their country with pride and hope.”
Longest-serving Labour MP piles pressure on Keir Starmer to step down
The longest-serving Labour MP has piled pressure on Sir Keir Starmer to step down.
Clive Betts, the MP for Sheffield South East since 1992, urged Cabinet ministers to say Sir Keir should move out of No10 “in the not too distant future”.
“What people said repeatedly was we might vote Labour, we’ve always voted Labour, we might vote Labour again, but not while Keir is the leader. It was repeated over and over again,” the MP told the BBC.
“That’s a real problem going forward. I don’t think rebooting and refreshing is going to make any difference.
“Unfortunately, the public, by and large, has just stopped listening to Keir. They have made their minds up.”
Wes Streeting refuses to back Keir Starmer to head up Labour into next election
Wes Streeting has failed to give Sir Keir Starmer the public backing to lead Labour into the next election.
The Prime Minister’s leadership rival refused to say whether his boss should lead the party by the next time a general election is held.
The Health Secretary said: “Keir Starmer won a general election in 2024 that people thought was absolutely impossible after Labour’s crushing defeat in 2019.
“Now, there’s no doubt that with the message that the voters have sent us across England, Wales and Scotland, that the Government bears a huge degree of responsibility for good Labour people losing.”
IN FULL: List of Labour MPs calling for Keir Starmer to step down
- David Baines (St Helens North)
- Paula Barker (Liverpool Wavertree)
- Apsana Begum (Poplar and Limehouse)
- Olivia Blake (Sheffield Hallam)
- Jonathan Brash (Hartlepool)
- Richard Burgon (Leeds East)
- Ian Byrne (Liverpool West Derby)
- Beccy Cooper (Worthing West)
- Neil Duncan-Jordan (Poole)
- Louise Haigh (Sheffield Heeley)
- Chris Hinchliff (North East Hertfordshire)
- Kim Johnson (Liverpool Riverside)
- Ruth Jones (Newport West and Islywn)
- Peter Lamb (Crawley)
- Ian Lavery (Blyth and Ashington)
- Brian Leishman (Alloa and Grangemouth)
- Clive Lewis (Norwich South)
- Rachael Maskell (York Central)
- Andy McDonald (Middlesborough and Thornaby East)
- John McDonnell (Hayes and Harlington)
- Anneliese Midgley (Knowsley)
- Abtisam Mohamed (Sheffield Central)
- Connor Naismith (Crewe and Nantwich)
- Simon Opher (Stroud)
- Kate Osborne (Jarrow and Gateshead East)
- Euan Stainbank (Falkirk)
- Graham Stringer (Blackley and Middleton South)
- Jon Trickett (Normanton and Hemsworth)
- Nadia Whittome (Nottingham East)
- Sarah Owen (Luton North)
Our Standards:
The GB News Editorial Charter
