LONDON (AP) — U.K. Prime Minister Keir Starmer insisted Tuesday that he has no intention of resigning as calls grew louder within his Labour Party for him to step down and some junior members of his government quit in protest.
A day before the state opening of Parliament when the government will present its legislative program for the coming year, Starmer tried to shore up support within his Cabinet.
Starmer’s future has become a hot topic over the past few feverish days following historic losses for the Labour Party in local elections last week, which if repeated in a national election that has to be held by 2029, would see it overwhelmingly ejected from power.
Though no Cabinet member has quit or publicly stated the prime minister should step aside for a change in leader, there’s growing speculation that the ambitious health secretary, Wes Streeting, will inform Starmer that his days are numbered when they meet on Wednesday.
Streeting has many supporters within the parliamentary party, including some of those who resigned from Starmer’s government on Tuesday, which stoked speculation that Starmer could suffer the fate of Boris Johnson in 2022 when dozens of ministers quit en masse and forced his departure.
