The political landscape in the UK has been rocked by the recent comments of a normally-loyal Labour MP, who has openly stated that either Rachel Reeves or Keir Starmer must go in order for the party to move forward. As the first anniversary of Starmer’s tenure as Prime Minister approaches, many are beginning to question how much longer he can last in the face of mounting criticism and challenges.
It is a remarkable turn of events, considering that just 12 months ago, Starmer led the Labour party to a landslide election victory, securing a staggering 165-seat majority in the Commons. However, the events of the past month have caused many of those who were elected last July to reluctantly admit that Starmer may not be the right person to lead the party into the next election.
“He should have three years to turn it around, but if he keeps going like this he won’t get those three years,” one source said, reflecting the growing sentiment among Labour MPs. The PM has faced criticism for his handling of several issues, including his U-turn on winter fuel payments, his indecision on holding a national inquiry into child grooming gangs, and most recently, his reversal on cuts to the welfare budget.
These incidents have led many Labour MPs to view Starmer as a leader who is constantly buffeted by events, rather than one who sets the political agenda. They are demanding significant changes to the way he conducts himself if he hopes to win back the trust and support of his fellow party members.
“We were told to support taking winter fuel payments off millions of pensioners, and to vote against a national grooming gangs inquiry, and then at the first sign of trouble he folds,” said one exasperated MP. “That makes a lot of us very angry.”
One of the main criticisms of Starmer is that he is rarely seen around parliament, which means that opportunities for impromptu chats and discussions with him are few and far between. As if to confirm this, it was revealed this week that the PM has only voted in the Commons seven times since taking office. In contrast, Wes Streeting, a fellow Labour MP and a familiar face around parliament, has been praised by many for his accessibility and visibility.
Neil Duncan-Jordan, who was elected as the MP for Poole last year, even stated on Radio 5Live that he has not had a single conversation with Starmer since becoming an MP. This lack of communication and interaction has raised concerns among Labour MPs, who point out that after the 1997 election, Tony Blair made a point of meeting with every new MP to thank them and build goodwill for the future.
Another Labour insider described Starmer’s team in No.10 as “completely dysfunctional”, citing a mixture of ignorance and arrogance as the root cause of their struggles. “They think all they need to do is send out instructions and all those MPs they put into seats will do as they’re told, but it doesn’t work like that,” he said.
A prime target for criticism has been Morgan McSweeney, Starmer’s chief of staff and top adviser, who wields significant power in No.10. Many Labour MPs have accused him of being authoritarian and inflexible, preferring to lay down the law rather than engaging in open and productive discussions.
“At the end of the day, Keir needs to say to Morgan McSweeney ‘it’s either you or me, and it ain’t going to be me’,” one MP said, highlighting the growing tensions within the party.
In response, an ally of McSweeney has defended him, pointing out that many of the rebels who have been openly critical of Starmer’s leadership were never on board with his vision in the first place. They simply want “regime change” in No.10, rather than working towards a common goal.
Others in the government have pointed to the Treasury as the source of the recent welfare debacle, where Starmer was forced to backtrack on plans to cut £5 billion from the benefits budget in the face of a rebellion by over 120 Labour backbenchers. They argue that the Chancellor, Rachel Reeves, was under pressure to fill a £22 billion black hole and made a mistake by taking another £500,000 from the welfare budget just before the Spring Statement in March.
“That was a huge mistake,” a senior government source said. “There’s a lot of good stuff in the welfare reforms about getting people off a life of benefits and into work,
