May 15, 2026 3:18 PM

From ally to rival, Wes Streeting turns on UK PM Starmer

When British Prime Minister Keir Starmer faced growing calls to resign at the weekend, his health secretary, Wes Streeting, went to see "The Devil Wears Prada 2", a film which depicts a rival challenging a weakened leader. The parallels were difficult to escape on Thursday when Streeting was the first senior minister to resign in order to call for a leadership contest to replace his boss. While Streeting stopped short of triggering a formal leadership contest, his withering criticism of Starme...

May 15, 2026 12:13 PM

UK’s Starmer faces survival battle as potential rivals circle

British Prime Minister Keir Starmer was struggling to hold on to power after his main rival in the government resigned on Thursday, accusing him of political drift, and others positioned themselves for potential challenges to his leadership. Disastrous results for the governing Labour Party in local elections last week have plunged Britain into a new crisis, just under two years after Starmer won a large majority on a vow to bring stability and end a decade of political chaos. After days of ca...

May 14, 2026 9:03 PM

What happens if the UK’s Starmer quits, or is challenged?

British Prime Minister Keir Starmer's position is under serious threat after senior minister Wes Streeting quit and dozens of Labour lawmakers called for him to set out a timetable for his departure, or resign, in the wake of heavy losses in local elections. Here's what could happen next: HAS A LEADERSHIP CONTEST BEEN TRIGGERED? Not yet. Health minister Wes Streeting resigned on Thursday, saying Starmer wouldn't lead the party for much longer and should facilitate a leadership race with the ...

May 14, 2026 5:05 PM

Starmer vows to fight on ahead of possible leadership challenge

British Prime Minister Keir Starmer faced the increasing prospect of a leadership challenge on Thursday, with his health minister reported to be ready to resign and his former deputy calling on him to "reflect" on his position. Starmer, who has repeatedly said he would fight to keep his job, has so far been unable to stem the tide of calls for him to set a timetable for his departure after his Labour Party suffered some of its worst losses in local elections last week. While the number of call...

May 12, 2026 3:12 PM

UK’s Starmer defies calls to quit, says he is getting on with governing

Prime Minister Keir Starmer defied calls to resign on Tuesday, telling ministers he would "get on with governing" despite a "destabilising" 48 hours of growing calls to set out a timetable for his departure after an election drubbing. At a meeting of his cabinet team of ministers, Starmer, in the top job for less than two years, repeated that while he took responsibility for one of his Labour Party's worst election defeats, there had been no official move to trigger a leadership contest. "The ...

January 5, 2026 10:54 AM

Britain’s Starmer says leadership change would ‘not be in national interest’

British Prime Minister Keir Starmer said on Sunday he would still be in power this time next year, in the face of low poll numbers and speculation about a possible leadership challenge. Starmer told the BBC's Laura Kuenssberg it was not in the national interest to "chop and change" the country's leader as had happened under the previous Conservative government. His Labour Party is trailing the populists Reform UK in opinion polls 18 months after winning a landslide victory in the 2024 national...

October 4, 2024 4:49 PM

UK to consider bill to legalise assisted dying for terminally ill

British lawmakers will soon consider whether to give terminally ill adults a choice to end their own lives with medical assistance, after what proponents sayis a shift in public opinion since a similar measure was rejected a decade ago. Kim Leadbeater, a lawmaker from Britain's governing Labour Party who won a ballot giving her the right to introduce a bill on a subject of her choice, confirmed on Thursday that she would present a bill on assisted dying on Oct. 16. "I ... strongly believe that...

July 6, 2024 10:57 AM

Know the team set to govern Britain under new PM Starmer

Keir Starmer led Britain's Labour Party to a landslide victory in the 2024 parliamentary election, taking over from the Conservatives after 14 years in opposition. Below are details on new Prime Minister Starmer and his freshly appointed team of senior ministers: KEIR STARMER, PRIME MINISTER Starmer, 61, took charge of Labour in 2020 following its worst electoral defeat in 84 years in 2019 under left-wing veteran Jeremy Corbyn. He has sought to develop Labour as a party of competence and prag...

September 16, 2024 6:07 PM

UK general elections: Labour Party projected to oust Rishi Sunak government

The centre-left Labour Party is set to secure a decisive victory in Britain's general election, according to a comprehensive exit poll. This outcome ends a 14-year reign of the Conservative Party and positions Labour leader Keir Starmer to assume the role of prime minister imminently. The exit poll, conducted by Ipsos for BBC, ITV, and Sky, predicted Labour would capture 410 seats, relegating the Conservatives to a mere 131 seats. This landslide marks a clear rebuke of the ruling party by Briti...

July 4, 2024 5:36 PM

Britons vote in election expected to propel Labour to power

Britons were voting on Thursday in a parliamentary election that is expected to bring Keir Starmer's Labour Party to power, sweeping away Prime Minister Rishi Sunak's Conservatives after 14 often turbulent years. Opinion polls put Starmer's centre-left party on course for a landslide victory but also suggest many voters simply want change after a period of infighting and turmoil under the Conservatives that led to five prime ministers in eight years. This means Starmer, a 61-year-old forme...