\u201cYou have shown courage and statesmanship on the world stage \u2014 not least in keeping Britain out of the war in Iran,\u201d Streeting wrote in an excoriating resignation letter. \u201cBut where we need vision, we have a vacuum. Where we need direction, we have drift.\u201d<\/p>\n
But Streeting stopped short of saying he was the best candidate to lead the party at the next election due by 2029, suggesting Starmer should step aside to allow a \u201cbroad\u201d field of candidates to debate the future of the party.<\/p>\n
![\"British](\"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/nz\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/05\/british-health-secretary-wes-streeting-walks-through-the-hou-AV4FA7Q7JZAINLLPE6XL53R65I.jpg\")
<\/p>\n
British Health Secretary Wes Streeting walks through the House of Commons to attend the State Opening of Parliament at the Palace of Westminster, London, Wednesday, May 13, 2026. (Source: Associated Press)<\/p>\n
Starmer is under growing pressure to step down after disastrous results for his Labour Party last week in local and regional elections<\/a>. The election drubbing cemented doubts among many party members about Starmer\u2019s judgment<\/a>, vision and leadership ability \u2014 a brutal indictment on a leader who returned Labour to power in July 2024 after 14 years in opposition.<\/p>\n Starmer responded in a generous letter to Streeting, saying he was \u201ctruly sorry\u201d to see him leave the government and praising his stewardship of the state-run National Health Service.<\/p>\n Making no reference to Streeting’s criticisms, Starmer laid out his hope that the two \u201ccan work together to show that Labour in power can address the problems our opponents exploit, can install hope where they want despair, and can bring people together where they want division\u201d.<\/p>\n If Starmer doesn’t step down, any challenger would need support from a fifth of Labour lawmakers, or 81, to trigger a leadership contest.<\/p>\n For days, Streeting had been expected to launch a bid Thursday, but the wording of his statement has stoked speculation he doesn’t have enough votes yet, or that he is giving Starmer a chance to announce his resignation on his own terms.<\/p>\n Another likely challenger, former Deputy Prime Minister Angela Rayner, said that she had reached an agreement with authorities to clear up questions about her taxes that forced her to leave cabinet last September. Rayner told the Guardian newspaper that Starmer should \u201creflect on\u201d his position, adding that she was ready to \u201cplay my part\u201d in any leadership election if Streeting triggered a contest.<\/p>\n A third rival, Greater Manchester Mayor Andy Burnham, is ineligible for the leadership because he doesn’t have a seat in Parliament, but on Thursday afternoon, a Labour lawmaker said he would step aside to make room, and Burnham said he would seek permission from the party to enter a special election. He could then mount a leadership challenge if elected.<\/p>\n Andy Burnham, the Mayor of Manchester, arrives a fringe meeting during the annual Labour Party conference in Liverpool in 2025. (Source: Associated Press)<\/p>\n \u201cI grew up in this area and have lived here for 25 years,\u201d Burnham said on X. \u201cI care deeply about it and its people. I know they have been let down by national politics.\u201d<\/p>\n Race to unseat Starmer heats up<\/p>\n Pressure for Starmer to step aside has intensified since Labour suffered heavy losses in local and regional elections last week, underscoring voter frustration with a government that has failed to deliver on pledges to boost economic growth and improve living standards for working people.<\/p>\n A stagnant economy and stubbornly high inflation have made it difficult for Starmer\u2019s government to deliver on the promises it made when winning a landslide election victory less than two years ago.<\/p>\n Starmer has vowed to remain in office, warning lawmakers that any leadership contest would destabilise the government when it should be focused on issues like the cost of living crisis and war in the Middle East.<\/p>\n Larry the cat, Chief Mouser to the Cabinet Office walks at 10 Downing Street in London, Thursday, May 14, 2026 (Source: Associated Press)<\/p>\n The leadership wrangles overshadowed some positive news for the government.<\/p>\n Official figures showed the British economy grew 0.6% in the first three months of the year \u2014 more than had been anticipated and larger than the previous quarter, despite the negative impact from the Iran war. More growth means more tax revenues to fund Labour\u2019s priorities and potentially lower borrowing.<\/p>\n Treasury chief Rachel Reeves said the figures showed her policies were working and the party shouldn’t put hard-won economic stability at risk \u201cby plunging the country in chaos at a time when there is conflict in the world\u201d.<\/p>\n Streeting himself hailed figures showing that waiting lines for NHS appointments \u2014 one of his signature priorities \u2014 fell for the fifth straight month, an achievement he is likely to point to if he runs for leader.<\/p>\n Streeting comes from a faction of the left-leaning Labour Party that sees itself as the modernising wing, as does Starmer. Rayner is a favourite of members who think the party has strayed too far from its working-class roots and those who want the party to do more to boost the minimum wage and raise taxes on the rich.<\/p>\n The morning’s headlines in 90 seconds, including President Xi\u2019s message to President Trump, what the M\u0101ori Queen told King Charles, and why Sporty Spice is teaching fitness classes. (Source: 1News)<\/p>\n Efforts to depose a Labour leader are relatively rare<\/p>\n Unlike the Conservative Party, Labour has never ousted a prime minister in mid-term.<\/p>\n \u201cThey don\u2019t do ruthless to their leader,\u2019\u2019 said Jonathan Tonge, a professor of politics at the University of Liverpool. \u201cThey don\u2019t tend to depose their leader. The Conservatives, they readily do ruthless.\u2019\u2019<\/p>\n Even if Starmer survives this current bout of jitters, he will likely face another challenge in a few months, given the level of fragmentation in British politics, he added.<\/p>\n \u201cHe\u2019s got a huge parliamentary majority, he\u2019s got more than 400 MPs, and yet his prime ministership may be on the brink of disintegration,\u201d Tonge said.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"Efforts to unseat British Prime Minister Keir Starmer from within his party broke into open rebellion, with one…\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":428349,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[3],"tags":[42,43,40,38,41,39,1745],"class_list":["post-428348","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","category-headlines","tag-headlines","tag-news","tag-top-news","tag-top-stories","tag-topnews","tag-topstories","tag-uk-europe"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/nz\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/428348","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/nz\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/nz\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/nz\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/nz\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=428348"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/nz\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/428348\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/nz\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/428349"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/nz\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=428348"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/nz\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=428348"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/nz\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=428348"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}![\"Andy](\"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/nz\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/05\/andy-burnham-the-mayor-of-manchester-arrives-a-fringe-meetin-6LB4VKBU5NF3HJRZJVHZGQHC3I.jpg\")
<\/p>\n![\"Larry](\"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/nz\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/05\/larry-the-cat-chief-mouser-to-the-cabinet-office-walks-at-10-BNVD2VAYFVHHRDYJXBQTW3H4II.jpg\")
<\/p>\n