𝓤𝓷𝓲𝓽𝓮𝓭 𝓝𝓮𝔀𝓼

Sir Keir Starmer faces a Labour mutiny and has been urged to “stand aside” in the wake of bruising losses in this week’s historic round of elections. The Prime Minister has been warned he must take responsibility for expected defeats, which are set to lay bare the collapse of trust in his Government.

He is being urged to vacate No 10 to allow a new leader to take the reins of the crisis-ridden Government. Labour MP Barry Gardiner, who served alongside Sir Keir as shadow international trade secretary, said: “Leadership brings responsibility. Labour’s defeat is Keir’s. He must accept that and stand aside.

“Britain deserves a prime minister who can deliver the positive change we were promised. We need a leader who will restore the hope and optimism people had when they voted Labour in 2024.”

It comes as a government minister warned against any move to topple the Prime Minister when the country needs to protect public health from hantavirus and other threats to national security.

The ruling party was expected to be ousted from more than 1,000 seats in England, lose control of the Welsh Government for the first time, and suffer its worst-ever result in a Scottish Parliament election.

The Prime Minister could face an imminent leadership challenge if former deputy prime minister Angela Rayner, Health Secretary Wes Streeting or Greater Manchester Mayor Andy Burnham manoeuvre to oust him.

Backbenchers from the 2024 intake are also said to be plotting to write a missive blaming the Prime Minister for their losses at the polls and asking him to set a date for his departure.

The move would echo the drafting of a round-robin letter by normally loyal Labour MPs calling for Sir Tony Blair to step down in September 2006.

This is the latest hurdle for Sir Keir after his decision to appoint Lord Mandelson as US ambassador led to calls for the PM to quit.

The Labour grandee, who was sacked over his close association with paedophile financier Jeffrey Epstein, was pictured heading to a local polling station on Thursday.

A government minister warned against any move to topple Sir Keir, telling the Express: “There is a virus to protect the country from, two wars impacting our lives, borders to secure, an economy to grow, houses to build, a military to rebuild. All this takes daily hard work and, importantly, stability.

“A leadership contest would be bad for the country, and we would be inflicting the same turmoil on the country that the Tories did. That is a recipe for another decade out of power.”

Labour MPs are alarmed by the rise of Reform UK, which has pushed the Conservatives to the Right.

One member of the 2024 intake said: “I want good government that will deliver for my people and save our country from the worst excesses of Right-wing politics. It’s what we promised people and what they deserve.”

Sir Keir has faced criticism over multiple U-turns, including on the two-child benefit cap, the winter fuel payment, inheritance tax changes for farmers and a grooming gangs inquiry.

Former Labour cabinet minister Ed Balls, who is married to Foreign Secretary Yvette Cooper, suggested Sir Keir’s backbenchers are scared of triggering a destabilising leadership election while in Government.

He told the Political Currency podcast: “It’s incredibly risky handing over party members the decision to choose the prime minister … and having a two-month fight about that.

“If Keir Starmer has to be pushed out, and there is then a divisive contest which the members decide, the potential for chaos is so great.”

Mr Streeting’s allies are building a “shadow team” to lay the ground for him to launch a leadership campaign that includes a former aide to Sir Keir in No 10, it is understood.

Half a dozen MPs and senior Labour figures are acting as “handlers” to sign up supporters and develop policy with the help of think tanks, it’s been reported.

Meanwhile, Ms Rayner is preparing to deliver a post-poll verdict.

An ally said: “There will be a clamour for her to say something after the results. You can expect some kind of statement.”

Conservative Party leader Kemi Badenoch is among those to have demanded Sir Keir call a general election if a local election bloodbath triggers a leadership challenge.

It comes as more than half (53%) of Britons believe there should be a general election if Sir Keir quits, a YouGov poll found.

This is double the number (27%) who said there should not be an election.

Matt Smith, head of data journalism at YouGov, said: “2024 Labour voters tend to say there should not be an election were Starmer to go (49%), although a third agree with the wider public (35%).”

The Conservatives were also on course for losses in the elections, while the Greens and Reform UK were set for significant gains.

Some experts believed the Liberal Democrats could end up being the biggest party in English local government.

Lib Dem leader Sir Ed Davey said he is feeling “very, very positive” as he went to cast his ballot in the local elections at Surbiton Hill Methodist Church in south-west London.

He also told reporters that a good result for the Liberal Democrats will mean “lots of gains”, as he arrived arm in arm with his wife, Emily, on Thursday.

When asked if he was worried about the Green Party, Sir Ed said: “We are worried about: can we win even more? We are on the up.”

Thursday’s vote was one of the most important elections in Wales for decades, with Labour facing the prospect of losing for the first time since the Welsh Parliament was created in 1999.

Opinion polls throughout the campaign suggested that Reform UK or Plaid Cymru were on course to become the biggest party in the Senedd.