John Healey Quitting Defence Puts a Time Bomb under No 10. He Is a Loyalist: This Is No Ordinary Departure

THE GUARDIAN: He served through the eras of Blair, Brown, Miliband and Corbyn in a party that knows and respects him. It will matter that even his patience has run out

This screenshot is from this Guardian op-ed. | Keir Starmer (left) and John Healey in March 2025. Photograph: WPA/Getty Images
John Healey is not a rash man. Slow to anger, calm in a crisis, loyal and yet beneath it all, formidably determined. He stuck at it through the Jeremy Corbyn years, much as he privately despaired of where the party was heading, keeping his thoughts to himself because all he wanted was for Labour to win again. When it did, under Keir Starmer, he became the understated anchor to a frequently gale-tossed ship of government; the solid citizen everybody liked and nobody distrusted, a natural choice for caretaker leader had Starmer ever fallen under a bus.

Or, perhaps, been pushed under a tank.

For a defence secretary to resign weeks before a critical Nato summit, in the middle of conflict in the Gulf and on the eve of a domestic byelection which will determine his party’s future, is extraordinary in itself. But it’s that bayonet of a resignation letter – painting the prime minister as weak and impotent, incapable even of finding the money to keep the nation safe – that now threatens to finish off an already badly wounded premiership. » | Gaby Hinsliff | Thursday, June 11, 2026

ALSO READ:

Polite but deadly: John Healey skewers Keir Starmer as he heads for the door: The defence secretary’s departure was the wrong resignation at the worst possible time for the prime minister »

Breaking: I Just Got Banned from the UK! What Got Me Banned?

June 1, 2026

Starmer is the banning dude! First, it was pleasure, by banning cigarettes for adults; now, it is the truth by banning Cenk Uygur for criticizing Israel. What will the banning dude be banning next, I wonder? — © Mark Alexander

Hasan Piker & Cenk Uygur Banned from UK for Criticizing Israel

June 1, 2026

Very strong language alert!

Two US political commentators banned from entering UK: Home Office says presence of Cenk Uygur and Hasan Piker in UK ‘may not be conducive to the public good’ »

UK Will Get No Special Treatment from EU, European Ministers Say

THE GUARDIAN: There will be ‘no cherrypicking’ of policies, EU says, after Starmer says he hopes to negotiate single market for goods

This screenshot comes from this Guardian> article. | Photograph: Andy Rain/EPA
The UK will get no special treatment in its future economic relationship with the EU, European ministers have said, in a further blow to Keir Starmer’s hopes of negotiating a single market for goods.

The EU’s ministers for Europe, who met on Tuesday, said they wanted deeper cooperation with the UK, but this had to be in line with fundamental principles, including no cherrypicking of EU policies, according to three diplomatic sources, who spoke about the private discussions.

The Guardian revealed last week that the government had pitched the creation of a single market for goods between the UK and EU to Brussels, but the proposal was rejected by EU officials.

A single market for goods, long hinted at by the prime minister and the chancellor, Rachel Reeves, would be a radical departure for the EU. Since the Brexit vote nearly a decade ago EU leaders have said that the single market encompassed four freedoms: free movement of goods, services, capital and people.

Europe ministers had no appetite for the British proposal of free movement of goods only, although the idea was only briefly mentioned at Tuesday’s meeting, EU sources said. “Member states reaffirmed the established legal framework underpinning the relationship and negotiations, with continued emphasis on the indivisibility of the four freedoms, balance of right and obligations, autonomy of EU decision making and the avoidance of cherrypicking,” an EU diplomat said. » | Jennifer Rankin and Lisa O’Carroll in Brussels | Wednesday, May 27, 2026

This is the kind of mess a country gets itself into when, instead of listening to reason and common sense, it listens to the rantings of a charlatan! We Brits didn’t recognize a good thing when we had it! All those opt-outs and all! Thatcher must be rolling over in her grave!

Now, we Brits will have to eat humble pie; and humble pie will indeed have to be eaten, however unpleasant and however unpalatable the taste. Our future depends on it. And Europe’s does, too.

In this tumultuous world, Europe must be united. It must function as one. This country’s place is in Europe. We should act as a brotherhood, seeking peace and prosperity. So, a half measure will not do in the long run. This country needs to regain full membership of the exclusive club. Only then will Britain, and Europe, begin to realize their full potential on the world stage. Long live Britain! Vive l’UE ! Vive l’Europe ! — © Mark Alexander

Großbritannien: Starmer unter Druck – Britisches Pfund fällt

BERLINER ZEITUNG: Hohe Energiepreise und innenpolitische Unsicherheiten belasten die britische Wirtschaft. Die Währung Pfund Sterling fällt.

Britische Staatsanleihen, Aktien und das Pfund Sterling sind am Freitag gefallen, wie die Nachrichtenagentur Reuters berichtet. Innenpolitische Unsicherheit und Sorgen um einen Inflationsschock infolge des Iran-Kriegs trugen dem Bericht zufolge dazu bei.

Das Pfund fiel laut Reuters auf ein Fünf-Wochen-Tief und verlor in dieser Woche fast zwei Prozent gegenüber dem US-Dollar. Damit steuert die britische Währung dem Bericht zufolge auf den größten Wochenverlust seit November 2024 zu. Zuletzt fiel der Kurs demnach um 0,3 Prozent auf 1,3364 US-Dollar, nachdem er zuvor mit 1,3335 US-Dollar den niedrigsten Stand seit über fünf Wochen erreicht hatte. » | Anika Schlünz | Freitag, 15. Mai 2026

Labour vs the People | Why Burnham, Streeting or Miliband Will Be a Disaster | Spiked Podcast

May 14, 2026 | Nick Tyrone, Fraser Myers and Georgina Mumford on Starmer’s crumbling premiership, the naffness of Wes Streeting and the pointlessness of Andy Burnham

Wes Streeting Quits Cabinet and Calls on Starmer to Resign

THE GUARDIAN: Streeting, who is on the party’s right, had long been rumoured to be gathering support for tilt at leadership

Wes Streeting has quit as health secretary and called on Keir Starmer to resign as prime minister, saying it would have been “dishonourable” to remain in post and that there should now be a contest for the Labour leadership.

But Streeting, who is on the party’s right, will not immediately launch a challenge and said he wanted to see a leadership contest with a broad range of candidates – a suggestion that the Greater Manchester mayor, Andy Burnham, could fight in the contest.

Streeting had long been gathering support for a challenge and has spent the week asking MPs to nominate him. Allies have consistently said he did not want to challenge Starmer directly but hoped to be a candidate in a leadership contest if Starmer resigned.

The fact he is not challenging Starmer immediately suggests he does not have the requisite 81 MPs to mount a challenge directly.

A challenge would be likely to prompt bids from other potential candidates including the former deputy prime minister Angela Rayner and Ed Miliband, the energy secretary. » | Jessica Elgot | Deputy political editor | Thursday, May 14, 2026

READ ALSO:

Wes Streeting’s resignation letter – what he said and what he meant: The key points in the former health secretary’s long letter to Keir Starmer decoded »

Labour Leadership Contest Could 'Plunge Country into Chaos', Says UK Chancellor | BBC News

May 14, 2026 | Chancellor Rachel Reeves said in an exclusive interview with the BBC that any Labour leadership contest would "plunge the country into chaos".

It comes as Angela Rayner, seen as a potential challenger to PM Keir Starmer, was cleared by HMRC of wrongdoing over her tax affairs after settling £40,000 in unpaid stamp duty, saying she had been "exonerated" of the accusation she had "deliberately sought to avoid tax".

On Wednesday, allies of Health Secretary Wes Streeting said they expected him to launch a challenge as soon as today.

Thatcher, Major and Starmer? How the Mighty Fall | Gyles Brandeth

May 13, 2026 | “He chose to actually say put up or shut up.”

The Labour rebellion against Starmer echoes the fall of John Major as opposed to Margaret Thatcher who had election success after election success, says broadcasters and former whip under John Major, Gyles Brandreth.

"This Is Chaotic" | Tim Stanley and Opposed Labour MPs Debate the Challenge to Keir Starmer

May 13, 2026 | We're joined by a loyal Labour MP, Andrew Lewin, and one who wants Sir Keir Starmer to go, Catherine McKinnell. Further analysis from The Telegraph's Tim Stanley and The New Statesman's Ailbhe Rea. Interview by Victoria Derbyshire.

Why the King’s Speech Could Slow Any Cabinet Move to Oust Starmer | Adam Boulton

May 12, 2026 | "They may have felt as cabinet ministers, it was not their time to basically trip up the government."

If Keir Starmer is to resign, then any delay may be attributed to the legislation laid out by the King's Speech tomorrow, says Times Radio's presenter Adam Boulton.

Britain’s Starmer Says He Will Not Resign

THE NEW YORK TIMES: Prime Minister Keir Starmer vowed to continue in office as he met with cabinet members. Dozens of Labour Party lawmakers had urged him to step down after heavy losses in local elections.

Prime Minister Keir Starmer of Britain dared his critics on Tuesday to formally challenge him if they had the support to do so, opening a high-stakes cabinet meeting by telling ministers that he intends to get on with the business of governing.

“The Labour Party has a process for challenging a leader and that has not been triggered,” Mr. Starmer said, according to a statement from his office. “The country expects us to get on with governing. That is what I am doing and what we must do as a cabinet.”

Mr. Starmer was facing a fast-moving rebellion within his party after it suffered major losses in last week’s local elections in England, and in parliamentary elections in Scotland and Wales. Dozens of Labour Party lawmakers have publicly urged him to set out a timetable for his resignation to allow a contest to find his successor.

Miatta Fahnbulleh, a junior minister, resigned from the government just as the cabinet meeting started, writing in a post directed at Mr. Starmer on social media that “the public does not believe that you can lead this change — and nor do I.”

But the prime minister appears unwilling to go quietly. In his remarks to his cabinet, he repeated comments from a speech on Monday in which he warned that a leadership fight would not be good for the country.

If Mr. Starmer refuses to quit under pressure, his critics would need to gather at least 81 Labour lawmakers to coalesce around a potential rival. That would formally trigger a leadership contest. It was unclear on Tuesday morning whether they had enough support to make that happen.

Some of Mr. Starmer’s fiercest critics do not want him to leave office immediately, but rather to announce that he will step down in the fall. That would give the party time to organize a contest to succeed him that might include Andy Burnham, the mayor of Manchester, who appears to have political momentum behind him. But Mr. Burnham would need to win a seat in Parliament first in a special election, something that was certain to take weeks if not months. Live Updates » | Michael D. Shear and Stephen Castle | Reporting from London | Tuesday, May 12, 2026

Pressure on Starmer Mounts as Dozens of Labour Lawmakers Call on Him to Quit

THE NEW YOTK TIMES: The chances of a leadership challenge against Prime Minister Keir Starmer appeared to rise sharply on Monday as several government aides announced their resignations.

Screenshot taken from this NYT article. | Prime Minister Keir Starmer in London on Monday. “I get it. I feel it. And I take responsibility,” he said of last week’s results. | Carl Court/Getty Images
Dozens of Labour Party lawmakers called on Prime Minister Keir Starmer to resign on Monday, effectively rejecting their leader’s efforts to quell a mutiny in the party ranks and raising the likelihood of a bruising leadership battle.

Mr. Starmer began the day with a speech he hoped would quiet the brewing rebellion, acknowledging the anger expressed by voters last week when they overwhelmingly rejected Labour Party candidates in elections across England, Scotland and Wales.

“That hurts and it should hurt,” he said. “I get it. I feel it. And I take responsibility.”

But the speech appears to have done little to appease Labour Party members who blame Mr. Starmer’s deep unpopularity with voters for historic defeats in the contests for municipal council seats and control of the Scottish and Welsh parliaments.

By the end of the day on Monday, news organizations had tallied more than 70 Labour lawmakers who publicly said they wanted a fresh start. Several junior government aides resigned to protest his decision to stay on. » | Michael D. Shear | Reporting from London | Monday, May 11, 2026

Royaume-Uni : face à la colère des travaillistes, Keir Starmer tente de sauver sa peau et d’éviter un putsch

Cette capture d'écran provient de cet article. | Malgré le désastre, Keir Starmer (ici, samedi, à Londres) a assuré qu’il ne jetterait pas l’éponge, afin de ne pas « plonger le pays dans le chaos ». ALISHIA ABODUNDE / Getty Images via AFP
LE FIGARO : RÉCIT - Après la déroute aux élections locales, le chef du gouvernement britannique organise sa riposte et a étonnamment nommé à ses côtés l’ancien premier ministre Gordon Brown.

Le premier ministre britannique est sous le feu. Après la retentissante défaite travailliste aux élections de jeudi, les appels émanant de son camp et appelant à sa démission se multiplient. Pour contrer la menace, celui qui a exclu de s’effacer tente de persuader qu’il va changer et a fait étonnamment appel à l’un de ses anciens prédécesseurs à Downing Street, Gordon Brown.

Tout le week-end, les cris d’alarme et de colère ont couru dans le camp travailliste, sous le choc de la déroute et de l’humiliation. Le Labour a été étrillé en Angleterre par le grand vainqueur du scrutin, le parti Reform UK de Nigel Farage. Il a perdu près de 1 500 sièges de conseillers aux élections locales, notamment dans les régions ouvrières du nord et du centre de l’Angleterre. Reform a gagné quelque 1 450 sièges, Nigel Farage célébrant « un tournant historique dans la politique britannique ». » | Par Arnaud De La Grange, correspondant à Londres | dimanche 10 mai 2026

Réservé aux abonnés

Keir Starmer Under Pressure to Agree Exit Plan after Election Mauling

THE GUARDIAN: Senior Labour MPs urge prime minister to step down within year as party loses control of 25 English councils and humbled in Wales

Keir Starmer is under pressure to set out a timeline for his departure after a crushing defeat in elections across Britain prompted senior Labour MPs to call for him to step down within a year.

In a disastrous set of results, Labour had lost control of more than 25 councils and almost 1,000 council seats in England by Friday evening, many to Nigel Farage’s Reform UK, which made large gains across the Midlands and the north as well as taking seats from the Tories in the south.

After more than a century of domination, Labour has faced near-wipeout in Wales, where the party’s first minister, Eluned Morgan, lost her seat. Labour could slump to third place in Scotland behind the SNP and Reform. In London, a Green surge meant Labour lost control of councils it had dominated, including Hackney and Waltham Forest. » | Pippa Crerar and Jessica Elgot | Friday, April 8, 2026

Democrats, Britain’s Prime Minister Is a Warning

Screenshot from this NYT Guest Essay. | Suzanne Plunkett/Reuters
THE NEW YORK TIMES — OPINION: In Democratic primaries across America, a familiar debate is playing out. Is it the time for a moderate or a maverick? Should the party be looking for someone to heal and stabilize a troubled country or someone to energize supporters, antagonize opponents — Republicans, big business, maybe even the Democratic establishment itself — and promise sweeping change?

Until recently, Britain seemed to offer moderate Democrats a clinching case. In 2024, after leading the Labour Party to a crushing victory over a reviled right-wing government, Keir Starmer was hailed as a centrist hero. He marginalized progressives in his own party, enticed Conservative politicians to switch sides and secured Labour’s largest majority since 1997. For the Democratic think tank Third Way, the takeaway from Mr. Starmer’s triumph was clear: “Centrism wins elections.”

That seems a long time ago now. Britain’s government is in the doldrums and Mr. Starmer has become one of its most unpopular leaders ever — with negative approval ratings on a par with the short-lived prime minister Liz Truss, a paragon of political failure. Reform U.K., a Trumpian anti-immigration party spearheaded by Nigel Farage, has led the polls since last April. And in recent months, Labour has also been overtaken on its left by a surging Green Party.

This week, it’s going to get worse. In local elections across the country, which are being treated as a referendum on Mr. Starmer’s leadership, Labour is headed for a historic wipeout. The leader once heralded as centrism’s shining future now survives on borrowed time. In many ways, his fall is a very British story. But the Democrats, casting about for an election strategy, should pay attention — for Mr. Starmer’s collapse was written into the nature of his victory. » | GUEST ESSAY by Samuel Earle | Mr. Earle is the author of “Tory Nation: The Dark Legacy of the World’s Most Successful Political Party.” He wrote from New York. | Tuesday, May 5, 2026

If joylessness is your thing, if freedoms mean little to you, if you are unconcerned about democratic freedoms, if you like your leaders colourless, if your children’s rights as they grow into adulthood mean little to you, if your are indifferent to their infantilization as adults, if you are insouciant about being imprisoned for writing the wrong thing on social media, if you like your leaders to have a tinge of authoritarianism about them, if you like them stern, then Starmer could well be your man, and he could well be a role model for Democrats in America to emulate . Good luck with that! — © Mark Alexander

'Fundamental Liberty' Threatened If Pro-Palestine March Banned | Fraser Nelson

May 2, 2026 | “I can understand why Keir Starmer is, like everybody else, personally repelled that this march is going ahead. But do you want to stop it?”

The prime minister’s suggestion of banning a planned Pro-Palestine march in the wake of the Golders Green antisemitic attack would threaten the “principle that anybody can march in protest for any reason,” says The Times columnist Fraser Nelson.


Keir Starmer is rather fond of banning things! This is unBritish. Keir Starmer needs to be removed from Downing Street at the earliest convenience. The right to protest is fundamental to the British way of life as is the right to smoke. — © Mark Alexander

Britain Will Not Join U.S. Blockade of Strait of Hormuz, Starmer Says

THE NEW YORK TIMES: Prime Minister Keir Starmer said the U.K.’s diplomatic efforts are directed at keeping the vital waterway “open, not shut.”

Prime Minister Keir Starmer of Britain was blunt on Monday morning. His country is “not supporting” President Trump’s threatened military blockade of the Strait of Hormuz after diplomatic talks between the United States and Iran broke down over the weekend.

The prime minister told the BBC in a radio interview that he was focused on “bringing countries together to keep the straits open, not shut,” adding that “it is, in my view, vital that we get the strait open and fully open.”

But Mr. Starmer refused to blame Mr. Trump personally for rising energy costs in Britain, saying that it was Iran that had driven up the price of oil by making the strait too dangerous for cargo ships to travel through.

After the host of the radio show pointed out repeatedly that Iran’s actions were in response to Mr. Trump’s decision to launch the war in the first place, Mr. Starmer finally said, simply: “I mean, I’m not, look, I’m not going to get involved in that.”

The interview put on display the longstanding challenge for Mr. Starmer in dealing with Mr. Trump and his chaotic foreign policy.

On the one hand, Mr. Starmer’s refusal to join the American and Israeli-led war in Iran has triggered Mr. Trump’s ire. The prime minister has said he will not give in to “pressure” from the president to drag Britain into another conflict in the Middle East.

The decision to stand up to Mr. Trump appears to be popular in Britain, where Mr. Starmer’s low poll ratings have picked up slightly. » | Michael D. Shear | Reporting from London | Monday, April 13, 2026

Rob Groves: Neutralising Trump: Why Starmer Doesn't Fight Back

Apr 4, 2026 | Donald Trump launched a war in the Middle East without consulting a single NATO ally, and now expects Britain to clean up the mess.

This week I'm doing something unusual: giving Keir Starmer some credit.

While GB News and the right-wing tabloids line up behind Trump, the Prime Minister is quietly building coalitions, strengthening European ties, and absorbing every petty insult thrown his way. Is that weakness, or statecraft?


Trump must surely be America’s worst president ever. — © Mark Alexander

Relationship with Trump May Be beyond Repair, Keir Starmer Told

THE GUARDIAN: PM gets widespread backing after president’s mocking impersonation takes US-UK relationship to new low

Keir Starmer has been warned his relationship with Donald Trump may be beyond repair after the US president derided the prime minister for consulting his team about military decisions, in a mocking impersonation.

In a new low for UK-US relations, Trump appeared to imitate Starmer in a weak voice during an Easter lunch speech at the White House, and said the UK was “not our best” ally.

The episode is Trump’s latest broadside at Starmer and the UK’s “old” aircraft carriers after the prime minister declined to let the US use British military bases for its initial strikes on Iran.

Following the latest attack on Starmer, diplomatic and political figures said he was right to brush off the criticism but added that the relationship was very damaged and he would need to redouble efforts to built [sic] international relations elsewhere. » | Rowena Mason | Whitehall editor | Friday, April 3, 2026