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