On Tuesday, British Prime Minister Keir Starmer insisted he had no intention of resigning, despite growing calls within the Labour Party for him to step down and the resignation of several junior government ministers in protest. 

In last week’s local elections, the Labour Party suffered a historic defeat. Should it suffer another crushing defeat in the national election due to be held in 2029, the Labour Party will be overwhelmingly ejected from power.

However, no cabinet ministers have resigned, or publicly called for the Prime Minister to step down in order to bring about a change of leadership. Also, no candidate has yet challenged the Prime Minister, so there is not yet sufficient momentum to trigger a leadership contest. Under Labour Party rules, a leadership election can only be held if one-fifth of the party’s lawmakers in the House of Commons, or 81 members, publicly endorse a candidate.