‘My preferred option is for the cabinet to do a reshuffle within itself, where there’s plenty of talent,’ says Catherine West. Photograph: Amer Ghazzal/Alamy Stock Photo/Alamy Live News.
‘My preferred option is for the cabinet to do a reshuffle within itself, where there’s plenty of talent,’ says Catherine West. Photograph: Amer Ghazzal/Alamy Stock Photo/Alamy Live News.
West vows to seek to trigger Labour leadership contest
Labour MP Catherine West said she will seek to trigger a leadership contest if a cabinet minister does not launch a challenge to the prime minister by Monday.
West, previously a junior Foreign Office minister, said that if no leadership hopeful makes it known that the cabinet will seek to remove Keir Starmer, she will try to get the necessary signatures herself to trigger a leadership contest.
The MP for or Hornsey and Friern Barnet told the BBC’s PM programme: “I’m putting people on notice – if I don’t hear by Monday morning of some leadership hopefuls, I will be asking everybody in the Parliamentary Labour Party to put a name against my name, because we need to get this ball rolling.
“But my preferred option is for the Cabinet to do a reshuffle within itself, where there’s plenty of talent and for Keir to be given a different role, which he might enjoy, perhaps an international role, and then for others to come to the fore, who can communicate the message, who are very able, so we can have minimum fuss.”
Catherine West, a Labour MP and former Shadow Foreign Minister (Asia & the Pacific). Photograph: Amer Ghazzal/Alamy Stock Photo/Alamy Live News.
The Greens have toppled a huge Labour majority in Lewisham to take control of their third London council.
The party won a majority by winning 30 of the first 39 results to be announced, with Labour taking just nine.
The successful Green candidates included Liam Shrivastava in Crofton Park Ward, although he will give up his council seat after winning the Lewisham mayoral election on Friday.
Labour had 50 seats on the previous council and the Greens only four, and Lewisham became the 12th London council where Sir Keir Starmer’s party lost control, with Hackney and Waltham Forest also being taken by the Greens.
The Conservatives won Westminster, while Barnet, Brent, Enfield, Haringey, Lambeth, Newham, Southwark and Wandsworth all slipped into no overall control.
One of Labour’s most powerful figures outside Westminster, the West Yorkshire mayor Tracy Brabin, has warned the government it faces “oblivion” at the next general election without a renewed “boldness” from ministers.
Brabin described the local election losses as “catastrophic” after Labour lost overall control of several councils in her region to a Reform UK surge, including Leeds, Bradford, Wakefield, Calderdale and Kirklees. Labour had led many of these authorities for decades.
Brabin stopped short of calling for Keir Starmer to stand aside but said:
“This is a catastrophic set of results for the Labour Party. Here in West Yorkshire, and across the country, we’ve lost dedicated councillors who have served their communities tirelessly without self interest."
“I’m proud to have worked with many of them over the last five years to deliver better transport, new homes and more jobs for the people we represent.
“I remain committed to building a stronger region, and will work with the newly elected leaders of our councils to deliver for people and communities across West Yorkshire.
“Two years on from a landslide general election victory, the Labour party is facing oblivion if these results are repeated. We cannot waste the opportunity of Labour being in government.”
Labour MP Catherine West said she will seek to trigger a leadership contest if a cabinet minister does not launch a challenge to the prime minister by Monday. West, previously a junior Foreign Office minister, said that if no leadership hopeful makes it known that the cabinet will seek to remove Keir Starmer, she will try to get the necessary signatures herself to trigger a leadership contest.
Welsh Labour has announced Ken Skates will serve as its interim leader. Eluned Morgan resigned from the role yesterday after losing her seat in the Senedd. Skates will serve as leader until a timetable is set for a full leadership election, the party said.
