Updated
May 12, 2026, 9:24 a.m. ET
Prime Minister Keir Starmer of Britain appeared to have staved off an immediate challenge to his leadership after a high-stakes cabinet meeting on Tuesday morning. But he remained in dire political straits as a rising number of his party’s lawmakers and at least three junior ministers demanded that he announce a plan to resign.
At the cabinet meeting, Mr. Starmer dared his critics to formally challenge him if they had the support to do so, telling ministers, “The country expects us to get on with governing,” according to a statement from his office. The meeting ended after about an hour, with some cabinet ministers expressing support for Mr. Starmer to reporters gathered outside No. 10 Downing Street.
It was unclear what might happen in the hours ahead, but supporters of the prime minister who were in the meeting said that there had been no direct challenges to Mr. Starmer during the discussion. Jennifer Chapman, the secretary for international development, said she had “detected no mood among anybody in that room” for a leadership challenge, although she acknowledged that the “discussion is taking place somewhere else, for sure.”
Mr. Starmer has been 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.” A second junior minister, Jess Phillips, resigned later in the day, writing that Mr. Starmer was “a good man fundamentally” but that he had been too unwilling to fight for the things the Labour Party believes in.
“Decency is vital, calm curiosity is also needed, but so too are fight and drive required. Have a row, push back, make arguments, bring people along,” she wrote in a letter posted by Sky News. A third minister, Alex Davies-Jones, resigned soon after.
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 the turmoil within the party has been “destabilizing for government, and that has a real economic cost for our country and for families.”
Attention now shifts to Wes Streeting, the health secretary, who has made no secret of his desire to challenge Mr. Starmer. But he would need the backing of at least 81 Labour lawmakers to formally trigger a leadership contest. It was unclear on Tuesday whether Mr. Streeting or any other possible candidate 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 would take weeks if not months.
Here’s what to know:
Growing discontent: At least 80 Labour Party lawmakers — about one-fifth of its members of Parliament — have called on Mr. Starmer to step down or set up a timeline for his resignation, according to the BBC.
Forcing a fight: If Mr. Starmer refuses to step aside, Labour lawmakers could force a leadership election. Here’s how a challenge could play out.
Possible challengers: In addition to Mr. Burnham, others who could challenge Mr. Starmer include Mr. Streeting and Angela Rayner, who served as deputy prime minister before stepping aside amid questions about her personal taxes.
Jittery markets: The fragility of Keir Starmer’s position was not received well in financial markets on Tuesday morning. The pound was initially down 0.5 percent against the dollar at $1.35. Yields on British government bonds (which move inversely to prices) jumped as markets opened.
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