The wheels are coming off Keir Starmer’s government and now one of his own party leaders wants him gone, according to BBC News.
In an extraordinary public break, Scottish Labour leader Anas Sarwar stood before cameras in Glasgow and delivered a message no sitting prime minister wants to hear from within their ranks: it’s time to go.
“The distraction needs to end and the leadership in Downing Street has to change,” Sarwar declared, his words landing like a bombshell across British politics. While praising Starmer as a decent person, he argued that relentless missteps from Number 10 were torpedoing Labour’s chances especially with crucial Scottish Parliament elections looming in May.
“My first loyalty is to my country, Scotland,” Sarwar emphasized, framing his revolt as necessary to salvage what remains of Labour’s reputation north of the border.
The timing couldn’t be worse. Downing Street is hemorrhaging staff. Just hours before Sarwar’s announcement, communications director Tim Allan resigned after barely five months on the job, calling for a “fresh team.” The day prior, chief of staff Morgan McSweeney had already walked out the door, accepting blame for advising Starmer to appoint Peter Mandelson whose past ties to Jeffrey Epstein ignited a political firestorm as ambassador to Washington.
Faced with open rebellion, Starmer’s cabinet scrambled to shore up support. Deputy Prime Minister David Lammy rushed to defend his boss, while Chancellor Rachel Reeves insisted, “With Keir as our prime minister, we are turning the country around.” Other ministers followed suit, projecting unity even as cracks widened.
Downing Street’s response was characteristically terse: “No. The prime minister is concentrating on the job in hand.”
Across the aisle, Conservative leader Kemi Badenoch smelled blood. Starmer has “lost control of his party,” she declared, watching Labour’s implosion with barely concealed satisfaction.
For a government that swept to power promising competence and stability, the collapse feels breathtakingly swift. Questions about Starmer’s judgment, his team’s decisions, and whether he can survive this crisis now dominate Westminster.
In politics, loyalty is currency. And right now, Keir Starmer’s account is running dangerously low.
