At least 81 members of the United Kingdom’s Labour Party, including Shabana Mahmood, have publicly urged Prime Minister Keir Starmer to resign or announce a timeline for his exit from office.
The figure represents 20 percent of Labour’s 403 MPs — the threshold required to trigger a leadership contest — marking the most significant internal challenge yet to Starmer’s leadership.
Despite the growing calls, Starmer has remained resolute.
“The past 48 hours have been destabilising for government and that has a real economic cost for our country and for families,” the prime minister told cabinet members on Monday.
“The Labour Party has a process for challenging a leader and that has not been triggered.
“The country expects us to get on with governing. That is what I am doing and what we must do as a cabinet.”
Pressure on Starmer intensified after Labour recorded poor results in last week’s local elections, losing hundreds of councillor seats to the right-wing Reform UK party and the left-leaning Greens.
The party also lost its long-standing dominance in Wales and suffered major setbacks against the Scottish National Party in Edinburgh.
The disappointing results added to a difficult period for Starmer, who has also faced criticism over his decision to appoint and later dismiss Peter Mandelson as ambassador to the United States. Mandelson had previously been linked publicly to convicted sex offender Jeffrey Epstein.
Earlier this year, Starmer had already resisted calls to resign over the Mandelson controversy.
The UK prime minister has additionally come under fire for failing to revive the economy amid rising living costs affecting many British citizens.
Wes Streeting and Angela Rayner are currently viewed by many Labour MPs as the leading contenders to replace Starmer.