In the face of growing calls for him to step down following the Labour Party’s disastrous performance in subnational elections, British Prime Minister and party leader Keir Starmer said he would continue in his post, as he took responsibility for the results and acknowledged that a “bigger response” was needed than was anticipated.
“…We need a bigger response than we anticipated in 2024 because these are not ordinary times, and this is a political challenge just as much as it’s a policy challenge,” he said in a speech in London on Monday (May 11, 2026) morning.
The Prime Minister suggested a leadership change would cause chaos, adding that the Tories had proved this with frequent leadership changes. There were five Prime Ministers in the 14 years of Conservative rule, including one, Liz Truss, whose premiership lasted just 49 days.
The U.K. government would speed up legislation to allow the nationalisation of British Steel, which was sold in 1998, Mr. Starmer said. It would also seek closer ties with Europe, he said, adding that his government would put “Britain at the heart of Europe”. More details are expected in Wednesday’s ‘King’s Speech’, an annual address to the U.K. Parliament setting out the government’s agenda for the next year.
In last week’s council (England) and assembly elections (Wales, Scotland), Labour lost votes on the right to the nativist Reform UK party and the left to the Greens and the nationalist party Plaid Cymru in Wales, where, until now, Labour had dominated politics for about a century.
In England, Labour lost some 1,500 councillors in, and the control of, 40 councils. Mr. Starmer has also had very low popularity ratings for a sitting British Prime Minister. He has overseen discord within his party over the direction of its policies on immigration and welfare spending, with the government pursuing a relatively centrist agenda compared to what Labour has traditionally advocated.
The Prime Minister’s judgment had also been questioned over the appointment of Peter Mandelson, an associate of the late Jeffrey Epstein, a convicted paedophile, as Britain’s envoy to the U.S.
On Saturday, Catherine West, formerly a Foreign Office Minister and now backbench Labour MP, said she would challenge Mr. Starmer for the leadership if a senior MP did not do so by Monday.
The Prime Minister confirmed that he would fight any challenge to his leadership.
One of those considered a challenger to Mr. Starmer is Former Deputy Prime Minister Angela Rayner who urged Mr. Starmer to shift policies further to the left. Labour needed to change what it was doing in terms of policy, she said, and this may be its “last chance”.
According to Ms. Rayner, Labour had not done enough to address the U.K.’s cost of living situation – which ranked as the top concern for voters. People were, therefore, backing nationalists and populists, she said, adding that the Mandelson scandal revealed a “toxic culture of cronyism”.
In his speech, Mr. Starmer said neither Reform leader Nigel Farage nor Green Party leader Zac Polanski offered the country “the serious, progressive leadership that these times demand”.
The Prime Minister, who has sometimes been criticised for a lack of emotional connect with the people, said the results “hurt” and acknowledged that some were “frustrated” with him.
“I know I have my doubters, and I know I need to prove them wrong, and I will,” he said.
Other possible contenders for the job at No. 10 Downing Street include Health Secretary Wes Streeting and popular Mayor of Greater Manchester, Andy Burnham. Mr. Starmer and other allies were criticised for preventing Mr. Burnham from returning as an MP to Parliament in February (a first step towards becoming Prime Minister) by saying Labour would not back him as a candidate in a by-election.
On Sunday, Ms. Rayner said it was time to acknowledge that “blocking” Mr. Burnham from returning to Parliament was a mistake.
In his speech, Mr. Starmer said the decision about Mr. Burnhan’s potential return to Westminster was a question for Labour’s National Executive Committee, as he emphasised that he had a close working relationship with the Mayor.
Published – May 11, 2026 05:47 pm IST
