Starmer’s Shadow Women and Equalities Secretary has resigned, with no words on her reasoning. The move comes amid a very noisy row within Labour over trans rights, sparked by MP Rosie Duffield.

It also follows de Cordova being accused of snubbing an event hosted by the Labour LGBT+ group in conjunction with Stonewall. The move made her the first shadow equalities secretary not to attend the event since it started more than a decade ago. The Times reported that Starmer’s office had asked her to make attending the event a priority…

Marsha de Cordova MP said:

“It has been an immense privilege to serve as the Shadow Women and Equalities Secretary for the past 17 months. It therefore comes with much sadness that I am resigning with immediate effect. Having only been elected in 2017 for the historically marginal constituency of Battersea, I would like to focus more of my time and efforts on the people of Battersea. I will continue to support Keir Starmer from the backbenches.”

Keir Starmer MP said:

“I would like to thank Marsha de Cordova for her service and in particular her work highlighting the disproportionate impact the pandemic has had on Black, Asian, minority ethnic and disabled people. Marsha has also laid the foundations for a new Race Equality Act that Labour would introduce to tackle the structural inequalities which have existed in our society for too long.”

The move follows Starmer also losing his shadow environment secretary – albeit temporarily – as Luke Pollard stepped back to focus on his constituency after last month’s shooting…