Phillipson says she hopes the government can ‘draw a line’ under the Rickety Coup after Streeting’s resignation this afternoon, and Starmer has the ‘full support’ of the Cabinet. Let’s see how long that line lasts…
Streeting’s government biography was updated within minutes:
“Wes Streeting was Secretary of State for Health and Social Care from 5 July 2024 to 14 May 2026. He was elected as the MP for Ilford North in July 2024.”
He was also removed from the DHSC ministerial list on government pages. So civil servants can move fast…
Wes is gone from Labour’s website too. Guido hears Streeting’s SpAd team was removed from the DHSC on Victoria Street within ten minutes of his resignation. Make way for the replacements…
On that front Starmer has an appointment to make. Even if he sets out that timetable…
No10 has in recent weeks tried to avoid a full reshuffle. If it wants to play it safe government sources suggest Secondary Care minister Karin Smyth could be promoted to Health Secretary. She is described as a strong media performer and across her brief. A “safe bet”…
Rayner could be offered the brief were a more ambitious move to be made but she could easily refuse it. Government sources always thought she would be better suited to education, if anything, anyway…
Catherine West – who kicked off the Rickety Coup by collecting MP names and demanding a leadership contest – on The World at One has suggested she would vote for Keir Starmer in a leadership contest:
“What I would like to see is the honest conversation and people coming forward, including the Prime Minister if he is going to be a candidate in this particular race because of course many of us like Keir very much as a person. He’s got excellent credentials on the international stage and he could well win a competition if he put his name forward.”
Asked whether she would vote for Wes or Keir, she said:
“Well, we don’t know who the other candidates are.”
Nice for Starmer…
New polling from Survation in LabourList shows Streeting would take just 23 percent of the vote among 1,123 Labour members in a head-to-head contest against Starmer, who would cruise to victory on 53%. Not even close…
In fact, Starmer would also win against Al Carns, Darren Jones, Bridget Phillipson, Louise Haigh, Yvette Cooper, Shabana Mahmood and Lucy Powell. Three candidates would beat him: Andy Burnham, Ed Miliband, and Angela Rayner…
| 28% | 61% | 11% |
| 41% | 45% | 13% |
| 39% | 46% | 15% |
| 53% | 23% | 24% |
| 46% | 25% | 29% |
| 51% | 27% | 22% |
| 64% | 15% | 21% |
| 40% | 25% | 34% |
| 45% | 17% | 38% |
| 45% | 31% | 24% |
| 50% | 29% | 21% |
Survation CEO Damian Lyons Lowe said:
“In November last year, members were about as likely to back Wes Streeting as Keir Starmer in a hypothetical head to head membership contest.
“However, updates in February, and in member polling conducted yesterday and today (May 14) show a membership increasingly in support of the PM as the Health Secretary’s ambition to topple Keir Starmer have been made both plain and acute, while a significant minority of members – 36% – do not think there should be a change of leadership (57% do, 7% don’t know).
“The vast majority that do (84%) believe the PM should set out a timetable vs an immediate departure (14%) – with the most popular option being that a new leader is in place by conference in September (43%).”
At the time of going to pixel, the Streeting camp is insisting it has the numbers but “things are shifting“. Who will blink first? The stats above might give pause for thought…
A very wide briefing from camp Streeting says that the Health Secretary has the numbers to mount a unilateral challenge, but that “things are shifting” and some Cabinet ministers are set to resign today and/or call for the PM to go. Starmer fans are accusing Wes’ people of trying to push the Cabinet into making the first move. It’s a game of chicken…
There is also discussion over whether Starmer will announce his departure today anyway after his support ebbed away yesterday despite attempts to meet with MPs et cetera. N010 is still insisting this is impossible and that Starmer will continue until challenged, at which point he would fight. They would say that, wouldn’t they…
Cabinet ministers are beginning to deny camp Streeting’s claim that they will push for Starmer to resign. At the end of the day a challenge delayed is a challenge denied…
Angela Rayner has entered the leadership conflict this morning. With a bang…
Rayner has spoken to ITV to say she has no deal with Andy Burnham and that she would not trigger a leadership contest:
“I’ve made it clear that I wasn’t going to trigger the prime minister – and that I want to see change.”
She has also given an interview to the Guardian in which she says she has been cleared by HMRC and will not pay a fine. She also said Starmer should consider stepping aside and that she wants to “play my part“: “Keir will have to reflect on that.” Rayner will run to stop Streeting…
Burnham confirms he spoke to Trump last night about drilling in the North Sea:
“I indicated in the phone call that we had a week last Monday that I would take a pragmatic approach when it comes to the North Sea, and that is my intention as we go forward from here. There is a resource there. When people are struggling, we can’t ignore that. Hence, me indicating that to the president…”