Labour MPs urge Starmer to set exit timeline after devastating local election losses

08 May 2026 , 23:18

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Labour MPs urge Starmer to set exit timeline after devastating local election losses

Keir Starmer is under pressure to establish a timeline for his departure after a significant defeat in elections throughout Britain led senior Labour MPs to urge him to step down within a year.

In a disastrous set of results, Labour had lost control of more than 25 councils and nearly 1,000 council seats in England by Friday evening, many to Nigel Farage’s Reform UK, which made substantial gains across the Midlands and the north, as well as taking seats from the Tories in the south. 

After dominating for more than a century, Labour has faced near collapse in Wales, where the party’s first minister, Eluned Morgan, lost her seat. Labour could drop to third place in Scotland behind the SNP and Reform. In London, a Green surge meant Labour lost control of councils it had led, including Hackney and Waltham Forest.

While the prime minister appeared to have evaded an immediate coup, there was an angry response to the results among senior MPs and the unions, with some warning him to change direction or risk electoral disaster. By Friday evening, 10 more MPs had urged him to establish a timeline for departure from No 10.

Louise Haigh, a former cabinet minister and co-chair of the influential Tribune group of MPs, was the first to speak out. “What is abundantly clear is that unless the government implements significant and urgent change, then the prime minister cannot lead us into another election,” she said.

One senior backbencher said: “We want Keir to agree to a timeline for his departure, but we want it to be dignified. He should have his last conference this autumn and then oversee a leadership contest immediately afterward. He can’t take us into next year’s locals. It’s too late.”

However, Starmer insisted that he “won’t walk away” from the leadership as doing so would “plunge the party into chaos,” although he acknowledged that voters were frustrated with the slow pace of change.

The prime minister would deliver a major speech next week in which he would aim to outline a more optimistic vision of the country’s future, Downing Street sources said.

The king’s speech on Wednesday will also include policy announcements, though a cabinet reshuffle is not expected.

Emma Davis

Deputy Editor