Labour MP Catherine West Calls for Urgent Leadership Challenge
"We have a problem and we need to move quickly," Labour MP Catherine West stated as she defended her initiative to trigger a leadership challenge against the prime minister.
The north London MP expressed a preference for a Cabinet member to step forward as a replacement for Sir Keir Starmer but indicated she would consider standing herself if no one else emerged.
In an interview with the BBC's Laura Kuenssberg, West said she would listen to Sir Keir's planned relaunch speech on Monday but would proceed with a challenge if she remained "dissatisfied."
Party Divisions Highlighted by Education Secretary
Addressing West directly on the same programme, Education Secretary Bridget Phillipson said:
"I love you dearly Catherine, but we just disagree on this one".
Phillipson acknowledged that the Labour Party had suffered significant losses in Thursday's elections but argued that this was not a reason for internal conflict.
"We do need to tell a better story, we do need to deliver faster," she added.
The party lost nearly 1,500 councillors in England, mainly to Reform UK and the Greens, and was removed from power in Wales. Labour finished joint second in Scotland, where the SNP maintained control of the Parliament.
West's Strategy and Support Within Labour
West, a former junior minister, is not seeking to become the next Labour leader or prime minister herself. Instead, by initiating a leadership contest, she aims to encourage prominent contenders who she believes could perform better than Sir Keir.
To trigger a leadership contest, 20% of Labour MPs—81 individuals—must support her. She has stated that currently, 10 MPs are prepared to endorse her.
More than 30 Labour MPs have publicly called for the prime minister to resign or to provide a timetable for his departure.
West told the BBC:
"I will hear what the prime minister's got to say tomorrow and, then if I'm still dissatisfied, I will put out my email to the Parliamentary Labour Party, asking for names.
And the reason I'm doing that is not for me. It's for working people, because Labour is the only party that can beat Reform."
When asked if she could gather enough names to initiate a contest, the Hornsey and Friern Barnet MP responded:
"We will find out when I put out my email to the Parliamentary Labour Party.
But what we need is that timetable from the chair of the party [Anna Turley], and she and I are very good friends, she knows, I've asked her for an orderly transition into a leadership election."
Reflections on Election Results and Party Future
Reflecting on the election outcomes, Phillipson noted that voters felt the Labour government had not "delivered" on the change it promised in the 2024 general election.
The Cabinet minister warned that the rise of Reform UK, which made substantial gains in the elections, represented a "perilous moment" for the country and emphasized that only Labour could "bring our quite divided country back together."
Next week, Sir Keir will attempt to reset his premiership with a major speech on Monday, followed by the King's Speech, where the government will outline the new laws it plans to introduce in the coming year.
Phillipson stated that the prime minister would use Monday's speech to present a "fresh direction for our country and for our party."
When asked if Sir Keir would remain party leader at the time of the next general election, scheduled by 2029 at the latest, Phillipson affirmed:
"Yes, I do believe that."
Opposition and Support Perspectives
However, Sharon Graham, leader of the Unite union, expressed certainty that the prime minister would not lead Labour into the next election.
Nadine Dorries, a former Conservative minister who joined Reform UK, described Sir Keir as an "asset" to her new party.
"We'd love Starmer to stay there," she said, adding, "For the sake of the country... Labour should change their leader."
Potential Leadership Challengers
Health Secretary Wes Streeting, former deputy prime minister Angela Rayner, and Greater Manchester Mayor Andy Burnham are considered the main potential challengers to Sir Keir's leadership.
Burnham cannot enter a contest without first becoming an MP. Earlier this year, the party's ruling body blocked him from standing in the Gorton and Denton by-election.
Supporters of the mayor hope a leadership contest can be postponed until he returns to Parliament.
Recent Calls for Prime Minister's Resignation
On Sunday, Josh Simons became the latest Labour MP to urge the prime minister to step down.
Simons had been a senior figure in Labour Together—the organisation that supported Sir Keir's Labour leadership campaign—and was a minister until last month.
Writing in The Times, he stated:
"I do not believe the prime minister can rise to this moment. He has lost the country. He should take control of the situation by overseeing an orderly transition to a new prime minister."
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