Keir Starmer latest: Half of Britons want Starmer to quit as Labour leader now after ‘coup attempt’, finds poll

Half of Britons want Keir Starmer to stand down as leader of the Labour Party following an attempted “coup”, according to a YouGov poll.

But there is a high bar to launch a leadership challenge against the Prime Minister.

A challenger for the Labour leadership can only initiate an election with the public support of 20 per cent of the party’s MPs, which currently means 80 nominations would be needed.

Labour affiliates, including the trade unions, would be able to vote in any subsequent ballot alongside individual members.

The unrest at the top of the party comes after Labour’s poll ratings have plummeted since Sir Keir delivered a landslide general election victory in July 2024.

A Labour MP said they were left in despair over the briefing, saying “whoever thought it was clever wants shooting” and “there is clearly a cultural problem”.

Another MP on the left of the party said there was widespread belief that Sir Keir may not lead the party into the next election.

This included colleagues across the party’s different political stripes, many of whom believe their seats are at risk from Reform UK, they said.

An MP from the right of the party acknowledged the Prime Minister had had a “tough few weeks” but insisted it was far too early ahead of the next general election to consider ousting Sir Keir.

The Independent’s Whitehall Editor Kate Devlin reports:

A Labour peer told the Independent: “It was a mistake to sack Sue Gray, engineered by McSweeney.

“Some say McSweeney is too powerful to sack but that would now show Starmer is fully in charge.”

The Prime minister is set to meet with the bosses of the biggest companies in the UK, in preparation for a tax-raising budget.

Companies including NatWest, which is one of the UK’s biggest banks, Sage, the FTSE 100 software giant, and Marks & Spencer have been invited to No 10 for an informal reception hosted by Sir Keir Starmer, The Times reported.

It comes as Rachel Reeves is set to deliver her budget on November 26, where she is expected to raise taxes.

New YouGov polling, conducted today, shows that about half of Britons (51 per cent) say Keir Starmer should stand down as leader of the Labour Party and let someone else take over.

Against this, 27 per cent think he should remain Labour leader and 23 per cent don’t know.Among the people who voted Labour at the last general election, 46 per cent think Starmer should remain Labour leader, while 36 per cent say he should stand aside for someone else

During his speech at the NHS Providers conference in Manchester Wes Streeting hit back at claims he wants to replace Keir Starmer as leader of the Labour Party.

He told Sky News: “I think I said it was the most unwarranted attack on a faithful since Joe Marler was banished in the Traitors final.

“And I think, whoever’s been briefing this should spend a little less time watching celebrity traitors and a bit more time watching Countryfile.”

With their misjudged attempt to ‘kneecap’ Wes Streeting and his ambitions to be prime minister, Downing Street aides have succeeded only in making the health secretary look like a good bet, says John Rentoul.