Starmer rejects departure timetable amid Labour leadership crisis

Investing.com -- British Prime Minister Keir Starmer will not provide a timeline for leaving office, his spokesman said Monday, as pressure intensifies for him to step aside amid a leadership crisis within the Labour Party.

"There will be no timetable for departure," Tom Wells, Starmer's official spokesman, told reporters Monday. "The prime minister is getting on with governing."

Starmer's position has weakened after almost 100 lawmakers called for his resignation following poor results in local elections this month. Energy Secretary Ed Miliband is among senior ministers who have urged him to outline a departure plan, but Starmer has declined.

"Keir Starmer remains the most resilient person I know in my life," Deputy Prime Minister David Lammy said on Sky News Monday. "We now need to unite and pull together."

During a visit to Labour Party headquarters in London Monday, Starmer told staff he remains focused on his duties.

"I am focused on the job that I was asked to do, which is to serve my country and to carry out my duties as prime minister of this country," he said, according to a transcript from a Labour Party spokesperson. "Delivering for the very many people who voted us into office, who are saying, 'just get on with it, get on with the job, get on with the change that I need to see in my life.'"

The internal party revolt, which included the resignation of Health Secretary Wes Streeting, has created conditions resembling a leadership contest, though no candidate has secured the required support of 81 Members of Parliament to trigger a formal ballot.

Greater Manchester mayor Andy Burnham is the current front-runner and is expected to be selected to contest a by-election in Makerfield next month. A Westminster seat is required for Burnham to challenge Starmer. Streeting has also indicated he will join any leadership contest.

Starmer said Monday he would support "one hundred percent" whichever candidate Labour selects for Makerfield.

"I want every member, everyone in our movement to support them," Starmer said. "A Labour candidate to beat Reform. That is the fight that we are in."

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