In Downing Street, Keir Starmer is waking up to an imminent threatpublished at 06:00 BST
Henry Zeffman
Chief political correspondent
Image source, ReutersI’ve just arrived in Downing Street, where Keir Starmer is waking up not only to an Andy Burnham victory in Makerfield – but victory by a massive margin.
It means the prime minister faces a threat to his position which is grave and imminent.
The message this morning from the jubilant Burnham camp, as expected, is that Starmer ought to come to his own realisation over the next few days that his position is untenable and set out a timetable for his departure.
That argument is bolstered, they believe, by the fact that Burnham won by such a distance.
“The scale of the result means the writing is on the wall and he needs to accept that,” one senior Burnham-supporting MP has said to me.
But it has been clear for some time that Starmer intends to dig in. I’m told that remains his position this morning, and that we will hear as much from him today.
He will argue that he is closing the gap nationally with Reform UK, and that a leadership change would make Labour look like the Conservatives they defeated not even quite two years ago.
Assuming Starmer holds to that position over the weekend, that sets up an almighty clash with Burnham next week. The question will quickly turn to whether Labour MPs, and especially the cabinet, try to pressure Starmer out of office.
