Starmer Appoints Brown and Harman After Labour Loses 1,400 Councillors

10 articles · Updated · Al Jazeera English · May 11

Gordon Brown and Baroness Harman were given key government roles on Saturday as Keir Starmer tried to steady his position after Labour’s local-election collapse.
More than 30 Labour MPs have since urged Starmer to resign or set a departure timetable, with Catherine West saying she would gather names to force a leadership process for September.
Monday’s make-or-break speech saw Starmer accept responsibility for the “very tough” results but defend Labour’s core choices, promising steel nationalisation legislation, closer European ties and jobs or training for every young person seeking work.
Labour lost more than 1,400 councillors in England, largely to Reform UK and the Greens, deepening pressure on a prime minister whose popularity has already been hit by welfare cuts and cost-of-living anger.
Any formal leadership contest would require nominations from 81 Labour MPs, with Wes Streeting, Angela Rayner and Andy Burnham among names seen as possible challengers.

Rocked by the Mandelson-Epstein scandal, can Prime Minister Starmer survive a rebellion from within his own party?

As populist Reform UK and the Greens surge, is the UK’s traditional two-party political system collapsing for good?