EP.141 | Starmer on the Brink

Publications from the left, right and centre agree that Keir Starmer has been, to put it kindly, underwhelming as prime minister. They all conclude that the only reason he is currently surviving at No.10 is because Labour can’t agree on an alternative. The left of the party are scared of Wes Streeting. The right are scared of Angela Rayner. The country is scared of Ed Miliband. Meanwhile, Labour’s most popular retail politician, Andy Burnham, is ineligible for the job, sitting, as he does, in Manchester rather than Westminster. Following another damaging week and further fallout from the Peter Mandelson debacle, the chances of Starmer hanging on post the May elections seem remote. However, Labour’s inability to unite around a single alternative candidate means that a challenge to Starmer’s leadership could be messy - for the party, but more importantly for the country.