Josh Self

Keir Starmer has suffered his first resignation as the calls for him to step down as prime minister grow. Tom Rutland, a parliamentary private secretary (PPS) in the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, issued a statement calling for Starmer to quit. A PPS acts as an unpaid parliamentary assistant, providing a link between... Read more »

Keir Starmer has suffered his first resignations as the calls for him to step down as prime minister grow. Tom Rutland, a parliamentary private secretary (PPS) in the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, was the first to issue a statement announcing his decision to resign. A PPS acts as an unpaid parliamentary assistant,... Read more »

Keir Starmer is in “listening” mode, a senior cabinet ally has suggested as the prime minister faces a chorus of calls to resign. Darren Jones, the chief secretary to the prime minister, insisted that Starmer is “getting on with the job” but appeared to confirm that he is now considering his political future. Jones recognised... Read more »

Andy Burnham’s sensational announcement that he will once again seek a return to parliament sealed a day of immense political drama. The move marks Burnham’s second attempt at a parliamentary comeback, after Labour’s national executive committee (NEC), Starmer-in-council, thwarted his prospective candidacy for the February 2026 Gorton and Denton by-election. That contest proceeded without Burnham... Read more »

Andy Burnham has secured a comfortable victory in the highly anticipated Makerfield by-election, winning more than 50% of the vote. Burnham will now return to parliament after months of speculation over his political future and resign his position as mayor of Greater Manchester. The by-election will also pile pressure on Keir Starmer, the prime minister,... Read more »

The news that Andy Burnham would stand as the MP for Makerfield was received with some surprise. In the throes of Labour’s May 2026 crisis, following the disastrous local and devolved parliament elections, commentators questioned his choice of constituency. Burnham’s ambition, of course, was never in doubt – nor was the national executive committee’s rapid... Read more »

Andy Burnham’s sensational victory in the Makerfield by-election rendered untenable the continuation of Keir Starmer’s premiership. The prime minister, to his credit, left his Downing Street bunker on Monday morning and bowed to the inevitable. Starmer’s strained insistence that he would, in the words of another outgoing prime minister, “fight on” and “fight to win”... Read more »

The defence secretary has wished Count Binface “good luck” in the Clacton by-election after the satirical candidate vowed to challenge Nigel Farage. The intervention comes after Farage, the leader of Reform UK, sensationally announced that he would resign as the MP for Clacton and stand in the subsequent by-election so that voters could be the... Read more »

More than a quarter of the House of Commons has signed an amendment calling for a national commission on electoral reform, in what backers are describing as an “open goal” for Andy Burnham, the likely incoming prime minister. The amendment to the Representation of the People Bill, tabled by Labour MP Alex Sobel, has attracted... Read more »

Nigel Farage’s statement on Tuesday afternoon, broadcast live from Reform UK headquarters, was supposed to be sensational. After weeks of relative quiet, Farage teased his intervention with a statement on social media, promising an update on his “future in public life”. The scene was set. In Trumpian tones, Farage furiously portrayed an anti-Reform conspiracy spanning... Read more »