Senior Labour MP Diane Abbott has said she is “astonished” that Sir Keir Starmer is not considering his position, despite four ministers resigning and more than 80 MPs calling on him to stand down.
Speaking in a television interview, the Labour MP said referring to the situation as a “coup” was “quite misleading”, adding that the party needed “a properly organised selection process” to choose a new leader.
“I’m astonished the prime minister can have 80 MPs placing votes of no-confidence, he can have a huge Reform majority we got last week and he himself is not considering his position,” Abbott said.
Asked whether Sir Keir could take credit for the Labour Party’s majority in parliament, Abbott responded: “It is the Labour Party which has the mandate. And he, with what is the most disastrous local authority election result in living memory, should consider his position.”
Pressed on whether she wanted potential successors such as Wes Streeting, Andy Burnham or Angela Rayner to “put up and get on with it”, Abbott said she wanted to see who actually runs.
“Nobody’s my girl or not my girl,” she said of Rayner. “I think Angela Rayner is extremely talented.”
Reflecting on her own experience of standing in the 2010 leadership contest, which included Ed Miliband, Andy Burnham and herself, Abbott said the candidates at that point were “interchangeable”. She noted that people can evolve, adding of Burnham: “I don’t go for this automatic thing that Andy Burnham is this great left-winger. I just don’t.”
Abbott also warned against allowing bond markets to dictate political decisions, saying: “If the British government is going to be completely dominated by the bond market, MPs might as well go home.”
She called for a discussion on whether the Labour Party wants to “cut the welfare bill and spend the money on armaments and nuclear weapons”, adding: “You can’t just slide it past and people don’t notice.”
Asked whether Sir Keir could potentially win a leadership contest, Abbott gave what the interviewer described as “a long hard stare”, before replying: “If he wins, he wins. We’ll all unite behind him.”
She added that the situation was “a disaster for the country because we don’t even know who our prime minister is going to be next week.”
The MP concluded that a new leader with a new programme “is inevitable now. You can’t just sit there like King Canute saying everything’s not happening.”