The PM is realising that the “game is up,” a senior government figure has claimed.
The PM is realising that the ‘game is up,’ a senior government figure has claimed (Image: Getty)
Sir Keir Starmer’s allies believe he is preparing to step down after his support disappeared over the weekend. According to a senior government figure, the prime minister has begun to realise the “game is up” with “quite a bit of movement” among Cabinet ministers in the wake of Andy Burnham’s sweeping Makerfield by-election victory.
His thoughts have now turned to how he could “shore up his legacy,” the senior government figure told The Telegraph. One Labour MP – who is usually considered to be a Starmer loyalist – said he believed Sir Keir would announce his departure date as soon as Monday, given that his support among MPs was now down to only a handful of “friends and family”. “There’s no one left. Literally people whose relatives work in No 10 or people who are long-term personal friends of Keir’s are pretty much the only ones left,” they said, comparing the act of trying to fight Mr Burnham’s path to Downing Street to “trying to fight gravity”.
Andy Burnham made his return to parliament with a sweeping victory at the Makerfield by-election on Thursday (Image: Getty)
A government figure predicted that “something will have happened by the end of the week,” claiming that the prime minister would be in “mass resignation territory” if he did not resign.
Meanwhile, a former loyal MP who was publicly backing Sir Keir as recently as last month said that he believed Sir Keir was “a goner”, adding: “Andy can do it without a contest, he’s got a good story, and is better for building a broad coalition come a general election”.
One ally told The Sun newspaper: “I think there is just a 25% chance he fights on now”.
Mr Burnham was said to have the support of close to 300 MPs and Sir Keir is being urged by his Cabinet and MPS – including previous loyalists – to set out a timetable for his departure rather than fight a leadership contest.
Foreign Secretary Yvette Cooper and Transport Secretary Heidi Alexander are among those who have privately urged Sir Keir to set out a timetable for his departure (Image: Getty)
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