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Gordon Rayner Associate Editor |
After a terrible set of election results for Labour, Sir Keir Starmer is under increasing pressure to set out a timetable for his departure from Downing Street.
The Prime Minister has insisted he won’t resign and wants to avoid the “chaos” of a leadership election, but it’s increasingly obvious he’s lost his party’s support and can’t carry on much longer. So, what happens now?
If Labour MPs and party members have their way, it seems Andy Burnham, the Mayor of Greater Manchester, will be the next Labour leader and prime minister.
His name is on everyone’s lips and there’s a growing clamour for him to return to Parliament and challenge for the leadership, even from people who were turning their backs on him a matter of months ago. Popular and untainted by the failures of this government, he is seen as the only person with any chance of pulling the party out of its current nosedive.
Results as of 06:30, May 9, with 129 of 136 English councils declared |
In the immediate future, all eyes are on Wes Streeting, the Health Secretary, who has enough support to force a leadership contest, but not necessarily to win one. He’s reluctant to be the first one over the top as that tactic often backfires, and he would be the underdog were he to face a Left-wing candidate such as Angela Rayner.
As for Rayner herself, she’s still agonising over whether to stand at all, and might prefer to serve as deputy prime minister under a soft-Left Burnham premiership, with Ed Miliband as chancellor. So, unless Streeting throws caution to the wind in the next few days, there’s every possibility the Starmer saga could go on for months.
This analysis is available only to subscribers.
Continue reading ➤
Plus, see the latest results here ➤
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Nick Gutteridge Chief Political Correspondent |
As the Prime Minister hunkered down in No 10 last night, some prominent Labour figures broke ranks to tell him it was time to hand over power.
The bitterest and most surprising blow came from Sir Sadiq Khan, who bluntly warned him that his leadership risked driving their party into oblivion. In a late statement, the Mayor of London said Labour’s pummelling in the capital at the hands of the Greens represented an “existential threat” to its very future.
His intervention added to a growing chorus of demands from MPs, including some former loyalists, for Starmer to admit that the game was now up. In unusually candid terms they warned the Prime Minister he could “end the Labour Party”, leaving it “slaughtered” and in a state of “total destruction”.
The bosses of Unison and Unite, two of the biggest Labour-backing unions, also urged Starmer to go, warning that the party faced “oblivion” otherwise.
Last night, most of the Cabinet were rallying around their boss, faithfully pushing out the party line that this was no time for Labour to “turn inwards”.
The rearguard action showed that, despite Labour suffering its worst local election results in history, some support for the embattled Prime Minister still remained.
Read the full story here ➤
Plus, go deeper with our full coverage of the local elections:
• Why the election results are bad for Starmer’s leadership rivals ➤
• Trump congratulates Swinney as SNP embarks on third decade in power after Labour collapse ➤ |
Local election must-reads |
Nigel Farage poses with winning councillors outside a town hall in Romford |
Reform is the winner, writes Ben Riley-Smith, our Chief Political Commentator. That is the simple takeaway from the English council elections, with Nigel Farage’s party topping seat gains by flipping Tory and Labour strongholds alike. So, does that mean Farage will become prime minister? Not necessarily. Turning his protest party into one of government is still a daunting challenge and not a forgone conclusion. The hurdles are not insurmountable. However, they are a reminder not over-interpret a set of dominant local election results and translate them into general election certainties. For subscribers only ➤ |
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Baroness Morgan of Ely leaves the stage in Ceredigion after losing her seat in the Senedd |
On a bleak day for Labour, perhaps its most disastrous election result was in Wales, writes Rosa Silverman. Having dominated there for a century, Welsh Labour’s support collapsed, with Plaid Cymru becoming the largest party in the Senedd, followed by Reform. In the bloodbath, Baroness Morgan of Ely made history by becoming the first leader of a government in the UK to lose their seat while in office. She promptly resigned. As one voter told us in Llanelli, capturing the mood of the devolved nation: “We need a change.” Continue reading ➤ |
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Britain fractured last night, writes Ruby Cline. Sir Keir Starmer haemorrhaged hundreds of seats in Labour’s historic heartlands, while Nigel Farage cemented Reform’s meteoric rise. Here are the six hotspots that show the country at its most divided, and give an indication of what’s to come as we crawl towards the next general election. Continue reading ➤ |
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In case you missed it...Yesterday’s news was dominated by Labour’s dismal performance across England, Scotland and Wales. However, on a day with thousands of contests being decided, some stories might have passed you by. Here is a selection.
• Former model Alex Silby narrowly missed winning Big Brother when he finished third on the reality programme in 2002. However, 24 years later, he tasted success becoming a Reform UK councillor as part of their landslide victory in the London borough of Havering. Elsewhere in the capital, Josh Tapper, once of Gogglebox, was elected as a Labour councillor in Barnet.
• Former Stoke City footballer Graham Shaw became a Reform councillor in Newcastle-under-Lyme. Despite his unconventional past, he said voters were willing to “give him a chance” because of frustration with national politics.
• Think you can tell a Tory from a Green? That was the question Sam Hamill-Stewart posed to himself when he created an online game in which you have to guess a candidate’s party simply from a headshot. Almost 4m guesses had been made by the time polls closed on Thursday. Green candidates were easiest to spot, correctly guessed by 38 per cent of players, while Lib Dems proved most challenging, accurately picked out by only 15 per cent. If you’ve got a spare moment, you can play here.
• In an attempt to drum up support, the Scottish Conservative leader was photographed alongside party activist James McAlpine, who stands at 7ft 2in holding a mock peach-coloured ballot paper. The creative nod to Roald Dahl’s James and the Giant Peach didn’t pay off, with John Swinney, the SNP leader, declaring his party victorious after only seven seats had been called. |
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Allison Pearson Britain’s working class want their country back and are no longer willing to be lectured by a political establishment that despises them Continue reading ➤
Camilla Tominey Extremists are taking control of swathes of Britain Continue reading ➤
David Frost The five lessons from these elections all show the British people are furious Continue reading ➤ |
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Last week, Robbie Collin, our film critic, ignited debate with his list of the 50 greatest films of all time – not least amongst the culture desk’s female staff, who took umbrage at the lack of comedies, romances and musicals. From classics like The Wizard of Oz and Gone With the Wind to modern gems (Clueless, Brokeback Mountain) here is their alternative top 50. Continue reading ➤ |
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Sue Ryan tested positive for hantavirus in 2020 following a camping and hiking trip in Colorado |
When I collapsed after what I assumed was Covid, writes Sue Ryan, I discovered I had contracted the rare and potentially deadly hantavirus, the same disease now linked to deaths aboard a cruise ship. I spent days in isolation as fluid filled my lungs and doctors feared the worst. This is how it changed my life, and my habits around the house.
Continue reading ➤
Rat-virus cruise passengers to self-isolate in British hotels ➤ |
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“There seems to be a renaissance in me,” Alan Carr mused when we met recently, writes Guy Kelly. He came to regret using that word (“such a w---er...”), but it’s true: since winning The Celebrity Traitors, Carr has reached national treasure status – whether he likes it or not. Hilariously incapable of keeping his mouth shut, he’s that rare interviewee who’s everything you hoped for. Continue reading ➤ |
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A summer holiday on a plate
Macerated strawberry toasted ice cream sandwich |
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Diana Henry The Telegraph’s award-winning cookery writer |
I had a very busy weekend last week. People came for lunch on Sunday. I have to tell you that the new perfect time to have people over for a weekend lunch is 4pm: you can still have a lie-in and still get something good on the table just as friends are arriving. This weekend, I don’t want to do anything except cook and eat things that are easy, and embrace the spring and summer vibes that have taken over the garden (it’s messy and unruly, but like a beautiful meadow).
Strawberries. When they first arrive I want them as I did when I was a child, just with double cream or vanilla ice cream, but throughout the season I make things ever more adventurous, eventually ending up baking a French strawberry tart with crème pâtissière. This toasted strawberry and ice cream sandwich is where I am right now. I will only be having half of this, I promise. It is such a treat.
Paccheri pasta with tomato sauce and ricotta |
I’m not actually having a summer holiday this year – things just feel too uncertain in all sorts of ways – so I am going to have to go in my head. A good book and a special recipe is the best way to visit Italy or France from your own kitchen table. I had this pasta dish for the first time in Naples about four years ago. You think it’s just pasta with tomato sauce and ricotta, as that’s what it’s called. It sounds straightforward, but the way the ricotta softens some of the tomato sauce, but not all of it, is what this dish is all about. Make the sauce early in the day so you can ask people over for just one dish (if you want) later. For your reading material try Street Fight in Naples by Peter Robb.
Baked ChalkStream trout with fennel butter, leeks and beans |
I will be on my own most of the time this summer and fish fillets are one of the easiest ways to enjoy fish just for one. It’s a neat way of eating as there’s no waste, and this recipe for baked trout with fennel butter, leeks and beans can be halved to feed just you. It also works with salmon. If you’re feeling lazy, forget about the beans and just concentrate on the rest.
Find me here every Saturday and in the new Recipes Newsletter, which you can sign up to here. |
Pricey pintsEvery weekday, Orlando Bird, our loyal reader correspondent, shares an off-piste topic that has brought out the best of your opinions and stories. Orlando writes...
I thought I had perfected my expression – a mixture of alarm, indignation and weary resignation – when faced with the bill for a round of drinks in London. With the news that it’s now possible to fork out a preposterous £11 for a pint here, I may need to recalibrate.
This development was the theme of Tuesday’s newsletter, and readers have responded with dismay. Russell Payne said: “I clearly recall vowing in my youth that, once beer reached £1 a pint, I would be switching to halves.” Time, perhaps, to make the thimbleful an official measure.
“It would have to be a pretty amazing place to pay that,” added Sue and Paul. “The Royal Enclosure at Ascot, perhaps?”
It is still possible, however, to escape pernicious pint inflation – largely by fleeing the capital. They recommend their local, “the Red Lion Inn, Penderyn, a great little pub that also serves fantastic food, on top of a mountain in the Brecon Beacons. It’s £5.50 for Welsh pale ale”.
Another reader – one of many – puts in a word for Wetherspoons: “I used to be a daily drinker. Now that I am on a pension, it’s the only place I can afford on a regular basis. My local Spoons charges £2.35 a pint, Monday to Wednesday.”
I’ve also enjoyed reading about your valiant efforts to assist Britain’s imperilled hedgehog population, the subject of yesterday’s Your Say.
One reader explained: “We have at least seven hogs coming to our garden every night for a buffet of cat crunchies and calciworms, plus a dish of fresh rainwater. Several did not bother to hibernate at all last winter, but they have cosy houses and a big igloo full of hay to rest in.”
S Carr added: “I have had hedgehogs in my garden for many years. There is a pecking order for the nightly feed. If anyone is at the bowl when ‘big daddy’ turns up, they should brace themselves. They will be shoved out of the way until he has had his fill. I then refill for the rest of them.” That’s all from me for this week, folks. I’ll be back on Monday to bring you our best talking points. In the meantime, you can contact me here. |
Andrew Baker's Saturday Quiz |
Gather round for the latest instalment of my Saturday quiz.
1. On this date in 1671, Thomas Blood arrived at the Tower of London dressed as a clergyman. What was his intention?
2. Captain Blood (1935) was the first of eight films to star Errol Flynn opposite which glamorous co-star?
3. Captain Mainwaring led the Home Guard in which fictional town?
4. Which Guards regiment is the oldest continuously serving regiment in the British Army?
5. Sir William Coldstream (1908-1987) was eminent in which pursuit?
You can find the answers at the end of the newsletter.
Plus, can you tackle our new daily puzzle? Scroll down to see if you got the questions right – and play for free on our website and app.
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Find as many words as you can in today’s Panagram, including the nine-letter solution. Visit Telegraph Puzzles to play a range of head-scratching games, including The 1% Club, Cogs, and Quick, Mini or Cryptic Crosswords.
Yesterday’s Panagram was TIPTOEING. Come back tomorrow for the solution to today’s puzzle. |
Thank you for reading. Have a fulfilling day and I hope to see you tomorrow. Chris Evans, Editor
P.S. Please send me your thoughts on this newsletter. You can email me here. |
Quiz answers:
- To steal the Crown Jewels
- Olivia de Havilland
- Walmington-on-Sea
- Coldstream Guards
- Artist
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