Labour MP Connor Naismith has told GB News that Sir Keir Starmer “has lost the confidence of the country”.
He said: “We, those of us who are calling for the Prime Minister to go, do not do so lightly. I’ve been a loyal back bencher. I’ve supported the government and I’ve supported the Prime Minister up to this point, but it just becomes clear at some point that the man has lost the confidence of the country, and we have a limited time to effect change in this Parliament and we’ve got to act, is the conclusion that I and others have reached.”
Asked if his call for the PM to go was about saving his seat, he said: “No, it’s absolutely not about my seat. We all came into government on a mandate of change, and we believe in that. We believe that the country needs change, that people were crying out for it.
“That’s what they voted for, and that, unfortunately, I don’t think that this Prime Minister is able to deliver that change now.
“But secondly, it’s also about the fear of what is coming down the track if we don’t deliver on that mandate, that people will turn to more extreme options that I think will be damaging for the country.
“Every Labour person has to look themselves in the mirror and say, ‘Can this Prime Minister fend off that threat?’ And the conclusion I’ve reached is that this one cannot do that.”
He added: “What I’m asking for is that we don’t rush this, that we don’t rush into a kind of chaotic situation where we might end up with an outcome just because we didn’t take the time over it.
“I’m asking the Prime Minister to recognise that it’s over, to set out a timetable for his departure and that we allow the party then [to] give the country that short term stability. We’ve got the Prime Minister in place for a period, whatever it is, we allow the party to have a proper debate about what the future is.”
On a possible challenge from Andy Burnham, he said: “I am not for one moment, saying there isn’t anybody within the current crop of Labour MPs, but what I’m saying is we’ve got Andy Burnham there who has demonstrated a desire to re-enter politics at the national level.
“He should be allowed to do that, and he should be allowed to make his case. If we decide to go with somebody else, then so be it, if the parliamentary Labour Party and the members decide to go with somebody else, but Andy should be allowed to [stand].”
