Transport Secretary Heidi Alexander has warned potential challengers to Sir Keir Starmer's leadership of the Labour Party to “give their head a gentle wobble”, dismissing talk of plans to unseat the Prime Minister as misguided.
Cabinet minister defends Starmer
Speaking on Sky News's Sunday Morning With Trevor Phillips programme, Ms Alexander said Sir Keir is “the best person” to lead the country through a period of extreme international volatility. She urged the Labour Party not to become a “self-indulgent debating society” when global conditions are deteriorating.
“I don’t think the public would thank us if the Labour Party turned into some sort of self-indulgent debating society when there are pockets of the world that feel like they are going to hell in a handcart at the moment,” she said.
Ms Alexander added: “I think asking the Prime Minister to somehow reapply for his job when all of that is going on and he is entirely focused on the concerns of the British people would be the wrong thing to do.”
Reports of leadership bids
Reports have suggested that Greater Manchester Mayor Andy Burnham is planning a return to Westminster “within weeks” with the intention of challenging Sir Keir. Health Secretary Wes Streeting is also rumoured to be considering a leadership bid.
Ms Alexander directly addressed these reports, stating: “I think those people who think that we should have a leadership election now and repeat the mistakes that the Conservative government made in churning through prime ministers probably do need to give their head a gentle wobble.”
Starmer's warning
Her comments come after Sir Keir wrote in The Observer newspaper, urging his party not to repeat the Conservative Party’s error of “descending into political infighting”.
Sir Keir wrote: “We have a choice. We could sink into the politics of grievance and division. Or we could rise to this moment – together – in a national effort that matches the scale of the threats and turbulence we face.”
He added: “When the nation rallied together to deal with Covid, the last government could have channelled that spirit to build a better nation. But instead, they descended into political infighting and let the country slump back to the old status quo. Not this time.”
