Angela Rayner 'preparing to launch leadership bid' after expected Labour wipe-out at local elections
Sir Keir Starmer's ousted deputy reportedly wants to use a dismal electoral showing to get the jump on her rival, Health Secretary Wes Streeting
Angela Rayner is being told to prepare her tilt at the Labour leadership immediately after an expected wipeout of the governing party at next week's local elections.
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The former Deputy Prime Minister's allies are telling her to "take advantage" of the predicted rout of Labour-held seats next week.
Ms Rayner, who resigned from the Labour frontbench amid a row over her underpaying stamp duty, is weighing a direct challenge to Sir Keir Starmer's premiership after the May 7 polls.
She is understood to be one of the most serious challengers to succeed Sir Keir - alongside Health Secretary Wes Streeting.
Read More: Starmer 'offered Rayner Cabinet return' as embattled PM fights to stave off leadership challenge
Allies have told Ms Rayner that Mr Streeting will be given more time to secure support from Labour MPs should she hesitate to call for the Prime Minister to quit.
The Times is reporting that the results are currently the most likely time for Ms Rayner to call for Sir Keir's resignation.
Labour are reportedly set to lose as many as 2,000 council seats in the elections taking place across Britain next Thursday.
Another potential leadership candidate, Andy Burnham, has also failed to back Starmer beyond the local elections.
The Greater Manchester mayor told Bloomberg: “The politics we’ve pioneered as mayors: place first, not party first — that needs to go national, and so we do need to reform Westminster.
"I can’t remove the kind of feeling that some day I will try and go back … I’m not ruling it out.”
The Times has also reported that Sir Keir does not want to reshuffle his Cabinet even if the Labour rout takes place.
Reports claimed on Wednesday that Sir Keir was considering offering Ms Rayner a frontbench role to stave off a leadership bid from his former deputy.
Starmer’s political spokesman said: “I don’t comment on reshuffle speculation. But you’ve got what the PM said before, that she’s hugely talented and he was really sad that he lost her.”
One Rayner ally told the Times: “I don’t think it is in [Rayner’s] benefit to wait because the longer Wes has to organise the stronger he will be. If the HMRC investigation comes back soon, she should be ready to go as soon as possible after the locals."