Pressure mounts on Starmer as MPs and unions call for him to quit after chief of staff resigns
Morgan McSweeney, who was widely seen as Sir Keir's top aide, resigned from Downing Street on Sunday after he admitted to advising the Prime Minister to appoint Peter Mandelson as Britain’s ambassador to the US
Sir Keir Starmer has been told his premiership is still under threat despite the departure of his chief of staff.
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Morgan McSweeney, who was widely seen as Sir Keir's top aide, resigned from Downing Street on Sunday after he admitting to advising the Prime Minister to appoint Peter Mandelson as Britain’s ambassador to the US.
The PM is expected to meet with Labour MPs on Monday to garner support and move on from the scandal over Mandelson's ties to Jeffrey Epstein.
Read more: MI6 'warned Downing Street of Mandelson's Russia links' before he became Washington ambassador
But the party's backbenchers are expected to tell Starmer he should quit, given that he made the final decision on appointing Mandelson.
Kim Johnson, the MP for Liverpool Riverside, told the Telegraph that Mr McSweeney’s resignation would “not protect the PM – his position is untenable”.
Ian Byrne, the MP for Liverpool West, said: “The PM must now reflect honestly on his own position and ask whether, for the good of the country and the Labour Party, he should follow McSweeney’s lead.”
Leaders of three trade unions also called for Sir Keir to go.
Mr McSweeney resigned after a phone call with Sir Keir at lunchtime on Sunday.
Announcing his resignation, McSweeney said: "The decision to appoint Peter Mandelson was wrong. He has damaged our party, our country and trust in politics itself.
"When asked, I advised the Prime Minister to make that appointment and I take full responsibility for that advice."
McSweeney added that, despite these calls for him to step down, he still fully supports the Prime Minister.
"I remain fully supportive of the Prime Minister," he said.
"He is working every day to rebuild trust, restore standards and serve the country. I will continue to back that mission in whatever way I can. It has been the honour of my life to serve."
His resignation came after the latest release of the so-called Epstein Files by the US government detailed Mandelson’s relationship with the paedophile financier, including email exchanges about fiscal policy during the 2008 financial crash.
A police investigation was initiated in the UK following the release, and on Friday, police searched two homes linked to Mandelson.
Labour insiders have also blamed Mandelson's appointment on Jonathan Powell, the national security adviser and Sir Tony Blair’s former chief of staff, claiming he was too supportive of appointing him as Starmer's man in Washington.
Less than a week ago, Sir Keir described Mr McSweeney as an “essential part of my team”.
Reacting to McSweeney's departure, the Prime Minister said: “It’s been an honour working with Morgan McSweeney for many years.
"He turned our party around after one of its worst ever defeats and played a central role running our election campaign. It is largely thanks to his dedication, loyalty and leadership that we won a landslide majority and have the chance to change the country.
"Having worked closely with Morgan in opposition and in government, I have seen every day his commitment to the Labour Party and to our country. Our party and I owe him a debt of gratitude, and I thank him for his service.”
Mr McSweeney will be replaced by Jill Cuthbertson and Vidhya Alakeson with immediate effect, No.10 announced.
She said on X: “Once again with this PM it’s somebody else’s fault: ‘Mandelson lied to me’ or ‘Morgan advised me’
“Keir Starmer has to take responsibility for his own terrible decisions. But he never does.”
Nigel Farage, the Reform UK leader, said: “As predicted, McSweeney has gone. Labour are just continuing the chaos we saw under the Tories.
“My money says Starmer won’t be far behind after Labour’s disaster in the elections this coming May.”
The Prime Minister is currently seeking to strip Mandelson of his title following the revelations about his relationship with Epstein.
He was reportedly furious with the bombshell discoveries and wants to bring forward reforms to the ministerial vetting system.
Lord Mandelson has issued no public comment since the Met confirmed a criminal investigation into whether misconduct in public office had occurred.
The peer has previously apologised to Epstein’s victims and said he was tricked by him.
Union bosses have also raised concerns about Starmer's leadership.
Steve Wright, the general secretary of the Fire Brigades Union, told reporters on Sunday that the PM should resign, adding: "I think everybody’s thinking it, and people are just not saying it at the moment."
This was echoed by Maryam Eslamdoust, the general secretary of the Transport Salaried Staffs’ Association, who said: "There’s no case for waiting until May, given the scale of defeat we are facing at these critical elections. It’s time to elect a new leader."
Appointing Sir Keir's successor could prove to be tricky for Labour and may be what keeps him in No.10 for the foreseeable future.
Angela Rayner, Andy Burnham, Wes Streeting, Ed Miliband and Shabana Mahmood are all in the running, but none of them have yet received the universal backing of the party's MPs and aides.
It will be a testing few months for Labour, as it could come third behind Reform and the Green Party in the anticipated Gorton and Denton by-election on February 26.
Local elections in May could also see them kicked from office in Wales, fail to take power in Scotland and fall back in councils across England.
Labour's political opponents also joined the calls for Starmer to quit, with Tory leader Kemi Badenoch saying the Prime Minister should “take responsibility” for his actions.
She said on X: “Once again with this PM it’s somebody else’s fault: ‘Mandelson lied to me’ or ‘Morgan advised me’.
“Keir Starmer has to take responsibility for his own terrible decisions. But he never does.”
Nigel Farage, the Reform UK leader, said: “As predicted, McSweeney has gone. Labour is just continuing the chaos we saw under the Tories.
“My money says Starmer won’t be far behind after Labour’s disaster in the elections this coming May.”
The Prime Minister is currently seeking to strip Mandelson of his title following the revelations about his relationship with Epstein.
He was reportedly furious with the bombshell discoveries and wants to bring forward reforms to the ministerial vetting system.
Lord Mandelson has issued no public comment since the Met confirmed a criminal investigation into whether misconduct in public office had occurred.
The peer has previously apologised to Epstein’s victims and said he was tricked by him.