Will there be a general election if Starmer resigns?
Will there be a UK general election? What would happen if Starmer left his office, and how can Labour force the prime minister out?
Sir Keir Starmer is on the ropes this week, with more than 80 Labour MPs calling for his resignation, while his health secretary Wes Streeting is reportedly lining up a leadership challenge.
Listen to this article
Four ministers have resigned this week in protest at Sir Keir's leadership after Labour lost 1,400 council seats in last week's elections, and Mr Streeting is said to have announced his ambitions over coffee on Wednesday.
Downing Street has been plunged into further chaos, with the bombshell reports about the health secretary coming right before the King's Speech, the State Opening of Parliament.
Officially, no word has been given about Mr Streeting, and the news comes one day after senior Cabinet members were heard backing the PM after he gathered them at No 10.
There is now uncertainty about what will happen next, but here are the permutations about a general election.
Will there be a general election if Sir Keir Starmer resigns or is forced out?
If Sir Keir Starmer leaves office, there would not necessarily be a general election in the UK, and it would be up to his successor as to when the next vote is held.
The UK most recently held a general election in 2024, when Labour won power, and Sir Keir came into 2010, which means that there is not another one required until 2029 at the latest.
It is likely, however, that a successor to Sir Keir would face calls to go to the polls, as it could be argued that the new leader is not the face of the party that was voted in two years ago.
When Rishi Sunak and Liz Truss were both elected as Conservative leaders, neither called a general election after the Conservatives were voted into government under Boris Johnson in 2019.
It would be within the powers of the new prime minister to call an early vote, which Theresa May did in 2017 - in perhaps the most recent notable example.
How could Sir Keir be forced out?
Sir Keir has announced his intentions to stay on as prime minister and lead the Labour party forward, but his destiny is not in his hands if Labour MPs turn against him.
If 20% of Labour's MPs, which would be 81, all back the nomination of a challenger, a leadership election would be held between that person and the prime minister. This has not yet happened and, although more than 80 MPs have called on Sir Keir to resign, there has not been a leadership challenger.
In 2016, Labour members voted mid-term when Owen Smith challenged then leader Jeremy Corbyn, with the latter hanging onto his position.