Keir Starmer to hold Labour reshuffle after election defeats
Labour leader Sir Keir Starmer is set to carry out a reshuffle of his front bench following his party’s poor performance in local elections.
Starmer is facing criticism after Labour was defeated in the Hartlepool by-election and lost control of a string of councils.
He has already removed his deputy Angela Rayner as the party’s chair and campaign coordinator.
The move has been slammed by a number of Labour politicians, with former shadow chancellor John McDonnell saying Rayner had been made a “scapegoat”.
Greater Manchester Mayor Andy Burnham, who has been tipped as a potential successor to Starmer, branded the sacking “wrong”.
However, Starmer insisted that he took “full responsibility” for Labour’s election defeats in England.
With a few results still to come in, the party has lost control of seven councils. Last night it lost overall control of County Durham for the first time in almost a century.
It comes after Labour was defeated by the Conservatives in Hartlepool for the first time since the constituency was created in 1974.
The decision to remove Rayner was made yesterday as more election results were announced. Sources insisted she would “continue to play a senior role” in the party.
Starmer, who took over as Labour leader last year after its worst election defeat since the 1930s, has said the party has a “mountain to climb” if it wants to return to government.