Wes Streeting has issued an emphatic denial of rumours that he is eyeing up a bid to oust Sir Keir Starmer as Labour leader and prime minister.
On Tuesday evening, allies of the PM briefed that Sir Keir would fight any challenge to his leadership. The BBC reported that those close to the Labour leader were “deeply worried” about “plotting” behind the scenes to replace Starmer.
There are said to be fears amongst parts of the Labour party that their popularity could fall even further after Rachel Reeves’ budget later this month, with some even suggesting Starmer could face a leadership challenge before the end of the year.
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It seems Health Secretary Wes Streeting, according to the reports, is seen as the main threat to Starmer, and it just so happened that he was doing the media rounds on Wednesday.
Speaking to Sophy Ridge on Sky News, Streeting issued an emphatic denial of the rumours, labelling them “totally untrue.”
When asked if there was a leadership challenge brewing, Streeting said: “No, and I think whoever’s been briefing this has been watching too much Celebrity Traitors, and this is just about the worst attack on a faithful since Joe Marler was banished in the final.”
“It’s totally untrue self-defeating briefing, not least because it’s not true,” he continued. “I don’t understand how anyone thinks it’s helpful to the prime minister to suggest he’s fighting for his job at a time when he’s fighting for the country.”
When Ridge asked what his message to people briefing these rumours would be, Streeting joked that at least this time they were “picking on one of the boys.” This was in reference to previous accusations that Starmer’s government has experienced sexist briefings against female cabinet members.
But he added: “It doesn’t help anyone, it’s not true.”
Streeting also denied having any conversations with anyone about ousting Starmer, and that the rumours backed up recent suggestions from Lucy Powell that there needs to be a culture change in the Labour Party.
Along with Streeting, Labour MPs are said to have been discussing Home Secretary Shabana Mahmood as a potential candidate to challenge Starmer, whilst some have even speculated about Ed Miliband’s ambitions.
For months now, the approval ratings of both Labour and Starmer have been sinking, with the PM now polling as one of the most unpopular prime minister’s ever.
Meanwhile, Labour seem to have started losing voters to the left, in the form of Zack Polanski’s Green Party, after months of Reform’s support growing on the right.