Topics: Keir Starmer, King Charles III, UK News, Politics, News, Royal Family
King Charles III is set to speak at the State Opening of Parliament this morning, amid the calls for UK PM Keir Starmer to resign.
The speech, kicking off at 11am on Wednesday (13 May), marks the official way the government re-opens parliament after a break and outlines their plans for what they want to achieve.
It will take place in the House of Lords, and as reported by the BBC, it’s set to include more than 35 bills and draft bills on the NHS, police reforms, and immigration, just to name a few key topics.
However, it’s safe to say that the ceremonial event has been slightly overshadowed by the ongoing tensions in the Labour Party and mounting pressure for Starmer, 63, to resign as PM.
On Tuesday (12 May) four senior ministers resigned, including the safeguarding minister Jess Phillips and health minister Zubir Ahmed. On top of this, more than 80 Labour MPs have so far urged him to immediately stand down or draw up a timetable to leave.
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It comes after a disastrous set of election results last week, which saw the party lose more than 1,400 council seats.
Labour’s affiliated unions have also called for a plan to be put in place for the election of a new leader of the political party.
A statement from the TULO group, which represents 11 unions, said Labour ‘cannot continue on its current path’.
It seems, though, that Starmer is doubling down and said this week: "The Labour Party has a process for challenging a leader, and that has not been triggered. The country expects us to get on with governing.
"That is what I am doing and what we must do as a Cabinet."
While Cabinet Office minister Nick Thomas-Symonds told broadcasters that Monday had been ‘turbulent’ for the Prime Minister, but that MPs had not united behind a candidate to trigger a contest, adding ‘we are moving on’.
However, the Scottish National Party (SNP) has declared that it’s going to try to force a vote on the PM’s future in the coming days.
Dave Doogan, the new leader of the party, says they will do it via an amendment to the King's Speech, which will then be debated in the coming days in parliament.
He said in a statement: "This farce has to end now, so parliament can focus on the issues that really matter. It's clear the only way that can happen is for Keir Starmer to go.
"He has lost the confidence of voters and his own MPs, and there’s no coming back from that. The Labour Party must stop dragging this crisis out and put an end to it now.
"If the Labour cabinet ministers don't have the decency to do the right thing - then parliament must."
Starmer’s premiership has been controversial from the off, in a government rife with U-turns on issues like the two-child benefit cap and pensioners’ winter fuel allowance.
But this is when the writing was truly on the wall for Starmer:
Starmer appoints Peter Mandelson as the UK’s ambassador to the US, a decision he will come to regret
We didn’t know this at the time, but on this date, UK Security Vetting (UKSV) advises that Mandelson should be denied security clearance. The following day, the Foreign Office decides to ignore UKSV’s guidance.
Starmer is forced into a significant U-turn on plans to cut welfare payments, and 49 MPs still vote against the amended bill. It’s the biggest rebellion of Starmer’s premiership, and exposes tensions between Labour MPs and No 10 which aren’t going to go away.
Bloomberg publishes emails from Mandelson to Jeffrey Epstein advising him to ‘fight for early release’, sent in 2008, the day before he reported to jail after being convicted of soliciting prostitution from a minor.
Mandelson is sacked as US ambassador. That month, the Labour Party conference is dominated by rumours that Manchester mayor Andy Burnham is looking to mount a leadership challenge.
Andy Burnham is blocked from standing as an MP in the Gorton and Denton by-election, leading to further unrest within the Labour Party
The US government releases the largest tranche of documents relating to Epstein so far. Emails within the files suggest Mandelson passed on sensitive government information to Epstein, and lobbied the Treasury on his behalf during his tenure as business secretary in Gordon Brown’s government. Labour MPs are furious about the revelations.
Mandelson is arrested on suspicion of misconduct in public office.
A disastrous polling day for Labour, the worst local elections result for the party on record, losing almost 1,500 councillors in England, with Reform making huge gains.
Labour MP Catherine West demands that a cabinet minister challenge Starmer for the leadership, or she will herself. She later backs down.
It’s widely reported that four senior cabinet ministers, including Home Secretary Shabana Mahmood and Foreign Secretary Yvette Cooper, are telling Starmer to set out a timeline for his departure. Meanwhile, nearly 80 Labour MPs are thought to have signed Catherine West’s letter demanding Starmer resign. Starmer delivers a speech saying he’s ‘not walking away’, while admitting: “The British people are tired of a status quo that has failed them.”
