Almost half of Labour voters want Sir Keir Starmer to step down before the next general election, a YouGov poll commissioned by Times UK has revealed. The survey of 2,100 people found that 23 percent of Labour supporters believe Starmer should resign immediately, allowing the party to elect a new leader, while a further 22 percent think he should stand down at some point before the election. Only 34 percent said he should continue to lead Labour into the contest.
The polling comes after a turbulent week in Downing Street, during which figures accused Health Secretary Wes Streeting of plotting to oust Starmer. The prime minister insisted he would resist any challenge to his leadership. Concern is growing among Labour MPs that Starmer could become a liability, with fears that he might face a leadership contest following critical local elections next May.
The survey also highlights voter scepticism about Labour’s competence compared with the previous Conservative government. Twenty-nine percent of voters overall said the Tories were more competent than Labour, while only 25 percent favoured Labour, and 29 percent thought both administrations were equally poor. Just over 40 percent of respondents said Rishi Sunak is a better prime minister than Starmer, including 14 percent of Labour voters. More than half of those surveyed said Labour is as divided or more divided than the Conservatives.
The poll arrives a week before Chancellor Rachel Reeves is set to unveil the budget, which aims to fill a £20 billion gap in government finances. Trust in Reeves was low: 33 percent of Labour voters expressed confidence in her handling of tax and spending, falling to 14 percent among the electorate as a whole—lower than ratings for Kemi Badenoch (20 percent), Nigel Farage (24 percent), or Green Party leader Zack Polanski (18 percent).
If a general election were held today, the survey suggested Labour would secure only 19 percent of the vote, behind Reform on 27 percent, while the Greens and the Conservatives would both receive 17 percent. Despite the controversy, Starmer told the Daily Mirror that he remains committed to leading Labour into the next election. “I remain utterly focused on what matters to me most, which is bearing down on the cost of living and making people feel better off,” he said.
In terms of potential successors, Andy Burnham, the mayor of Greater Manchester, leads the field, favoured by 18 percent of all voters and 30 percent of those who backed Labour in the last election. Streeting received support from 8 percent, while Ed Miliband and Reeves were both at 4 percent, according to the Times UK-commissioned poll.
