London Daily

Focus on the big picture.
Thursday, Sep 11, 2025

Labour heavyweight Wes Streeting denies plan to succeed Starmer

Labour heavyweight Wes Streeting denies plan to succeed Starmer

A fundraising event held for the shadow minister sparks rumours that he is readying himself to replace Keir Starmer if he resigns over Beergate
Labour rising star Wes Streeting has denied preparing a leadership bid to replace Keir Starmer after it emerged that the wealthy party donor Waheed Alli hosted a recent fundraising event for him and another MP at his central London home.

The Observer has been told that the actors Ian McKellen and Michael Cashman, as well the businesswoman and LGBTQ+ activist Linda Riley, were among 20 to 30 people present at the event in March, where Lord Alli picked up the £4,600 bill for a buffet and drinks.

The event raised around £20,000 from those who attended, which was split between Streeting and his fellow Labour MP Kim Leadbeater.

One senior frontbench source said on Saturday that Leadbeater, the member for Batley and Spen and sister of the late Jo Cox MP, could be being lined up as a potential running mate with Streeting, for the post of deputy leader, were a contest to take place.

Some senior figures in the party, who do not favour Streeting as a future leader, say the shadow health secretary has been “on manoeuvres” for months, readying himself in case Starmer leaves his post before or after the next election.

Rumours about the activities of possible replacements to Starmer began swirling round Westminster last week after the Labour leader announced he would resign if fined by Durham police for drinking a beer and eating curry in an MP’s office after a day of campaigning for the local elections in April 2021.

While Starmer is confident he will be cleared, having received four different legal opinions on the case, his pledge to quit if fined has inevitably started several hares running on the subject of a possible succession battle.

Others thought likely to run if Starmer has to quit include the shadow levelling up secretary, Lisa Nandy, and the shadow home secretary, Yvette Cooper.

Andy Burnham, the mayor of Greater Manchester, said last week that he had not given up hopes of leading the party, though this would not be in the near future; first he would need to be selected and then elected to a Labour seat in the Commons.

Burnham made clear last week in an interview with LBC that were a future opportunity to arise, and the party wanted him, he would relish tackling the levelling up agenda and reforming the way the country is governed.

Streeting’s office vehemently denied that the event at Alli’s house had anything to do with leadership ambitions and said it was merely to raise funds for constituency campaigning.

A spokesman for Streeting accused people in the party of stirring up mischief, saying: “This was a joint fundraiser with Kim Leadbeater to support her campaigning in Batley & Spen and to support Wes’s campaigning in Ilford North and as shadow health secretary. Keir’s office were fully aware of the event, which was held months ago. Whoever briefed this nonsense should put their wooden spoon away.”

Streeting, who grew up in a council flat in Stepney, east London, and funded his way through Cambridge University by doing shifts during his holidays in the customer service department at Comet, has been the MP for Ilford North since 2015.

He is now widely regarded as one of Labour’s most effective communicators.

His allies point out that he has been one of the Labour leader’s most consistent advocates and defenders. Aged just 39, he is on the right of the party and was heavily critical of Jeremy Corbyn’s leadership.

Peter Kyle, the shadow Northern Ireland secretary and an ally of Streeting, said such events were normal and set up as a way to allow MPs to pay for extra staff whose salaries could not be met from party funds. “I can put my hand on my heart and say this had nothing whatsoever to do with any leadership shenanigans,” said Kyle.

Alli has been a long-term donor since he was first brought into the New Labour inner circle under Tony Blair and has funded the campaigns of successive leadership candidates, including David Miliband and Starmer himself. He gave £100,000 to Starmer’s campaign, which led to his election in April 2020.

The latest Opinium poll for the Observer shows that the so-called Beergate affair had led to a 10% fall in Starmer’s personal ratings over recent weeks. Despite this, Starmer is still regarded more favourably than Boris Johnson on issues relating to Partygate and Beergate.

Nine out of ten (89%) think that Johnson broke the rules during the pandemic, with 63% thinking he did so intentionally.

For Starmer, 58% think he broke the rules, with 30% thinking he did so intentionally. Two-thirds of respondents (65%) think he was right to say he would resign if he received a fixed penalty notice.

Adam Drummond, head of political and social research at Opinium, said: “A media focus on Beergate was never going to be the best talking point for the Labour leader after the local elections, and this is reflected in the hit to his net approval ratings that now sit at -10.

“Nevertheless, voters are much more likely to give Keir Starmer the benefit of the doubt that he acted appropriately than the prime minister, while almost a quarter have actually gained a more favourable view of him for the way he has responded to the accusations, by promising to resign if he is fined by the police.”
Newsletter

Related Articles

0:00
0:00
Close
ChatGPT CEO signals policy to alert authorities over suicidal youth after teen’s death
The British legal mafia hit back: Banksy mural of judge beating protester is scrubbed from London court
Surpassing Musk: Larry Ellison becomes the richest man in the world
Embarrassment for Starmer: He fired the ambassador photographed on Epstein’s 'pedophile island'
Manhunt after 'skilled sniper' shot Charlie Kirk. Footage: Suspect running on rooftop during panic
Effective Protest Results: Nepal’s Prime Minister Resigns as Youth-Led Unrest Shakes the Nation
Qatari prime minister says Netanyahu ‘killed any hope’ for Israeli hostages
King Charles and Prince Harry Share First In-Person Moment in 19 Months
Starmer Establishes Economic ‘Budget Board’ to Centralise Policy and Rebuild Business Trust
France Erupts in Mass ‘Block Everything’ Protests on New PM’s First Day
Poland Shoots Down Russian Drones in Airspace Violation During Ukraine Attack
Brazilian police say ex-President Bolsonaro had planned to flee to Argentina seeking asylum
Trinidad Leader Applauds U.S. Naval Strike and Advocates Forceful Action Against Traffickers
Kim Jong Un Oversees Final Test of New High-Thrust Solid-Fuel Rocket Engine
Apple Introduces Ultra-Thin iPhone Air, Enhanced 17 Series and New Health-Focused Wearables
Macron Appoints Sébastien Lecornu as Prime Minister Amid Budget Crisis and Political Turmoil
Supreme Court temporarily allows Trump to pause billions in foreign aid
Charlie Sheen says his father, Martin Sheen, turned him in to the police: 'The greatest betrayal possible'
Vatican hosts first Catholic LGBTQ pilgrimage
Apple Unveils iPhone 17 Series, iPhone Air, Apple Watch 11 and More at 'Awe Dropping' Event
Pig Heads Left Outside Multiple Paris Mosques in Outrage-Inducing Acts
Nvidia’s ‘Wow’ Factor Is Fading. The AI chip giant used to beat Wall Street expectations for earnings by a substantial margin. That trajectory is coming down to earth.
France joins Eurozone’s ‘periphery’ as turmoil deepens, say investors
On the Anniversary of Queen Elizabeth’s Death: Prince Harry Returns to Britain
France Faces New Political Crisis, again, as Prime Minister Bayrou Pushed Out
Murdoch Family Finalises $3.3 Billion Succession Pact, Ensuring Eldest Son’s Leadership
Big Oil Slashes Jobs and Investments Amid Prolonged Low Crude Prices
Court Staff Cover Up Banksy Image of Judge Beating a Protester
Social Media Access Curtailed in Turkey After CHP Calls for Rallies Following Police Blockade of Istanbul Headquarters
Nayib Bukele Points Out Belgian Hypocrisy as Brussels Considers Sending Army into the Streets
Elon Musk Poised to Become First Trillionaire Under Ambitious Tesla Pay Plan
France, at an Impasse, Heads Toward Another Government Collapse
Burning the Minister’s House Helped Protesters to Win Justice: Prabowo Fires Finance Minister in Wake of Indonesia Protests
Brazil Braces for Fallout from Bolsonaro Trial by corrupted judge
The Country That Got Too Rich? Public Spending Dominates Norway Election
Nearly 40 Years Later: Nike Changes the Legendary Slogan Just Do It
Generations Born After 1939 Unlikely to Reach Age One Hundred, New Study Finds
End to a four-year manhunt in New Zealand: the father who abducted his children to the forests was killed, the three siblings were found
Germany Suspends Debt Rules, Funnels €500 Billion Toward Military and Proxy War Strategy
EU Prepares for War
BMW Eyes Growth in China with New All‑Electric Neue Klasse Lineup
Trump Threatens Retaliatory Tariffs After EU Imposes €2.95 Billion Fine on Google
Tesla Board Proposes Unprecedented One-Trillion-Dollar Performance Package for Elon Musk
US Justice Department Launches Criminal Mortgage-Fraud Probe into Federal Reserve Governor Lisa Cook
Escalating Drug Trafficking and Violence in Latin America: A Growing Crisis
US and Taiwanese Defence Officials Held Secret Talks in Alaska
Report: Secret SEAL Team 6 Mission in North Korea Ordered by Trump in 2019 Ended in Failure
Gold Could Reach Nearly $5,000 if Fed Independence Is Undermined, Goldman Sachs Warns
Uruguay, Colombia and Paraguay Secure Places at 2026 World Cup
Florida Murder Case: The Adelson Family, the Killing of Dan Markel, and the Trial of Donna Adelson
×