Scottish Labour leader Anas Sarwar calls on Starmer to resign

Scottish Labour leader Anas Sarwar has called on Keir Starmer to stand down as Prime Minister.

In a press conference in Glasgow, Sarwar said while the decision was “not without pain”, the situation in Westminster “is not good enough” and said the “distraction needs to end and the leadership in Downing Street has to change”.

Sarwar said that elections in Holyrood in three months needed to be focused on the choice voters face and not on the problems plaguing the Prime Minister.

He said: “I have to be honest about failure wherever I see it. The situation in Downing Street is not good enough. There have been too many mistakes. They promised they were going to be different but too much has happened. It cannot continue.”

It has been reported that senior figures within the Scottish party had said their chances at the May elections in Holyrood would be improved if Keir Starmer left office.

Sarwar said that he had discussed his feelings with the Prime Minister before the press conference – and admitted the pair “disagreed”.

He also said he would not back a particular candidate to replace Starmer.

The news comes after Starmer’s chief of staff Morgan McSweeney resigned yesterday, followed this morning by Number 10’s director of communications Tim Allan.

More to follow.

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