Keir Starmer

They never did. But now we have to repair the damage they left behind.

 

Will Starmer lead Labour into the next election? There appears to be a great deal of confidence around his team that the Durham inquiry will lead to no fixed penalties being issued. As a former DPP and a QC, you'd hope Keir would be able to be right on this. If he had any doubts I assume Keir would have made his resignation contingent not just upon the Durham Police not issuing a FPN, but upon him having exhausted his rights to resist the prosecution in the magistrates' court (and by way of appeal by case stated in the High Court, if necessary). Then there is the current betting for next Labour leader. Andy Burnham is favourite. I suspect that price factors in that a vacancy is unlikely to arise before the general election. Burnham is not an MP, but by January 2025 he would have only four months left to serve as Greater Manchester Mayor. In the wake of any Labour defeat it would be easy to see him seeking a parliamentary seat and if successful, overlapping that job with the residue of his mayoral term, thus placing him in a position to seek the Labour leadership. Burnham as recently as April favoured the introduction of a form of PR for House of Commons elections. I'd hope that that might be the demand also of any party offering support to a minority Starmer government.