UK Prime Minister Sir Keir Starmer is facing a deepening leadership crisis as Home Secretary Shabana Mahmood and several cabinet colleagues have reportedly called on him to set a specific timeline for his resignation.

The move has exposed significant fractures at the highest levels of the British government, according to a BBC report.

The ruling Labour Party is currently grappling with internal discord, with a faction of senior ministers openly questioning Starmer’s leadership.

While the majority of the cabinet has not yet reached a consensus on his departure, the pressure is mounting from both within the party and the parliament.

As of early Tuesday (May 12), at least 72 Labour Members of Parliament (MPs) have demanded that Starmer either step down or announce a definitive exit strategy.

The crisis intensified on Monday when four Parliamentary Private Secretaries (PPS)—aides to senior ministers—resigned from their posts after publicly calling for a leadership transition. The officials who stepped down include:

• Melanie Ward: Aide to Deputy Prime Minister Angela Rayner.
• Joe Morris: Aide to Health Secretary Wes Streeting.
• Tom Rutland: MP for East Worthing and Shoreham.
• Naushabah Khan: MP for Gillingham and Rainham.

"The Prime Minister can no longer command the trust and confidence of the people," stated Joe Morris, noting that local election candidates suffered the consequences of central government decisions.

Similarly, Tom Rutland asserted that Starmer has lost his authority not only within the Parliamentary Labour Party but across the entire country.

Sally Jameson, an aide to Home Secretary Shabana Mahmood, suggested that the Prime Minister should outline a roadmap to step aside by September or shortly thereafter to help rebuild public trust.

Despite the growing dissent, Sir Keir Starmer remained firm in an address delivered on Monday, rejecting the possibility of an immediate resignation. "I will prove the doubters wrong," he stated.

While acknowledging that the government had made certain mistakes, he maintained that the "big political calls" were correct.

The calls for new leadership follow a string of devastating electoral losses for the Labour Party. The party lost nearly 1,500 council seats across England, while facing a surge from Reform UK and the Green Party.

Furthermore, Labour lost its century-long political dominance in Wales and recorded its worst-ever result in the Scottish Parliament elections, securing only 17 seats.