How could Labour remove Keir Starmer? Four possible routes

"The Labour rulebook makes it notoriously difficult to unseat a party leader: none has been formally ejected in the postwar period, though some, including Tony Blair, have resigned under pressure from their own MPs. A curveball was thrown into the mix on Saturday when the backbencher Catherine West launched a leadership challenge. West, the MP for Hornsey and Friern Barnet and a junior Foreign Office minister until she was sacked in the reshuffle last year, announced that unless a cabinet minister came forward to challenge Starmer for the leadership by Monday morning, she would do it herself."

"According to the Labour party rulebook, someone seeking to replace a sitting leader must secure the written support of 20% of the parliamentary party, which is currently 81 MPs. Anyone who garners that many nominations can be put forward for a leadership contest, with the sitting leader qualifying automatically should they wish to remain in post. There is no evidence that West has those numbers and she is being described as a stalking horse, a figure used to test the waters or mount a challenge on behalf of a third party."

"Starmer has promised to stand again if a contest is forced, meaning the challenger or challengers would have to take on the prime minister directly. Labour MPs would then vote on who should lead the party and be prime minister. This is the main reason why replacing a Labour leader is much more difficult than replacing a Conservative one. Tory party rules mean MPs can express their lack of confidence in a prime minister anonymously, and do not have to rally around an alternative to force a contest."

Labour MPs doubt Keir Starmer will remain leader long enough to fight the next election, but they disagree on how he could be removed. Labour’s rulebook makes unseating a leader hard, with no postwar formal ejection and only resignations under pressure. Catherine West launched a leadership challenge, threatening to run herself unless a cabinet minister challenges by Monday. Replacing a sitting leader requires written support from 20% of the parliamentary party, currently 81 MPs. If enough nominations are secured, a leadership contest follows, with Starmer automatically qualifying. Starmer has promised to stand again, meaning challengers would face him directly, and MPs would vote on both party leadership and prime minister.

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