Immediate threat to Starmer has passed but his position remains precarious

"When the prime minister really puts up a fight, people often see a different side to him. MPs who had been briefing darkly for weeks about his future said they were genuinely persuaded to give him another chance by the fighting speech he gave on Monday evening to MPs and peers. As one MP put it: We started off with a sincere apology, it was like a Scottish Presbyterian-style gathering full of repentance. By the end the MPs were like the Southern Baptists singing hallelujah."

"A speech in private at a meeting of the parliamentary Labour party (PLP) is a good start but it does not change Labour's predicament. The party is polling at historic lows, well behind Reform and in some polls it is flirting with fourth behind the Greens and the Conservatives. Starmer is the most unpopular prime minister on record no matter how bizarre that sounds compared with recent history."

Labour MPs shifted from believing Keir Starmer's leadership was finished after Commons chaos over Peter Mandelson documents to cautiously restoring support following a combative speech to MPs and peers. Anas Sarwar's call for resignation failed to precipitate a coup. Some MPs felt the speech transformed apologies into renewed resolve, but several insiders warn leadership change pressures persist like a genie that is hard to put back. Polling remains dire: Labour sits at historic lows, trailing Reform and sometimes fourth behind the Greens and Conservatives, while Starmer is recorded as the most unpopular prime minister. Core supporters have lost faith.

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