"The Labour party has had 18 deputy leaders in its history, but only two of them have also served as deputy PM and one of those, Angela Rayner, resigned last week. In the reshuffle that started on Friday, Keir Starmer in effect decoupled those posts, appointing David Lammy as deputy PM (as well as justice secretary). Labour said there would be an election for a new deputy leader to replace Rayner and today the timetable for that election will be set."
"There is no guarantee that the winner will even have a job in government. Elections are, by definition, divisive, and the easiest option for Keir Starmer would be for Labour MPs to coalesce behind one consensus candidate. Under the rules, an MP needs the support of 20% of the PLP (80 MPs) to be nominated and so it is possible that this could happen. Anyone perceived as a rebel candidate might struggle to reach this threshold."
"Ministers, and cabinet ministers, are free to enter the contest. If Lammy were to stand, and win, he could re-unite the deputy PM and deputy leader jobs, but there is a strong sense in the party that the deputy leader should be a woman, and should represent a seat outside London, and Lammy does not seem interested anyway. At this point there is no obvious favourite, but Annabelle Dickson and Bethany Dawson have a good guide to potential candidates in their London Playbook for Politico."
Labour has had 18 deputy leaders, only two of whom served as deputy prime minister; Angela Rayner resigned last week. Keir Starmer decoupled the deputy leader and deputy prime minister roles and appointed David Lammy as deputy PM and justice secretary. Labour will hold an election to choose a new deputy leader, with the national executive committee reportedly setting a 5pm Thursday nomination deadline and a ballot between 8 and 23 October. An MP requires backing from 20% of the PLP (80 MPs) to be nominated, favoring consensus candidates. Many expect the deputy leader to be a woman from outside London.
Read at www.theguardian.com
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