Another tumultuous political day has come to an end in the UK, with cabinet ministers rallying around Prime Minister Keir Starmer after Scottish Labour leader Anas Sarwar called on him to resign.
In a dramatic press conference, Sarwar said the situation in Downing Street was “not good enough“ and that “too many mistakes“ had been made have been allowed to the top of the government.
However, a number of senior Labour ministers have expressed their support for the prime minister on social media.
Keir Starmer continues to struggle to strengthen his position after his judgement was questioned over the appointment of Peter Mandelson as the UK ambassador to the US, despite his links to convicted sex offender Jeffrey Epstein.
The prime minister himself later held a special meeting with his party's MPs and was determined to continue his work.
“Having fought so hard for the chance to change our country, I am not prepared to give up my mandate and my responsibility to the country or to plunge us into chaos, as others have done,” Keir Starmer said.
The prime minister spoke to MPs in the House of Commons and members of the House of Lords for more than an hour, responding to 44 questions from those present. He repeated his apology for the decision to appoint Lord Mandelson as ambassador to the US, but insisted he had no intention of resigning. He added: “Every battle I have fought, I have won“.
However, the opposition continues to believe that the wrongdoing of appointing Lord Mandelson, who passed sensitive information to Jeffrey Epstein, is serious enough to cost Keir Starmer the prime ministership.