Judgement Day for Keir Starmer after PM begs his own MPs to save him in crunch sleaze vote

James Saunders
Tue, 28 Apr 2026 04:59:16 +0000

Sir Keir Starmer has held last-ditch talks with his MPs ahead of a crunch Commons vote on the Lord Mandelson vetting scandal today.

The PM pleaded with the Parliamentary Labour Party last night to back him - and "stick together and fight together" - on the Tory-tabled vote, which he branded a "stunt".

This afternoon, MPs will decide on whether to refer Sir Keir to an ethics probe at the hands of the Privileges Committee, the same body which brought down Boris Johnson in 2022.

They have been handed a three-line whip to bring them into line behind their boss - if his plea last night was not enough alone.

He said: "This is a political stunt by our opponents who want to bring us down, obscure our message, stop us getting on with our work... The timing tells you everything, nine days before local elections.

"Tomorrow is pure politics and we need to stand together against it," he vowed. "When we stick together and fight together, we are so much stronger."

With the party long braced for a May 7 election wipeout, Sir Keir also revealed what would need to happen for him to quit as Prime Minister.

He told Sky News he would go if his "absolute rock" wife, Victoria, told him to do so. However, he added she currently believed he should stay in No10.

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READ IN FULL: No10's defence line ahead of sleaze vote this afternoon

"The Government is engaging with the two parliamentary processes that are already running on Peter Mandelson's appointment with full transparency," a No10 spokesman said last night.

"This is a desperate political stunt by the Conservative Party the week before the May elections.

"Their claims have no substance."

Three Labour MPs give their verdict on whether Keir Starmer will survive sleaze vote

Three Labour MPs came out of the woodwork to offer their verdict on whether the PM might survive this afternoon's sleaze vote last night.

The first, billed as a likely rebel, told The Telegraph they were "not sure many people will want to vote with the Tories" but there was "not much appetite to defend the indefensible".

The second said they would not be surprised if "a lot of the new intake abstain", adding: "They've been marched up the hill so many times on things to be marched back down again. What if they end up holding an inquiry anyway?"

The third, a senior Labour MP, admitted: "Labour MPs aren't going to vote for chaos in the week leading up to a local election. We will save the chaos for the week after."

RECAP: MPs push Troubles Bill through Parliament despite major fears for British troops

Also yesterday evening, MPs voted to push the controversial Troubles Bill through Parliament in the face of fears for the immunity of Northern Ireland veterans.

The Bill will continue to progress in the next parliamentary session, after MPs voted 279 to 176, majority 103, in support of a carry-over motion late on Monday night.

Troubles veterans had been handed protections under the previous Tory Government's Legacy Act.

But that was rapidly scrapped by Sir Keir Starmer - with Labour claiming the Act was "incompatible" with the European Convention on Human Rights (ECHR).

On Sunday night, Tory leader Kemi Badenoch confirmed her MPs would be voting against the carry-over motion - and they did, alongside Reform UK and the Liberal Democrats.

But 279 Labour, Green and Northern Irish SDLP and Alliance MPs were enough to send it through...

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RECAP: Labour admits it will force internet restrictions on Britons - regardless of what consultation says

In the first of two major developments from the Commons last night, a Labour minister admitted the Government would move to force internet restrictions on young Britons, regardless of the outcome of a consultation on a social media ban.

Education Minister Olivia Bailey revealed the Government "will impose some form of age or functionality restrictions" on social media for under-16s whatever the consultation says.

The concession by the Government comes after relentless pressure from the House of Lords over the issue, led by Tory Education Minister and academy chain founder Lord Nash.

Peers voted four times to press the Commons into forcing a ban onto the British people...