Sir Keir Starmer is facing down crumbling support from inside Labour just two weeks before the local elections following yesterday's twists in the Lord Mandelson scandal.
Cabinet colleagues Yvette Cooper and Ed Miliband have already publicly distanced themselves from the PM - while one MP labelled him a "dead man walking" and said a leadership challenge could soon follow.
"It's over for him," they told The Telegraph. "He can’t come back from this. Someone needs to put an arm around him and say: 'It’s over.'"
Labour MP Imran Hussain said Sir Keir had divided the party - while colleague Ian Byrne warned of a "toxic culture" inside No10.
The Government is said to be concerned the looming release of more so-called "Mandelson files" could push the PM over the edge, with new documents set to be published shortly after May 7.
Angela Rayner, a long-touted challenger, said last night there were "more important questions out there" than details over Lord Mandelson's appointment as ambassador.
But neither she nor Wes Streeting want to cause further chaos just before more than 2,000 Labour councillors try to keep their jobs, MPs told Bloomberg.
A Government source said Sir Keir would limp on because "everyone is depressed, but nobody is resigning" - though that may change if, as polls predict, Reform UK wipe out Labour at the locals and Plaid Cymru take the Senedd.
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Inflation rises to 3.3 per cent
The rate of inflation (consumer price index) rose to 3.3 per cent in March from 3 per cent in February, according to the Office of National Statistics.
This is the highest level of inflation since December 2025.
In response to the new figures, the Chancellor Rachel Reeves, said: “This is not our war, but it is pushing up bills for families and businesses. That’s why it’s my number one priority to keep costs down."
What did Angela Rayner - and Rachel Reeves - say last night?
Angela Rayner spent yesterday evening urging the media to look away from Lord Mandelson and to tune in to Labour's "bold story" about how it was grappling with the Iran war.
"I'll let this sink in to any journalists that are here: There's some more important questions out there, and it's on that note that I want to just take a moment at the end of the day to reflect on why all this matters, and to the world outside and beyond the bubble," she said.
"Right now, ordinary people feel that their lives are too hard and that the basics of a good life are unaffordable.
"They suspect that this is because of an economy and a system that is rigged in favour of vested interests, and they’re right... Over and over ordinary people feel that they’ve paid the price for every crisis, the financial crash, austerity, Brexit, Covid."
"Let's tell a bold story about how we're tackling the immediate crisis and taking the first steps towards an economy that's built for one interest that we should all serve, and that’s the British people," she added.
Sources close to Ms Rayner suggested her Tuesday speech instead signalled she was open to a return to serving as a minister - rather than the Prime Minister.
Later, Rachel Reeves insisted there was “no Labour leadership contest” and said holding one would be economically damaging.
“I do not want to go down the route the Conservatives went down, of three prime ministers in five years and five chancellors," she fumed.
Also on Keir Starmer's radar... Military planners from around the world descend on Britain to work out exactly what to do with Strait of Hormuz
The Defence Secretary said he hopes 'real progress can be made' on the talks
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Military planners from countries seeking to join a UK and France-led mission to keep the Strait of Hormuz open once the Iran war ends will meet in London on Wednesday.
They aim to build on talks held by Sir Keir Starmer and French President Emmanuel Macron in Paris last week with a view to setting up a joint defensive mission after a sustainable ceasefire agreement has been reached.
The mission is intended to protect merchant vessels, reassure commercial shipping operators and conduct mine clearance operations.
The talks in London will focus on military capabilities, command and control, and how military forces could deploy to the region.
Defence Secretary John Healey said: “The task, today and tomorrow, is to translate the diplomatic consensus into a joint plan to safeguard freedom of navigation in the strait and support a lasting ceasefire.
“I am confident that, over the next two days, real progress can be made. International trade, energy security and the stability of the global economy depend on freedom of navigation.
“By building on our common purpose, strengthening multinational co-ordination and planning for effective collective action, we can help reopen the strait, stabilise the global economy and protect our people.”
Christopher Hope reveals real reason why Labour MPs are dodging GB News amid Lord Mandelson scandal
Christopher Hope last night revealed the reason why Labour MPs have been dodging opportunities to speak directly to GB News viewers amid the ongoing scandal surrounding Lord Mandelson's appointment as the UK's Ambassador to the US.
GB News's political editor was speaking after several fruitless attempts to get a Labour perspective on the status of the embattled Prime Minister.
Earlier, Chris posted on X that the chair and deputy chair of the Intelligence and Security Committee, Lord Beamish and Sir Jeremy Wright, had refused to speak on College Green just outside the House of Parliament...
More on Labour... Party officials charged after criminal investigation into alleged vote-rigging
Four Labour offiials have been charged after a police probe into alleged vote-rigging during a parliamentary selection process ahead of the 2024 General Election.
Joel Bodmer, 40, his wife Shila Bodmer, 41, Gabriel Leroy, 24, and Carole Bonner, 69, a former councillor in Croydon, each face charges of conspiracy and computer misuse connected to alleged irregularities in how the Croydon East candidate was chosen.
Labour has confirmed all four individuals have had their party memberships suspended pending the outcome of legal proceedings...
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