[Youngian]

Burgon exposes the real victim in this sordid affair; Jeremy Corbyn

[Tubby Isaacs]

AKA The Real Issues.

[mattomac]

The same Corbyn who was going ask Putin if he poisoned that bloke?

The only person currently right for leadership would be the right to Starmer, Rayner is going suffer the tax thing so unless she starts flinging mud about the hacking of Kemi early on it’s going get nasty.

Pat McFadden would in more sensible era be a safe pair of hands, Darren Jones sadly hasn’t had long enough same goes for someone like Torsten Bell in Swansea. Cooper got dragged a bit with the home office otherwise she would have been a choice as would be Bridget Phillipson but she lost the deputy leadership though not to the level of fatal.

So I loathe to say it but is Wes Streeting the one?

Oh and by the way I once had a decent friendship with Wes and I don’t mind him but some positions have irked me a bit. I suppose he is most likely to keep Reeves in post.

[Oboogie]

The same Corbyn who was going ask Putin if he poisoned that bloke?

The only person currently right for leadership would be the right to Starmer, Rayner is going suffer the tax thing so unless she starts flinging mud about the hacking of Kemi early on it’s going get nasty.

Pat McFadden would in more sensible era be a safe pair of hands, Darren Jones sadly hasn’t had long enough same goes for someone like Torsten Bell in Swansea. Cooper got dragged a bit with the home office otherwise she would have been a choice as would be Bridget Phillipson but she lost the deputy leadership though not to the level of fatal.

So I loathe to say it but is Wes Streeting the one?

Oh and by the way I once had a decent friendship with Wes and I don’t mind him but some positions have irked me a bit. I suppose he is most likely to keep Reeves in post.

Agreed, though for slightly different reasons. I can't see any of them doing as good a job as Starmer on the international stage - can you imagine Rayner trying to handle a WH meeting with Trump and Vance, or responding to the latest act of aggression by Trump or Putin (or anyone else).
I also think Darren Jones is one to watch as a future leader, but, with reservations, Wes will get my vote when the time comes.

NB I'm afraid to say I know bugger all about Torsten Bell - what's he done that's impressed you?

[mattomac]

I was impressed with his book hence. Also he is rather photogenic, probably more likely to step up to a Darren Jones type position when he gets his first proper role.

Of course when the next one comes into power there will be constant chatter of going to the polls, hence why I was always hopeful Starmer could sail the country into a better position and then hand over roughly 18 months before the next election.

Giving the next PM both a story but also less of the drag of his personal ratings, I do think 2026 is too early so hopefully something brings sharp focus on the conservatives or reform in the next week or so. Lets face it he is one cog of a much wider clusterfuck.

[The Weeping Angel]

Meanwhile.

[mattomac]

Mind you if they did everything Glasman suggested they would have somehow lost the last election.

[Abernathy]

I'm reluctant to talk about the next PM/Labour leader, because there is literally no vacancy, and I do not now think that Keir Starmer will be either quitting, be forced to resign, or be challenged to contest the leadership by any of the usual suspects. Rayner is still too pre-occupied with sorting out her tax problems. I don’t detect that Streeting currently has the appetite, and Miliband, well that really isn’t on, is it ? Badenoch’s no confidence motion will be defeated easily, if it gets tabled. Assuming the by-election is lost, preferably via the sort of tactical voting that saw Reform off in Caerphilly helping the Greens to victory, and the May elections are not quite as disastrous as they’ve long been predicted to be, there’ll be a cabinet re-shuffle, then it’s onward and upward .

You may say I’m a dreamer ……

[davidjay]

...... you're not the only one.

[Malcolm Armsteen]

And all I am saying
Is give Keir a chance...

[Youngian]

Leadership is forged in crisis. Its not as if the PM has to warn the POTUS that Britain and its allies would mobilise against America if they invaded a NATO country. Oh that was last month, Trump backed down, Keir won and crisis averted.
Speaking of which it looks like Trump wants a puppet at the Fed to slash interest rates. That would make room for a Sterling and Euro cut but not so much as to trash the currency as Trump will. Keir and Rachel could be on easy street by the Autumn so the PM may as well stick.
If there was a leadership contest I'd take a punt on Rayner stepping up a gear and seizing the crown.

[Oboogie]

If there was a leadership contest I'd take a punt on Rayner stepping up a gear and seizing the crown.

I think Rayner would be very unwise to make a move until her tax investigation is concluded, she'd be an absolute gift to opposition parties and hostile media with that hanging over her.

I also wonder how many Labour MPs would back her.