UK Prime Minister, Keir Starmer has defended his leadership and pledged to rebuild public confidence after Labour suffered heavy election losses across England and Wales.

The Prime Minister has also turned to Labour veterans Gordon Brown, to serve as a special envoy on global finance, and former party leader Harriet Harman, who has been appointed as an adviser on women and girls, as he seeks to reset his premiership.

Facing mounting criticism following Labour’s poor performance in local elections, Starmer acknowledged growing frustration among voters, including reports that some former Labour supporters were refusing to back the party because of his leadership.

Starmer admitted the results were difficult but insisted the government still had a responsibility to move forward. “The results are tough and of course it hurts,” he said, adding that “the right thing to do is to therefore set out the path forward”.

Starmer conceded Labour had failed to convince many voters that meaningful change was taking place under his government.

“We made unnecessary mistakes. One of which was that we, rightly in my view, levelled with the public about the challenges that we face as a country both on the finances and internationally – but what we didn’t do is enough to convince them about the change that would impact them, how their lives would be better.”
Keir Starmer

He noted that, the government now needed to focus on restoring optimism and rebuilding trust among voters.

Starmer added that it was important to show “where hope resides” by creating opportunities for young people and strengthening pride in local communities and workplaces.

Meanwhile, Mayor of London, Sadiq Khan has stopped short of calling for Starmer to resign but warned that Labour needed to change its “direction of travel” following what he described as “bitterly disappointing” election results in London.

Khan indicated that voters had expressed “anger, disillusionment and disappointment” during campaigning and argued that Labour had failed to deliver on key promises made after the 2024 general election.

Labour suffered major setbacks across London, losing control of several councils and mayoral contests, including defeats in Wales, ending its 27-year rule, while the SNP remains the largest party in Scotland. Reform UK has also been the big winner in England, picking up more than 1,400 seats and taking control of councils in areas where Labour and the Conservatives have been historically dominant.

John Curtis Sounds Alarm Over Labour’s Performance

Earlier, polling expert John Curtice indicated that the scale of Labour’s losses had emerged as one of the bleakest outcomes the party could have expected ahead of the elections.

Curtice noted that,the picture for Labour “has frankly emerged to be one that has been about as bleak as might have been imagined in advance of these elections.”

He described Labour’s defeat in Wales as “about as serious as anybody had thought it might be” and warned that Downing Street now faced a “substantial challenge” in convincing party members that Labour did not need a new leader.

According to Curtice, Starmer’s challenge in rebuilding support if he remains leader “is clearly now a very very substantial one”.

Looking at broader political trends, Curtice argued that none of Britain’s major parties currently commanded the support of a large section of the electorate.

He said current projections suggested Reform UK now enjoyed stronger national support than its rivals, while backing for the Green Party of England and Wales, Labour, Conservatives and Liberal Democrats had become increasingly fragmented. “The crucial point is the results confirm the fragmentation of our politics,” he added.

As pressure mounted on Starmer, Labour deputy leader Lucy Powell has also defended the Prime Minister, insisting he should remain leader despite growing criticism from some Labour MPs.

Powell insisted Labour should focus on rebuilding public trust rather than engaging in leadership speculation.”I don’t want to hear about that anymore. I want us to get on with the job,” she said.

She also dismissed rumours surrounding a possible leadership challenge involving Andy Burnham and insisted Starmer intended to continue leading the party.

Health Secretary Wes Streeting has also stated that, the Prime Minister will “have my support” in setting out how the government will move forward on Monday. “I’ll continue putting my shoulder to the wheel as the Health and Social Care Secretary, who’s getting the NHS back on its feet and making sure it’s fit for the future,” he said.