British Prime Minister Keir Starmer is facing growing calls to resign amid the fallout from his former Labour colleague Peter Mandelson’s relationship with convicted sex offender Jeffrey Epstein.
Anas Sarwar, leader of the Scottish Labour Party, urged Starmer to step down during a press conference on Monday afternoon.
[time-brightcove not-tgx=”true”]“This isn’t easy, and it’s not without pain, as I have a genuine friendship with Keir Starmer, but my first priority and my first loyalty is to my country, Scotland,” he said, citing fears that the scandal in Westminster risks overshadowing the Scottish Parliament election in May. “The distraction needs to end, and the leadership in Downing Street has to change.”
Sarwar faced questions himself this past week when a resurfaced social media post showed him referring to Mandelson as an “old friend” after they shared a meeting last April. The Scottish lawmaker defended the meeting once more on Monday, saying Mandelson shouldn’t have been in office in the first place.
Starmer’s chief of staff Morgan McSweeney resigned from his position over the weekend, claiming responsibility for advising Starmer to appoint Mandelson as the U.K. ambassador to Washington—a move that is under increasing scrutiny, as the lawmaker’s ties to Epstein were known to some extent.
Tim Allan, Starmer’s director of communications, followed suit on Monday, resigning from his position in what appeared to be an attempt to ease the pressure on Starmer.
But for some, it’s not enough.
Read More: How the Epstein Files Broke Britain
Mandelson was sacked from the role of ambassador in September after a previous release of files showed that his relationship with Epstein stretched beyond what was previously known.
That appointment is under renewed inspection as emails from the latest release of files appear to show Mandelson leaked sensitive government information to Epstein during his time as Business Secretary under then-Prime Minister Gordon Brown. A police investigation into Mandelson for alleged misconduct in public office offences is now underway.
Mandelson resigned from the Labour Party and stepped down from the House of Lords last week. Amid calls for Starmer to follow suit, a spokesperson for the Prime Minister on Monday said he will not be resigning.
“The Prime Minister is concentrating on the job in hand. He is getting on with the job of delivering change across the country,” the spokesperson said, adding that Starmer is “confident” he has the full support of his Cabinet. Many Cabinet members have since rallied around the Prime Minister, with Home Secretary Shabana Mahmood and Deputy Prime Minister David Lammy among those vocalizing their support.
However, Starmer’s premiership remains under scrutiny and some lawmakers are urging him to consider stepping down.
Brian Leishman
Brian Leishman, a Scottish member of the Labour Party, fully supported Sarwar’s message on Monday.
“I have said that Keir Starmer’s position is untenable and that it is in the country’s best interest for him to step down and for the government to have a change in direction,” Leishman said in a statement to TIME.
“Sarwar has shown that he and Scottish Labour will act in the best interests of our country,” Leishman added, urging a return to ”real Labour values.”
Ian Byrne
Ian Byrne is among the Labour lawmakers who welcomed McSweeney’s resignation on Sunday, describing it as being in “the best interests of the government.”
He claimed Starmer’s chief of staff had “overseen the erosion of internal democracy and the normalization of a deeply damaging factionalism that members and MPs are now living with.”
But McSweeney’s resignation is not enough, according to Byrne.
“A true change in political direction must now come from—and be led from—the very top,” he said. “The PM must now reflect honestly on his own position and ask whether, for the good of the country and the Labour Party, he should follow McSweeney’s lead.”
Neil Duncan-Jordan
Neil Duncan-Jordan of the Labour Party said: “We can’t just keep going on like this, lurching from one crisis to the next, and one of the best ways of resetting is to have renewal, and that means changing who’s in charge.”
When asked during an interview with BBC Radio Solent who should replace Starmer as Prime Minister, Duncan-Jordan pointed to the Mayor of Greater Manchester, Andy Burnham.
Labour’s National Executive Committee (NEC) recently blocked Burnham from standing in the Gorton and Denton by-election, prompting much tension.
“We need to recognize that, for the good of the party and for the good of the country, we’re going to need a change,” said Duncan-Jordan, citing other grievances he had with decisions made by Starmer during his premiership so far, such as a suggestion for means-tested winter fuel allowance and proposed amendments to disability benefits.
Kemi Badenoch
Leader of the opposition Conservative Party, Kemi Badenoch, has strongly pushed for Starmer to resign since putting pressure on the Prime Minister in the House of Commons last week to answer questions over his appointment of Mandelson.
“His [Starmer] position now is untenable, because if he thinks that bad advice is enough for Morgan McSweeney to go, then yes, I think that makes his position untenable,” Badenoch said in an interview with the BBC on Monday.
Badenoch went on to criticize Starmer’s handling of the entire Mandelson situation.
“He needs to start governing the country. Everybody makes mistakes. How you handle them shows what sort of character you are. And what he is showing is that he is weak,” she claimed.
Refusing to suggest an ideal replacement, should Starmer step down, Badenoch said: “I don’t think there is a single better person on the Labour benches. Let’s just be clear—the problem is the Labour Party.”