wes quits, worsening Labour woes

Wes Streeting (L) resig­n­ed as health secretary but stopped short of launching a Labour leadership bid, saying the party needed a contest featuring the “best possible field of candidates”.

In his resignation letter to PM Sir Keir Starmer, Streeting said Labour MPs and unions wanted “a battle of ideas, not of personalities or petty factionalism”. “It needs to be broad, and it needs the best possible field of candidates,” he wrote, in comments widely seen as support for delaying a contest to allow Greater Manchester Mayor Andy Burnham to enter the race.

Streeting did not formally challenge Starmer but criticised his leadership following Labour’s poor poll results across England, Scotland and Wales. “There is no doubt that the unpopularity of this government was a major factor in our defeats,” he said, citing policy decisions including cuts to the winter fuel allowance and the controversial “island of strangers” speech.

Praising Starmer for leading Labour to victory in 2024 and for handling of global affairs, Streeting said the govt lacked direction. “Where we need vision, we have a vacuum. Where we need direction, we have drift,” he wrote.

Streeting said remaining in govt after losing confidence in Starmer would be “dishonourable and unprincipled”. He emphasised that Britain needs bigger solutions to handle global challenges, including the technological industrial revolution, climate issues and wars in Europe and West Asia.

He warned the rise of Nigel Farage and Reform UK posed a threat to Britain and its future. Streeting pointed to NHS England figures released on Wednesday showing waiting lists fell by 1,10,073 treatments in March to 7.11 million. He dubbed it “the biggest monthly dip outside of Covid since 2008”, a claim later confirmed by a Press Association fact check.

—Agencies