Luke 🇪🇺 💚🌹🏳️‍🌈 🇺🇦

100% The over simplification and simply we could have done things much faster argument doesn't wash with me. Following local elections, we needed a breath in, breath out and then internal discussionss. Instead chaos.

Kemi Badenoch showed her true character at PMQs today. Classless, vicious & vindictive towards the brilliant @bphillipsonMP . What is it about this clever, decent brilliant women bringing opportunity to children of all backgrounds that Kemi hates so much? Envy is a terrible thing

Kemi Badenoch’s attack on Bridget Phillipson at PMQs today said a lot more about her than Bridget. Like Bridget I’m proudly state schooled: we’re the most state-schooled Cabinet in the post-war era. We’re not motivated by spite but by tackling poverty & extending opportunity.

With Darren Jones now confirming that he will not be entering any leadership contest, I find myself, and I suspect many others, reflecting deeply upon our future within the Labour Party. I did not join the Labour Party to witness a mandate, won through immense effort and entrusted to Sir Keir Starmer by the British electorate, quietly transferred to another individual through pressure, intrigue, and political calculation. Nor did I join in order to endorse a process which appears, at least to many ordinary members, to be drifting perilously close to a political coup rather than a democratic exercise. Let me be perfectly clear. I do not wish to see Andy Burnham become Leader of the Labour Party, and I certainly do not wish to see him become Prime Minister of the United Kingdom. That is not born of personal animosity. It is a matter of principle. Leadership should be earned, not assumed. Mandates should be won, not inherited. Legitimacy should flow upwards from the membership and the electorate, not downwards from a collection of parliamentarians, advisers, commentators, and newspaper columnists who appear increasingly determined to decide the outcome before the contest has even begun. What troubles me most is the growing sense that some believe the membership should simply acquiesce and accept whatever arrangement is placed before them. Such an attitude betrays a fundamental misunderstanding of what the Labour Party is. It does not belong to the Parliamentary Labour Party. It does not belong to newspaper editors. It does not belong to political factions. It belongs to its members. Those members pay for the party. They campaign for it in all weathers. They knock on doors, deliver leaflets, defend its values, and devote countless hours of their lives to its success. They are not an inconvenience to be managed. They are the very foundation upon which the party stands. If Andy Burnham genuinely believes he is the right person to lead Labour, then he should place that proposition before the membership and allow them to render their verdict. Let there be a contest conducted openly, honestly, and democratically. Let the 350,000 members exercise the rights afforded to them by the party's constitution. Let us discover whether the enthusiasm proclaimed by certain sections of the media and elements within Westminster truly extends beyond those circles and into the wider Labour movement. For my part, I remain unconvinced. More importantly, I remain profoundly uneasy at the manner in which this entire affair is unfolding. The Labour Party has always prided itself on being a democratic movement. If that principle is to mean anything at all, then the members must be permitted to determine their own future free from coercion, manipulation, or prearranged outcomes. Anything less would not merely diminish the authority of a future leader. It would represent a profound disservice to the very people upon whom the Labour Party ultimately depends.

Kemi lost her head at PMQs - and afterwards too. It's not the first time. She's compared me to a Gestapo officer. I wonder what it is about a working class woman driving record investment in state schools by ending private schools' tax breaks that the Tories hate so much.

Change promised by a Labour government. Change delivered by a Labour government.

Kemi Badenoch’s attack on Bridget Phillipson at PMQs today lays bare something deeper about the direction of their politics. I’m proud that this Labour government has the most state-schooled Cabinet in the post-war era - people who didn’t grow up with privilege, but earned their place through hard work. That’s the difference between us and them. This Labour government believes background should never be a barrier to opportunity. Social mobility isn’t a slogan - it’s the whole point of a fair society. And yet too often it feels like there are those who want to sneer at it, undermine it, and drag us backwards. We should be celebrating opportunity, not trying to hold it back.

Today’s statement showed dignity, grace & patriotism. Keir Starmer will long be recognised for rebuilding Labour, ridding the country of a discredited Conservative Government and the work of national renewal. Labour’s task now is to ensure the work of change is taken forward.

🚨🇮🇪 NEW: Taoiseach Micheál Martin has commended Keir Starmer for his role in resetting relations between the UK and EU

When I lost my seat in 2019, I didn’t believe Labour could win power and be in Government by 2024. Keir rebuilt the Labour Party from the ground up. He won the trust of the public, secured a landslide victory, changed the country for the better and leaves a lasting legacy.

I consider @Keir_Starmer a friend and I'm thinking of him on what must be a very tough day. Serving in public life is a tremendous privilege but politics can also be a harsh business. When the time comes for Keir to leave Downing Street, he can be proud of the contribution he has made to the country he loves and to the Labour Party that he led back to Government in 2024. I'm grateful for the opportunities we had to work together to strengthen our AUKUS defence and security partnership, support the brave people of Ukraine and keep children safe from the damage that social media can do. I wish Keir, Victoria and their children well with everything the future holds.

Keir put the UK firmly back on the world stage - from unwavering support for Ukraine to standing up for Britain, including being the 1st PM to refuse to join a US war since Wilson. From renters to workers to parents, the benefits of his time as PM will be felt for generations.

Keir Starmer was the first Prime Minister to publicly take an HIV test - a historic stand against HIV stigma to mark National HIV Testing Week. Showing how quick and easy it now is to test for HIV from home.    Thank you to Keir for his commitment to ending new HIV cases by 2030.

@Miatsf Please "always bigger than one person", whilst you've been nothing but advocating for Burnham and undermining our democratically elected leader and PM. Your credibility is lost. You and other MPs making lots of assumptions about how others are thinking, this isn't about the PLP.

Keir Starmer leaves the Labour Party stronger than he found it and our country better off than it was two years ago. From lifting children out of poverty to strengthening renters' rights and restoring stability after years of chaos, this Government has delivered real change for working people. Politics is always bigger than one person, but history will record the role Keir played in bringing Labour back into Government and putting public service back at the heart of national life.

A truly dark and horrid day for Labour and our country. A Prime Minister hounded and bullied from office by people impatient and fickle, who rate showmanship over substance and flip-floppery and sugar coated weasle words over honesty, maturity and integrity.

@Ed_Miliband Little respect for you Ed for your role in bringing our Leader and PM down. You never won a mandate for Labour, Keir did. I hope you consider your position and return to the backbenches following this shameful episode.

Keir Starmer can be immensely proud of his achievements in bringing Labour back to power and leading two years in Government to make Britain a fairer, stronger country. Today’s statement showed the great dignity and integrity that is the mark of the man.

@PolitlcsUK @Furqan_Naeem Not clear why so many MPs have nothing better to do than welcome one ex MP back to Westminster, a place he said he didn't want to be to be a MP again. Odd. We're menat to stand shoulder to shoulder in the Labour Party instead, self interest has been out first. Shameful.

🚨 PICTURED: Andy Burnham takes a selfie with Labour MPs

Without Starmer resetting our party, some electors wouldn't have voted Labour and areas wouldn't have Lab MPs. Interesting how some forget so quickly. This has always been about the long term vision for Britain. Instead Lab MPs shortsighted. Shameful.

@HarrietHarman @UKLabour Sorry Harriet in the last few days, I've heard you support the PM and then call for him to go. You can't have it both ways. Don't pretend you're a sorry now. The PM needed support and loyalty not sympathy.

Thank you Keir Starmer for leading @UKLabour out of the wilderness into government, resetting our global relations & bringing principles and progressive values to the office of PM. You’ve left a strong legacy for our next Labour PM to build on. History will acknowledge your great achievements.

Public service comes with immense personal sacrifice, not only for those who serve but their families too. I want to thank @Keir_Starmer & his family for everything they have given. He has served our country with decency, determination and integrity, always putting Britain first

There is a human being at the heart of this story, and that matters more than the story. Keir Starmer put the country first at the G7 last week, then went straight back to the day job. He walks towards the problems, not away. We owe him the decency of remembering that.