Wes Streeting has called for the UK to rejoin the EU as he laid out his bid to No 10 in a much anticipated speech this weekend.
The former health secretary said he will be running for Labour leader after dramatically quitting his role as a Cabinet minister earlier this week.
He said leaving the EU was a “catastrophic mistake” as he stressed it was time for the UK to build a new “special relationship” with the Union.
Lisa Nandy, the culture secretary, accused Mr Streeting of “re-opening the Brexit wars” in a move she found “a bit odd”.
It comes as Andy Burnham said he is standing in the Makerfield by-election to "save" Labour, warning that the party has "not been good enough".
Mr Burnham is expected to drop his call to reverse Brexit, as allies of the mayor are reported to have been told he is not going to be “going big on Europe” in his pitch to voters and the country.
Ms Nandy said the Makerfield by-election will be a "tough fight" for the Greater Manchester mayor.
Read MoreBurnham expected to drop call to reverse Brexit as poll shows voters divided on PM prospects
Wes Streeting: I’ll stand for Labour leadership – and Britain must rejoin EU
The serious problems Labour’s would-be leaders will need to address
Key Points
- Streeting calls for return to EU as he makes leadership bid
- Nandy accuses Streeting of re-opening Brexit wars and dubs his rejoin call ‘odd’
- Andy Burnham approved to stand in by-election
- Key points from Wes Streeting speech as he launches leadership bid with pledge to rejoin EU
- Analysis: Why Makerfield will be a tough battleground for Labour in a by-election
- Andy Burnham says he is running in election to 'save' Labour
Lisa Nandy rules out standing in a Labour leadership contest
18:00 , Maryam Zakir-HussainLisa Nandy has ruled out standing in any Labour leadership contest.
Asked if she would rule out standing in a future contest by the BBC’s Sunday With Laura Kuenssberg, the culture secretary, who ran in the last Labour leadership election, said: “Yeah, I would. I said at the time that never again. I mean, I can’t say it’s an enormously enjoyable experience.”
The senior Labour figure added: “I honestly think that Keir, I mean he won that contest fair and square in 2019, he won the election. We owe it to him to pull together as a team.
“But I make no apology for saying, and he agrees, that Andy Burnham and other people from other parts of the country are really important voices of all of that.
“I think now is the time to demonstrate to the country that we can reflect the whole country, that we can be bigger, more urgent, more fundamental, bolder in the change that we offer, and that we are the answer to the problems in people’s lives.”
Watch: Wes Streeting warns Labour risks ‘being handmaidens to Farage’ in first speech since resignation
17:45 , Maryam Zakir-HussainLabour leadership contest speculation ‘froth and nonsense’ – Lisa Nandy
17:30 , Maryam Zakir-HussainA senior Cabinet minister has criticised speculation about a Labour leadership contest as “froth and nonsense”.
Culture Secretary Lisa Nandy also rebuked Wes Streeting, her former Cabinet colleague, for seeking to reopen the debate over Brexit in his pitch to oust Prime Minister Sir Keir Starmer.
Mr Streeting, the ex-health secretary, on Saturday set out his desire for a “new special relationship” with the EU, and to eventually rejoin the trade bloc.
Read more here:
Labour leadership contest speculation ‘froth and nonsense’ – Lisa Nandy
Will Labour’s leadership hopefuls reverse Brexit? What Burnham and Streeting have said about rejoining the EU
17:15 , Maryam Zakir-HussainJust days after it suffered a series of thumping defeats to Nigel Farage’s pro-Brexit Reform UK Party in elections across the UK, Labour is again at loggerheads over Brexit.
The party’s culture secretary, Lisa Nandy, has hit out at would-be leadership contender Wes Streeting, accusing him of reopening the “Brexit wars within the party.
Here we look at where would-be successors to Sir Keir Starmer stand on the European Union and what they have said in the past.
Read more here:
Will Labour’s leadership hopefuls reverse Brexit?
Watch: How many prime ministers has Larry the cat seen?
17:00 , Maryam Zakir-HussainRevising Brexit debate is like saying 'life was fine in 2015'- Lisa Nandy
16:45 , Maryam Zakir-HussainRevisiting the Brexit debate is like saying “life was fine in 2015, we just need to go back there”, Lisa Nandy said in a rebuke of her Labour colleague Wes Streeting.
The culture secretary told Sky News’ Sunday Morning With Trevor Phillips: “I like and respect Wes a lot, and I listened carefully to what he had to say yesterday, I think you know I have a different perspective on this, and we do as a government.
“The government that he was part of until recently has been trying to take a far more pragmatic approach to bringing us closer to Europe and repairing some of the damage that was done from a poor Brexit deal to people’s living standards in parts of the country like mine, rather than reopening the Brexit wars and going round back again around that track.”
Ms Nandy added: “If rejoining the EU is the answer, then essentially what we’re saying to people is ‘life was fine in 2015, we just need to go back there’.
“I know Wes is coming up to campaign in the by-election quite soon. He will hear loud and clear from people in places like Wigan, Ashton, Winstanley, across Makerfield, that that is absolutely not the case. And the answer has to be bigger.”
Greater Manchester Mayor Andy Burnham is meanwhile “squarely focused” on issues such as the cost of living and transport, Ms Nandy said, adding this is “exactly where we need to be”.
I stood against Catherine West – here’s what the MP who came for Keir Starmer is really like
16:30 , Maryam Zakir-HussainStarmer’s fellow 2015 MP brought the PM’s position close to the brink before bottling it, says Nimco Ali – who contested the same seat as her in 2017 and has a singular view of the woman who nearly took the nuclear option:
Labour’s devastating local election results triggered the usual Westminster panic: anonymous briefings, leadership speculation and MPs suddenly discovering their principles. Then Catherine West entered the conversation and briefly became a household name.
Read more here:
I stood against Catherine West – here’s what the MP who came for Keir Starmer is like
Wes Streeting: I’ll stand for Labour leadership – and Britain must rejoin EU
16:15 , Maryam Zakir-HussainWes Streeting has announced he will stand in a Labour leadership contest as he made his opening pitch to become prime minister with a call for Britain to rejoin the European Union.
Speaking publicly for the first time since his resignation from the cabinet, the former health secretary warned Labour must stop being afraid to tackle the big political issues if it is to “smash” Reform at a general election.
If not, Labour risks becoming the “handmaidens of Nigel Farage and the breakup of the United Kingdom”, he said.
Read more here:
Wes Streeting: I’ll stand for Labour leadership – and Britain must rejoin EU
Editorial: The serious problems Labour’s would-be leaders will need to address
16:00 , Maryam Zakir-HussainWhat is so remarkable about the crisis of leadership convulsing the Labour government is that it is all about process and personality rather than policy. It was triggered by Catherine West, a backbench MP who wanted the cabinet to change the prime minister without a leadership election but who now says that, if there is a leadership election, she might vote to keep Sir Keir Starmer.
In her original interview, she barely gave a reason for ousting Sir Keir. She said: “We need to bring on the person who can really sell Labour values and sell our programme.” This implied that the party might not have done so badly in the English local elections last week if it simply had a better communicator at the helm.
Read more here:
The serious problems Labour’s would-be leaders will need to address
Grooming gang whistleblower accuses Andy Burnham of 'turning away' from victims with handling of child sex abuse scandal
15:45 , Maryam Zakir-HussainA grooming gang whistleblower has accused Andy Burnham of having “turned away” from victims with his handling of the child sex abuse scandal.
Mr Burnham set up reviews that exposed evidence of institutional failings as mayor of Greater Manchester.
But Mr Burnham allowed the police from HM Inspectorate of Constabulary to preside over the final assurance review which resulted in the resignation of independent reviewers, Maggie Oliver told Times Radio.
“Andy Burnham did not grasp the nettle in relation to the final part of that review,” Ms Oliver said.
“Unfortunately he turned away and we missed a huge opportunity to really bring changes that are needed,” she added.
Burnham expected to drop call to reverse Brexit as poll shows voters divided on PM prospects
15:24 , Maryam Zakir-HussainAndy Burnham is expected to tone down his call to reverse Brexit as he faces a crunch by-election that could see him return to Westminster and even potentially enter No 10.
He will, however, still call for close ties between the UK and the European Union, according to reports.
The man who could be the UK’s next prime minister must first win the seat of Makerfield, which voted to leave the EU in 2016.
Read more here:
Burnham expected to drop call to reverse Brexit as poll shows voters split
No mood in Scottish Labour for challenge to Anas Sarwar’s leadership - continued
15:00 , Maryam Zakir-HussainDiscussing Anas Sarwar, Dr Zubir Ahmed said: “He stabilised the party, then delivered 37 Labour MPs in 2024, of which I am one.
“And I think there is no mood at the moment for a leadership contest in Scotland, while we’re trying to work out more broadly where the Labour government goes.”
Dr Ahmed praised Mr Streeting, saying: “Wes has a critical mass of support up and down the country, including in Scotland.
“But I think what’s required to move forward properly and to command the confidence of the Parliamentary Labour Party and the country, is some form of discussion.
“I think this can only happen through the lens of a contest.”
No mood in Scottish Labour for challenge to Anas Sarwar’s leadership – MP
14:44 , Maryam Zakir-HussainThere is no mood in the Scottish Labour party for a challenge to Anas Sarwar’s leadership, one of the MPs who quit Sir Keir Starmer’s government has said.
Dr Zubir Ahmed also said Wes Streeting has a “critical mass” of support among the parliamentary Labour group.
Dr Ahmed, an ally of Mr Streeting, quit as health minister on Tuesday as a number of Labour figures called for change in Number 10.
The Scottish Parliament election saw Mr Sarwar’s party slump to 17 MSPs, prompting questions about his approach.
Speaking to BBC Scotland’s Sunday Show, Dr Ahmed was asked why he had not joined Mr Sarwar’s call for the prime minister to go in February.
He said it is a “very high bar” to resign from government and still felt Sir Keir may be able to turn things around.
The Glasgow South West MP said Sir Keir’s unpopularity drove Scottish Labour’s election results, prompting his decision to quit.
Streeting's post gets fact-checked as he lists NHS wins under Labour
14:18 , Maryam Zakir-HussainWes Streeting’s online post about supposed improvements in the NHS under Labour was fact-checked by Community Notes on X.
The former health secretary, who launched his bid to Labour leadership on Saturday, wrote: “NHS waiting lists are falling, ambulances are arriving faster, there are more GPs, and higher patient satisfaction. Lots done, lots to do.”
This was fact-checked as users added context in response to the post, pointing out that: "While the waiting list has started to go down, unreported removals have gone up (Figure 3). In fact, they have repeatedly outnumbered the additional incomplete referrals that join the waiting list every month."
Under Labour, NHS waiting lists are falling, ambulances are arriving faster, there are more GPs, and higher patient satisfaction.
— Wes Streeting (@wesstreeting) May 13, 2026
Lots done, lots to do.
The Health Bill will boost the impact of our investment and modernisation: cutting bureaucracy to invest in patient care.
Josh Simons MP denies reports he decided to give up seat for Burnham a year ago
14:10 , Maryam Zakir-HussainJosh Simons MP has denied reports he decided to give his seat up for Andy Burnham a year ago.
He told the BBC: “That’s not quite what the report says. It says I had a pint with Andy Burnham and we talked about politics, which is absolutely true.”
Mr Simons said he made the decision “two days ago”, after discussing it with his wife.
He said: “It’s been incredibly fast for me… It wasn’t just me, it was my wife. We did this as a family, because it’s about the sacrifices on behalf of the family.
“For me, it wasn’t about… people always ask (about) cutting deals, are you going to run for mayor, are you going to be in the Lords? No, no, no.
“It was about, ‘what does Andy think that he’s going to do to the Labour Party and to the country if he wins this by-election?’, and that’s what matters.”
Reform councillor chaos is already a problem – here’s what one newly turned turquoise town thinks now
13:50 , Maryam Zakir-HussainLabour might hope that Reform’s incompetence at a local level and a new leader in place will be enough to win back the North, but there is one big flaw in that calculation, writes Colin Drury:
When Susan Tapscott went to vote in the country’s local elections, there was just one party she considered. “Reform,” the retired legal worker tells me a week after she cast her vote. “They’re the only ones who understand how people are feeling… fed up with politicians, fed up with illegal immigration costing millions every day, fed up with the price of everything going up and nothing getting better.”
She was, we now know, just one of thousands who turned to Nigel Farage’s outfit over a week ago – and, in doing so, sent British politics into an unprecedented spin and the Labour Party into a regicidal crisis.
Reform councillor chaos is already a problem – here’s what one turquoise town thinks
Will Labour’s leadership hopefuls reverse Brexit? What Burnham and Streeting have said about rejoining the EU
13:36 , Maryam Zakir-HussainJust days after it suffered a series of thumping defeats to Nigel Farage’s pro-Brexit Reform UK Party in elections across the UK, Labour is again at loggerheads over Brexit.
The party’s culture secretary Lisa Nandy has hit out at would-be leadership contender Wes Streeting, accusing him of re-opening the ‘Brexit wars’ within the party.
Here Kate Devlin looks at where would-be successors to Sir Keir Starmer stand on the European Union and what they have said in the past:
Will Labour’s leadership hopefuls reverse Brexit?
There’s one good reason Starmer still thinks he has what it takes
13:00 , Maryam Zakir-HussainAs the prime minister prepares to cling to office, Anne McElvoy assesses his chances of survival – and reveals the individual who will determine his fate (…and it’s not Andy Burnham):
As Keir Starmer spoke to party supporters in London after the rude rout of local elections, I watched him exude a mixture of defiance and irritation – that he should be pleading for his job less than two years into power. Damn the pesky voters turning the Red Wall a Reform-hued turquoise.
Never mind trailing the SNP, only a few seats ahead of Reform at Holyrood, and being blasted off the map in Wales. The prime minister has the look of a man who firmly believes he is in the right place, and yet many colleagues tell him the game is up.
Read more here:
There’s one good reason Starmer still thinks he has what it takes
Jess Phillips describes Starmer's approach to children's online safety 'timid'
12:45 , Maryam Zakir-HussainFormer safeguarding minister Jess Phillips, who stepped down on Tuesday, described Sir Keir Starmer’s approach to holding tech companies accountable for children’s online safety as “timid”.
She told the BBC: “Timid is the best way that I can describe (his approach). I don’t think people understand exactly what I am talking about, necessarily, in my resignation letter, what I am talking about is stopping 91% of child sexual abuse online.
“The ability for children to take the naked images of themselves and do live streaming of their own sexual abuses is something that I had to try and stop.”
Ms Phillips said the process of trying to push for legislation to force tech companies to crack down on child sexual abuse images was “frustrating”.
She added: “That level of timidity on something that could stop child abuse, for example… I don’t think that the Prime Minister, for one second, doesn’t want to stop that child abuse, of course he does.
“But the willingness to have an argument on this in this instance with tech companies just wasn’t there.”
Jess Phillips says Streeting showed 'bravery and boldness' in government
12:30 , Maryam Zakir-HussainJess Phillips said former health secretary and potential Labour leadership contender Wes Streeting showed “bravery and boldness” in government.
She told the BBC: “He once said to me that the process of me writing the Violence Against Women and Girls Strategy felt a little bit like me hanging him upside down by his ankles and shaking out his pockets, but the reality is, he stepped up and he got the right people to do the right thing.
“So there’s one example of where I found him very forthcoming.
“Now, the Prime Minister does definitely care about violence against women and girls, don’t get me wrong, but what I see from Wes is bravery and boldness.”
'These people do not have a plan for the country'- Badenoch
12:15 , Maryam Zakir-HussainWhen discussing Wes Streeting’s call to rejoin EU, Kemi Badenoch said: “These people do not have a plan for the country.”
Speaking on Sky News’s Sunday Morning With Trevor Phillips, she said: “The point I’m making is that things like scrapping green taxes off our energy bills, scrapping VAT off our energy bills, you can’t do that if you’re in the EU.
“We have an advantage over other countries when it comes to jet fuel and the rules around refuelling while we’re having this fuel price drop, because we’re not in the EU. We should be using the advantages of it, not going back to the past, rehashing this argument.
“It’s not going to be as simple as walking through a door. It’s going to be years more of negotiations, years more of the country not being governed. These people do not have a plan for the country, they’re just throwing this out there.”
What if Makerfield by-election voters tell Andy Burnham to jog on?
12:00 , Maryam Zakir-HussainManchester’s mayor is at high risk of failure in his bid to return to the Commons, says John Rentoul – a loss that would leave the Labour government seriously weakened:
What if Makerfield voters tell Andy Burnham to jog on?
Kemi Badenoch says Brexit debate shows Labour ‘does not have a plan’
11:45 , Maryam Zakir-HussainConservative leader Kemi Badenoch has said that rehashing the Brexit debate is a sign that the Labour Party “does not have a plan for this country”.
It comes after Wes Streeting made calls to rejoin the European Union as he called for a “proper contest” to replace Sir Keir Starmer and confirmed he would stand if the race is triggered.
Greater Manchester Mayor Andy Burnham has also been probed over his support for returning to the EU as he seeks to stand in the upcoming Makerfield by-election.
Asked for her response to the Brexit debate, Mrs Badenoch told Sky News’s Sunday Morning With Trevor Phillips: “The country wants us to make the best of Brexit, make the best of leaving the EU.
“The idea of starting again, going backwards, having all of these negotiations, this is a sign of the Labour Party that does not have a plan for the country, so they want to go back and refight wars, which were settled a long time ago. And I’m saying that we’re the only ones who have a plan.”
Labour woman leader ‘long overdue’, Lisa Nandy says, but rules out running
11:25 , Maryam Zakir-HussainA woman leader of the Labour Party is “long overdue”, Lisa Nandy said, expressing frustration that those jostling to oust Prime Minister Sir Keir Starmer are all men.
But the Culture Secretary also warned Labour against turning inwards, and said the public had been “completely” cut out of the conversation over the last week amid rumours of a leadership challenge.
She also ruled out standing should there be a Labour leadership contest.
Ms Nandy, the MP for Wigan, said during an interview with Sky News’ Sunday Morning With Trevor Phillips programme that she was “not here to be a spokesperson for whichever man offers an opinion on politics in the Labour Party”.
She was asked why she repeatedly decided to refer to the two “men” who currently appear to be seeking to replace Sir Keir: Andy Burnham and Wes Streeting.
Ms Nandy replied: “It’s just not lost on me that I’m being interviewed by a man, being asked to give my views about several men in the Labour Party, who I’m clearly not a spokesperson for.
“I’m sorry if I’m coming across as a bit irritated.“I think what is really winding me up, if I’m honest, is that people told us loud and clear last Thursday that things weren’t good enough, that they needed far more fundamental, far more urgent change in their lives.
“Somehow we seem to have just cut them out completely of the conversation over the last week, and Westminster has gone into introspection mode, where the debate is being led about personalities and about individuals.”
11:05 , Maryam Zakir-HussainBadenoch 'shocked' Reform UK deputy leader refused to condemn racist comments
10:47 , Maryam Zakir-HussainConservative leader Kemi Badenoch has said that she was “really shocked” that Reform UK deputy leader Richard Tice refused to condemn comments made by a council candidate that Nigerians should be melted and used to “fill in the potholes”.
The remarks were reportedly made on social media in 2024 by Glenn Gibbins, who was elected as a Reform councillor in Sunderland in the recent local elections.
Mrs Badenoch told Sky News’s Sunday Morning With Trevor Phillips: “I think that was a disgusting comment that that Reform candidate made, and the Reform (deputy) leader… Richard Tice, wouldn’t even condemn it.
“That’s what I’m worried about. People say all sorts of stupid things, they should get slapped down when they do that.
“We cannot have a climate of violence against people based on their ethnicity in this country, but you need the leaders of the party, you need the senior ones, to be able to say that’s not what we’re about, that we’re very much against it. When they don’t say that, then we need to be worried.
“And I was really shocked when Richard Tice was interviewed that he would not condemn those comments.”
Jess Phillips said Starmer should not fight to remain Labour leader
10:31 , Maryam Zakir-HussainJess Phillips said the prime minister should not fight to remain Labour leader if there is a contest.
The former minister told the BBC’s Laura Kuenssberg she believes there should be a leadership race, but when asked if Sir Keir Starmer should stand, she simply said: “In my opinion, no.”
Lisa Nandy rules out standing in a Labour leadership contest
10:15 , Maryam Zakir-HussainLisa Nandy has ruled out standing in any Labour leadership contest.
Asked if she would rule out standing in a future contest by the BBC’s Sunday With Laura Kuenssberg, the culture secretary, who ran in the last Labour leadership election, said: “Yeah, I would. I said at the time that never again. I mean, I can’t say it’s an enormously enjoyable experience.”
The senior Labour figure added: “I honestly think that Keir, I mean he won that contest fair and square in 2019, he won the election. We owe it to him to pull together as a team.
“But I make no apology for saying, and he agrees, that Andy Burnham and other people from other parts of the country are really important voices of all of that.
“I think now is the time to demonstrate to the country that we can reflect the whole country, that we can be bigger, more urgent, more fundamental, bolder in the change that we offer, and that we are the answer to the problems in people’s lives.”
Labour leadership speculation has been 'froth and nonsense'
10:00 , Maryam Zakir-HussainSpeculation about a Labour leadership contest has been “froth and nonsense”, a senior Cabinet minister has said.
Lisa Nandy was asked on Sky News’ Sunday Morning With Trevor Phillips whether she believed Sir Keir Starmer will resign as prime minister by the summer holidays.
The culture secretary replied: “No, I don’t.
“I have spoken to the prime minister several times over the last week and he was very clear with the Cabinet on Tuesday that if people want to challenge him there is a process for doing that, there is a way to trigger a leadership contest, to be leader of the Labour Party and to succeed him as Prime Minister.
“Nobody has done that yet, despite the absolute feverish speculation.
“Every hour on the hour for the last week I’ve read that Wes Streeting was about to launch a challenge; that Andy Burnham was about to contest every seat in Greater Manchester, including my own; that Angela Rayner was written off, that Angela Rayner was now challenging; and most of it has turned out to be just froth and nonsense.
“We’ve got to get on with the job.”
Revisiting Brexit debate is like saying: 'Let's go back to 2015'
09:40 , Maryam Zakir-HussainRevisiting the Brexit debate is like saying “life was fine in 2015, we just need to go back there”, Lisa Nandy said in a rebuke of her Labour colleague Wes Streeting.
The culture secretary told Sky News’ Sunday Morning With Trevor Phillips: “I like and respect Wes a lot, and I listened carefully to what he had to say yesterday, I think you know I have a different perspective on this, and we do as a government.”
Labour should 'come together' to support Burnham- Josh Simons
09:25 , Maryam Zakir-HussainLabour MP Josh Simons, who announced on Thursday that he would give up his seat to make way for Mayor of Greater Manchester Andy Burnham to return to Parliament, said the party should “come together” to back him.
He told the BBC’s Laura Kuenssberg: “If Andy wins the by-election, my view is that the different bits of the party should come together behind Andy.”
Asked if that would mean “the end of Keir Starmer”, Mr Simons responded: “By implication, yeah.”
Nandy accuses Streeting of re-opening Brexit wars and dubs his rejoin call ‘odd’
09:01 , Maryam Zakir-HussainOur Whitehall editor Kate Devlin reports:
Lisa Nandy, the culture secretary, has accused Wes Streeting of “re-opening the Brexit wars” as she became the first Labour sitting cabinet minister to be tackled over his call to rejoin the EU.
She told Sky News that the government was “trying to take a far more pragmatic approach” to bringing the UK closer to the bloc.
That was about “repairing some of the damage that was done from a poor Brexit deal to people's living standards in parts of the country like mine, rather than re-opening the Brexit wars”.
She added: “I just think it's a bit odd, if I'm honest.”
She said that last week parts of the country like Wigan, which she represents, lost a huge amount of councillors to the pro-Brexit Reform.
She added: “If rejoining the EU is the answer, then essentially what we're saying to people is life was fine in 2015 we just need to go back there. I know Wes is coming up to campaign in the by-election quite soon. He will hear loud and clear from people in places like Wigan… that is absolutely not the case, and the answer has to be bigger. It has to be the sort of things this government is focusing on, around good jobs, housing, living standards, costs of energy, opportunities for young people.”
Former Communities Minister says Labour needs to include Burnham in leadership race
08:45 , Maryam Zakir-HussainFormer Communities Minister Miatta Fahnbulleh, who was the first minister to resign from Keir Starmer's government after the elections, said she doesn’t think Labour can have a leadership race without Andy Burnham.
Speaking to the BBC's Political Thinking with Nick Robinson podcast on Saturday, she said: "I don't think you can have a leadership race without him in because... he commands so much support within the Labour movement."
She added that his track record in the city "suggests that you can have a vision, you can have a project, and you can execute it in the way that can lift your communities up".
Dozens arrested as tens of thousands join rival London protests
08:30 , Maryam Zakir-HussainTens of thousands gathered in London for Tommy Robinson’s Unite the Kingdom march and a pro-Palestine Nakba Day rally, as police mounted a £4.5 million operation to prevent clashes between rival groups.
At least 43 people were arrested across both demonstrations for a “variety of offences”, the Metropolitan Police said, adding that while the number “may seem high, to this point both protests have proceeded largely without significant incident”.
More than 4,000 police officers were deployed to the capital with 660 being drafted in from forces outside the Met to prepare for an “unprecedented” security operation. Armoured vehicles, police horses, dogs, drones and helicopters were also on the scene.
Read more here:
Dozens arrested as tens of thousands join rival London protests
Key points from Wes Streeting speech as he launches leadership bid with pledge to rejoin EU
08:15 , Maryam Zakir-HussainWes Streeting confirmed he will be standing, should a Labour leadership contest to replace Sir Keir Starmer be triggered.
“We need a proper contest with the best candidates on the field, and I’ll be standing,” he told reporters at a conference in central London on Saturday.
Mr Streeting, who this week stood down as health secretary, also insisted he did have enough support among MPs to trigger a contest, but suggested his challenge would “lack legitimacy” without rival Andy Burnham being given a chance to return to Parliament.
Read more here:
Key points from Streeting speech as he launches leadership bid
Burnham expected to drop call to reverse Brexit as poll shows voters divided on PM prospects
07:54 , Maryam Zakir-HussainAndy Burnham is expected to drop his call to reverse Brexit as he faces a crunch by-election that could see him return to Westminster and even potentially enter No 10.
He will, however, still call for close ties between the UK and the European Union, according to reports.
The man who could be the UK’s next prime minister must first win the seat of Makerfield, which voted to leave the EU in 2016.
If Mr Burnham wins that seat, he would face a challenge from former health secretary Wes Streeting, who has confirmed he will be standing, should a Labour leadership contest to replace Sir Keir Starmer be triggered.
Read more here:
Burnham expected to drop call to reverse Brexit as poll shows voters split
Andy Burnham says he is running in election to 'save' Labour
07:00 , Rebecca WhittakerAndy Burnham has said he is running in the Makerfield by-election to "save" Labour.
Speaking to the BBC, the mayor for Greater Manchester said Labour has to acknowledge it has "not been good enough", adding it "requires a lot of change".
"I want Labour solidly to be the part of working class people people are working class and that requires a lot of change,” he added.
It comes after he was given the go ahead by the NEC to run in the by-election.
Watch: Wes Streeting warns Labour risks ‘being handmaidens to Farage’ in first speech since resignation
06:00 , Rebecca WhittakerAndy Burnham calls for eduction reform to make technical education equal
05:00 , Rebecca WhittakerAndy Burnham has called for an education reform and called to end the housing crisis.
In an interview with the Mirror Mr Burnham outlines his policies and said he wanted to reform education and make technical education the equal of the academic university route.
He also warned there would be no stability in Britain until “we end the housing crisis” and called for more council houses.
The Manchester Mayor also said he backed proportional representation in Westminster elections to help build a “new politics and a different way of thinking”.
Voices: What if Makerfield by-election voters tell Andy Burnham to jog on?
04:00 , Rebecca WhittakerManchester’s mayor is at high risk of failure in his bid to return to the Commons, says John Rentoul – a loss that would leave the Labour government seriously weakened.
Read more here:
What if Makerfield voters tell Andy Burnham to jog on?
Watch: How many prime ministers has Larry the cat seen?
03:00 , Rebecca WhittakerVoters split on whether Andy Burnham looks like a PM in waiting, new poll finds
02:00 , Rebecca WhittakerA new poll, by YouGov, has found 31 per cent of people believe the Greater Manchester Mayor does currently look like a prime minster in waiting - but close to the same number, 27 per cent, think he does not.
And 42 per cent are unsure.When it comes to Labour voters the numbers are better, however.
46 per cent believe he looks like a PM in waiting vs 20 per cent who do not.
Things are also better in his political backyard of the North, where the figures are 38 vs 27 per cent.
Labour needs a 'battle of ideas, not personalities,' minister says
01:00 , Rebecca WhittakerLabour needs to have a “battle of ideas”, not of personalities, a minister has said amid ongoing talk of a leadership challenge to replace Sir Keir Starmer.
Communities minister Alison McGovern told the Progress think tank’s conference in London that Labour had been left “reeling” from its election defeats last week, adding: “Too often I think we’ve been caught up in the wrong kind of battle. It’s a battle of ideas that’s needed, not a battle of personalities.
“I must be in the top percent of people in the country most interested in politics, and if all the political news, half low-grade soap opera, half predictable horse race, makes me want to switch off, God knows what anyone just trying to get on with their life thinks.
“So we have to put forward our ideas in a way that’s new, not the old battles of left and right swinging it out, but practical progressive ideas that show our values.”
In a further hint at Labour’s ongoing internal ructions, Ms McGovern later said that leadership in progressive ideas is “never provided by just one man, but by each and every one of us in this room”.
“That will carry us towards the next election with hope in our hearts,” she added.
Another Reform candidate resigns after vetting failure – and councils are forced to pick up the bill
Sunday 17 May 2026 00:00 , Rebecca WhittakerJust days after being elected, one of Reform UK’s 53 new councillors in Essex, Stuart Prior, was already heading for the door, having handed in his resignation.
Six months earlier he allegedly authored social media posts in which he celebrated a Sikh woman being raped in the Midlands, described Muslim people as “rats” and wrote that white people were the “master race”.
Confronted by the Mirror over the posts ahead of the election, Mr Prior said he “did not recall” the tweets, despite the journalist pointing out that pictures of the candidate’s house and dog also featured in posts from the same account.
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Another Reform candidate resigns after vetting failure as councils forced to pay
Scrapped clean air scheme could cost Burnham the by-election, Conservative claims
Saturday 16 May 2026 23:28 , Rebecca WhittakerAndy Burnham’s scrapped clean air scheme could cost him the by-election, according to Laura Evans, the Conservative Party spokesman in Greater Manchester.
She accused the Mayor of Greater Manchester of wasting £100m on a taxpayer-funded “clean air zone” in Manchester that ended up being scrapped following a backlash from drivers.
Evans said the clean air scheme was “totally unnecessary” and a “total waste” and a “flagrant misuse” of taxpayer money, the Telegraph reported.
“I think that will cost him. Where he is standing, that was one of the most virulent areas against the clean air zone, so they are not going to forget that,” she said.
Recap: Former health secretary says he would campaign for Andy Burnham
Saturday 16 May 2026 23:00 , Rebecca WhittakerWes Streeting has said he will campaign for Andy Burnham, should he be the Labour candidate in the upcoming Makerfield by-election.
Asked by an audience member what would happen in a future Labour leadership contest should Mr Burnham not win the seat, the former health secretary said: “First of all, we’ve got to be in it to win it in Makerfield, I know there’ll be differences of opinion about whether it was right for Josh Simons to vacate the seat in the way that he did is a hell of a risk, but I honestly think that if anyone could win that by-election, Andy Burnham can.
“And I’ll be out there going door-knocking day after day to help get him elected. I hope all of you will too.
“I love a by-election. I wish we didn’t have so many of them, and I’ll be proud to campaign for Andy Burnham.”
