I am not going to 'walk away' from role, insists Starmer

British Prime Minister Keir Starmer has insisted his premiership is not over and said he wants to lead the Labour Party into the next general election.

Mr Starmer is under intense pressure to quit from within his Labour Party after a set of poor local election results.

The heavy losses for Labour in the 7 May elections triggered almost a quarter of his MPs to call for him to go, and two rivals are openly vying to replace him, unsettling investors who have pushed up the government's borrowing costs.

Mr Starmer said: "I do want to fight the next election. Obviously, I recognise that after the local election results, the elections in Wales and Scotland as well, that the first task is obviously turning things around and making sure that my focus is in the right place.

"The last 10 days, there's been a lot of activity, which hasn’t been as focused in my view as it should have been, and I remind myself every day that I was elected to office to serve the people, to serve the country, that’s what I believe in, and that’s what I’ll be getting on with."

He said he would not "walk away" and would not set out a timetable to stand down if Andy Burnham wins the Makerfield bye-election.

Mr Starmer's comments come after Mr Burnham said he was seeking a return to Westminster to "change Labour".

The Greater Manchester mayor hopes to be Labour's candidate in the Makerfield bye-election, which could provide him with a route back to parliament to challenge for the party leadership and the keys to No 10.

Mr Burnham said Labour's offer to voters had "simply not been good enough".

In a speech today at a summit in Leeds, England, Mr Burnham said: "I'm clear about what I am offering. If I get to stand, a vote for me will be a vote to change Labour, because Labour needs to change if we are to regain people's trust.

"It will be a vote to make life more affordable again, a vote to power up places, a vote to reindustrialise."

He promised a "new path which brings the country back together", adding: "I know what my party has offered in the past has simply not been good enough."

Meanwhile, deputy leader David Lammy said Mr Starmer will not set out a timetable for his departure.

"There will be no timetable for departure," Mr Lammy told Sky News, adding that he had spoken to the prime minister twice yesterday.

While Mr Burnham is seeking a seat in parliament that would allow him to make a challenge, Wes Streeting, who quit as health minister last week, said on Saturday he would stand in any formal leadership contest too.

A contest would begin if one MP submits 81 nominations to the party, equivalent to 20% of the elected Labour Party MPs.

Mr Starmer's government will return to Westminster after a battle over reversing Brexit was ignited among the rivals vying to oust him.

Mr Streeting signalled he wanted to see Britain return to the EU as he announced he would stand in any Labour leadership contest.

Supporters of Mr Burnham are reportedly furious with Mr Streeting, according to the Times, as they believe it is a deliberate attempt to raise the salience of Brexit in the leave-voting constituency of Makerfield, where the Greater Manchester mayor hopes to stand as a parliamentary candidate.

Mr Burnham sought to play down his own support for rejoining the trade bloc as he took part in a media blitz across the weekend.

He insisted there was a "long-term case" for advocating to join the EU, but insisted he was not campaigning on that issue in the bye-election.

Culture Secretary Lisa Nandy rebuked her former colleague, Mr Streeting, for making Europe a centre-point of his campaign to succeed the Labour Party leader, describing it as "odd".

"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'," added Ms Nandy, who is seen as an ally to the Greater Manchester mayor.

Read more: Why Britain has turned on its cautious prime minister

Reform UK, which is the second-placed party in Makerfield, plans to make hay out of Mr Burnham's previous support for rejoining the EU as it knocks on doors in the constituency.

Several media outlets reported that Nigel Farage branded the Greater Manchester Mayor "open borders Burnham", indicating the Reform leader plans to campaign on the impact future EU membership could have on inward migration to the UK.

"Andy Burnham's position raises serious questions. At a time when millions of voters are demanding control of our borders, he continues to advocate re-joining a European project built around the free movement of 500 million people," Mr Farage told the Daily Express.

Mr Starmer, who reportedly spent the weekend at his Chequers country estate, is said to be privately considering whether he will contest challenges to his leadership, despite having publicly insisted he will fight them.

Ms Nandy appeared to veer away from the government line that Mr Starmer would stand against his rivals as she spoke to broadcasters yesterday morning, telling the BBC: "It's a very personal decision for him."

She later added: "So, I wouldn't write off the prime minister, but I would just say that this is a very personal decision.

"He's got to make that decision himself."

Additional reporting Reuters