Photograph: Peter Nicholls/AFP via Getty ImagesAnas Sarwar, the Scottish Labour leader, has called on Keir Starmer to stand down as prime minister at a hastily arranged press conference in Glasgow. Recent opinion polls show Labour trailing in third place behind the Scottish National party and Reform. Allan stepped down h a day after the prime Starmer’s chief of staff, Morgan McSweeney, also departed. Asked if Starmer was going to resign today, the prime minister’s official spokesman said: “No.”He added: “The prime minister is concentrating on the job in hand. As Sarwar spoke, British deputy prime ‍minister David Lammy and housing minister Steve Reed ‍ pledged their support for Starmer.

Source: The Irish Times February 09, 2026 14:50 UTC