LONDON — The irony wasn’t lost on anyone.
On a day when the British government’s legislative plans were presented by no less than King Charles III himself, Prime Minister Keir Starmer was fighting to remain in power following rising discontent within his Labour Party.
The traditional pomp and pageantry associated with the state opening of Parliament was overshadowed by the political intrigue, specifically the mounting speculation that Health Secretary Wes Streeting was planning to quit Mr. Starmer’s government and launch a leadership bid as soon as Thursday.
The embattled prime minister has been urged to set a timetable for his departure by more than a fifth of the Labour Party’s lawmakers in the House of Commons. Some junior ministers have quit the government in protest, but no one has yet challenged Mr. Starmer directly.
According to the BBC and the Times of London, Mr. Streeting is expected to do just that on Thursday. Mr. Streeting, who has long been known to harbor ambitions to become prime minister, met with Mr. Starmer earlier Wednesday for less than 20 minutes. Neither have discussed what was said, but Mr. Starmer’s office insisted the health secretary retains the prime minister’s full support.
Starmer on the ropes
Mr. Starmer’s premiership has been imperiled by the huge losses Labour suffered in local and regional elections last week. If those results were repeated in a national election that has to be held by 2029, the party would be overwhelmingly ejected from power.
Labour was squeezed from the right and the left, losing votes to both anti-immigrant Reform UK and the Green Party, as well as nationalist parties in Scotland and Wales.
Labour secured a landslide election victory in 2024, driving the Conservatives from power after 14 years, but since then the party’s popularity has plunged and Mr. Starmer is getting much of the blame. The reasons include a series of policy missteps, a struggling British economy, a perceived lack of vision on the prime minister’s part and questions over his judgment. Mr. Starmer’s choice of Peter Mandelson as U.K. ambassador to Washington despite ties to the convicted sex offender Jeffrey Epstein has continued to haunt him.
Mr. Starmer, who has insisted he has no intention to stand down, has his supporters within the party. More than 100 lawmakers have signed a letter saying it is “no time” for a leadership contest.
“We should let him get on with doing his job, because he is a serious politician and these are very, very serious times,” Northern Ireland Secretary Hilary Benn told Sky News.
King offers some respite
In a speech to lawmakers outlining the government’s legislative program for the coming year or so that was written by the government itself, the king said the U.K.’s economic, energy and national security would be tested as it deals with the fallout from the wars in Iran and Ukraine.
Planned measures include controlling the cost of living, strengthening ties with the European Union and making it easier to build new energy infrastructure.
And pledging action on antisemitism following a run of attacks on the Jewish community in recent months, King Charles said the government would “defend the British values” of decency and tolerance.
The king, who made the short journey from Buckingham Palace to the Houses of Parliament in a horse-drawn carriage, also said the government will “defend the British values of decency, tolerance and respect for difference under our common flag” and said urgent action would be taken to tackle antisemitism.
The live question is whether Mr. Starmer will be around to implement the measures in the speech and, even if he remains in post, whether he will have the authority to push his proposals through.
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