Sawt Falasteen - UK PM Starmer resists calls to quit as Labour divided

But more than 100 Labour members of parliament signed a statement throwing their support behind their leader, highlighting the deep divisions within the beleaguered ruling Labour party.

Starmer, in power only 22 months, told his top team in a crunch meeting that he was getting on with governing the country and dared any leadership hopefuls to challenge him.

As of 4:00 pm (1500 GMT), no senior cabinet minister had gone public to demand that the premier quit, although some have reportedly suggested to him privately that he should consider his future.

"The Labour Party has a process for challenging a leader and that has not been triggered," Starmer told ministers, as no one has yet stepped forward.

"The country expects us to get on with governing. That is what I am doing and what we must do as a cabinet," he added.

- 'Do the right thing' -

More than 80 of Labour's 403 members of parliament have now called for Starmer to quit immediately or to set out a timetable for his departure.

Miatta Fahnbulleh on Tuesday became the first junior minister to resign, calling on Starmer "to do the right thing for the country and the party and set a timetable for an orderly transition".

Jess Phillips then quit as safeguarding minister, telling Starmer in a letter that she was not seeing the change "I, and the country expect". Junior ministers Alex Davies-Jones and Zubir Ahmed followed.

Interior minister Shabana Mahmood late Monday became the most senior government figure to advise Starmer to consider his position, according to UK media.

Newspapers reported that deputy prime minister David Lammy and Yvette Cooper also had spoken to Starmer about his position.

None of them commented publicly right after the cabinet meeting.

Several cabinet ministers backed Starmer after the talks, including Defence Secretary John Healey, who warned that "more instability is not in Britain's interest".

Technology Secretary Liz Kendall said the prime minister had her "full support" while Business and Trade Secretary Peter Kyle said Starmer was "showing really steadfast leadership".

More than 100 Labour MPs signed a statement arguing that "this is no time for a leadership contest", adding that the job of winning back the trust of the electorate "needs to start today -- with all of us working together to deliver the change the country needs".

Under party rules, any challenger would need the support of 81 Labour MPs -- 20 percent of the party in parliament -- to trigger a leadership contest.

Starmer, whose government is due to lay out more detailed legislative plans on Wednesday, has vowed to contest any challenge.

A contest would likely spark damaging infighting, with MPs from the left and right of the party battling to position their preferred candidate or shore up Starmer.

- Who could succeed? -

It has long been rumoured that Health Secretary Wes Streeting and former deputy prime minister Angela Rayner could try to oust Starmer.

But neither is universally popular within Labour.

Another much-touted contender, Andy Burnham, the mayor of Greater Manchester, is unable to stand as he does not have a seat in parliament.

Pressure on Starmer has been soaring since Labour lost hundreds of councillors to the hard-right Reform UK party and left-wing populist Greens in last Thursday's polls.

Labour also lost its century-old dominance in Wales and took a hammering from the Scottish National Party in the devolved parliament in Edinburgh.

The results added to a miserable few months for Starmer, who has been engulfed in scandal over his decision to appoint -- and then sack -- Peter Mandelson, a former friend of US sex offender Jeffrey Epstein, as ambassador to Washington.

Starmer has also failed to spur promised economic growth to help British citizens suffering with the cost of living.

On Monday, he pledged that Labour would be "better" and bolder to assuage disgruntled voters impatient for change.

K.AbuDahab--SF-PST