Wes Streeting has confirmed he will stand for the Labour leadership if a contest is triggered, calling for a “proper contest” to replace Sir Keir Starmer as prime minister. Speaking at a Progress thinktank conference on Saturday, the former health secretary outlined his policy platform, including a “new special relationship” with the EU and a revival of Sure Start centres.
Streeting criticised Starmer’s “heavy-handed” leadership culture, which he said stifled creative policy thinking. He described the winter fuel cut as a “catastrophe” and argued Labour arrived in government “underprepared in too many areas and lacking clarity of vision and direction”. He called for a “battle of ideas” to strengthen the party.
On Europe, Streeting described Brexit as a “catastrophic mistake” and said Britain should rejoin the EU to rebuild the economy and improve defence against shared threats. He also warned against trying to “out Reform” Reform UK or “out Green” the Greens, and criticised the spread of misinformation online, saying “it’s time to take the pen back” from tech moguls.
Streeting addressed the Unite the Kingdom march organised by Tommy Robinson, claiming that in 2025 ministers were given a script to explain rather than condemn it. He described recent racism as “a type of racism we haven’t seen on our streets since the 1970s and 80s”.
His intervention comes after Andy Burnham was cleared to stand in the Makerfield byelection. Streeting said he would campaign for Burnham but insisted a leadership contest before Burnham could participate would “lack legitimacy”. He expressed confidence in having enough parliamentary support.
