Prime Minister Keir Starmer has appointed former Labour leaders Gordon Brown and Harriet Harman as unpaid advisers, in a move seen as an effort to shore up his position following poor local election results. Brown will serve as envoy on global finance, focusing on defence-related investments with Europe, while Harman will advise on women and girls' issues, including tackling violence and improving economic opportunities.
The appointments come after Labour lost over 1,400 council seats in England, lost control of the Welsh Senedd for the first time, and lost ground in Scotland. Several Labour MPs, including Clive Betts and Debbie Abrahams, have called on Starmer to set a date for his resignation, warning of the threat from Reform UK.
Abrahams told the BBC she hoped Starmer would “always put the country first” and suggested he should consider departing “within months.” Tony Vaughan, a Labour MP, called for “an orderly transition of leadership well before the local elections next year.”
However, Deputy Leader Lucy Powell defended Starmer, saying setting a timetable would only trigger “a very distracting and ongoing debate about leadership.” She confirmed she would support Andy Burnham standing for parliament but ruled out a “hostile takeover.”
Starmer is expected to deliver a speech on Monday calling for closer EU ties, with Brown’s role partly aimed at strengthening UK-Europe relations. A Downing Street statement said Brown would develop “new international finance partnerships that can support defence and security-related investment.”
