Melanie Ward Resigns as Aide to Deputy Prime Minister and Calls for Starmer to Resign

Melanie Ward has resigned from her position as parliamentary private secretary to Deputy Prime Minister David Lammy. Ward, MP for Cowdenbeath and Kirkcaldy, posted a statement on X in which she described the election result in Scotland last week as extremely disappointing.

She said many constituents had told her they could not support Labour while Starmer remained Prime Minister. The statement cited anger over early policy decisions including changes to the winter fuel payment. It added that mistakes on moral issues like Gaza had not been forgotten by the wider public.

Ward acknowledged that Starmer had done important work to change the Labour Party. She said governing at this time would never be easy but that the message from last week’s elections was clear. "The Prime Minister has lost the confidence of the public," the statement said.

Ward concluded that Starmer no longer had the trust or confidence of the public to lead that change. She announced her resignation as parliamentary private secretary and called for him to resign as Labour leader and set out a rapid process for the election of a new leader and prime minister.

Also resigning on Monday were Joe Morris, a parliamentary private secretary to the health secretary, Tom Rutland, a parliamentary private secretary to the environment secretary, and Naushabah Khan, a parliamentary private secretary in the Cabinet Office.

Sally Jameson, a parliamentary private secretary to the home secretary, joined the calls for Starmer to step aside. The resignations come as pressure mounts on Starmer over his future as prime minister.