Image source, Reuters

Keir Starmer's position as prime minister has taken a further blow, as health minister Zubir Ahmed becomes the latest government minister to resign.

The first resignation of the day came from communities minister Miatta Fahnbulleh, who said in her letter to the prime minister that the country was crying out for change, but “the public does not believe that you can lead this change – and nor do I".

Several hours later, Jess Phillips announced she was leaving her role as safeguarding minister, telling Starmer that "deeds, not words matter".

Alex Davies-Jones soon followed suit, as she called for the prime minister to "act in the country's interest and set out a timetable for your departure".

In his resignation letter, Zubir Ahmed said it's clear the public has "irretrievably lost confidence in you as prime minister".

In his resignation letter to the prime minister, Zubir Ahmed says "it is clear to see that whatever the magnitude of individual achievements and progress, they are now being dwarfed and undermined by a lack of values-driven leadership at the centre".

The letter continues: "It is clear from recent days, that the public across the UK has now irretrievably lost confidence in you as prime minister."

Ahmed, the MP for Glasgow South West, says during last week's Scottish parliamentary elections, Starmer was "the driving reason why Labour voters of 2024 would not vote for Scottish Labour in 2026".

He adds: "You once also said our work is urgent. I now ask you for the sake of that urgency and that national duty, to step aside and set a timetable for an expedient and orderly transition to new leadership that commands the confidence of our country."

Health minister Zubir Ahmed has become the latest government minister to resign from his post.

In his resignation letter posted on X, the Wes Streeting ally says: "It is clear from recent days, that the public across the UK has now irretrievably lost confidence in you as prime minister".

His resignation follows three other ministers - Jess Phillips, Alex Davies-Jones and Miatta Fahnbulleh.

Are prime ministers spending less time in office?published at 16:26 BST

16:26 BST

By Christine Jeavans and Daniel Wainwright

As Prime Minister Sir Keir Starmer faces growing calls to stand down, how does his almost two years in office compare with those of his predecessors in No 10?

Sir Keir is the UK’s fifth prime minister in the decade since David Cameron departed in July 2016.

This turbulent period includes Liz Truss’s famously short tenure of 49 days in 2022. Her successor Rishi Sunak triggered a snap general election in 2024 before reaching two years in power.

Prior to that, Boris Johnson and Theresa May each lasted a little over three years in office.

So recent prime ministers’ tenures seem short, especially when compared with Margaret Thatcher and Tony Blair who each had more than a decade in the top job.

But looking further back in prime ministerial history, it’s Thatcher and Blair who are the exceptions as the longest-serving PMs since 1945.

When Thatcher took power in 1979, her predecessor James Callaghan had been prime minister for just over three years.

Before him, Harold Wilson’s second spell in office was just over two years, preceded by Ted Heath who spent nearly four years in power.

And while not as short as Truss’s time in power, Alec Douglas-Home lasted just shy of a year before being narrowly defeated in the 1964 general election.

Image source, PA

As Labour MPs continue to come out either in support of the prime minister or calling for him to go, Keir Starmer is ploughing on with his agenda for the day.

The prime minister has been visiting construction apprentices at London South Bank Technical College - alongside Work and Pensions Secretary Pat McFadden.

Image source, PA Media

Image source, PA Media

Image source, PA

Defence minister Luke Pollard says he will not be resigning from his role because the defence portfolio "needs a steady hand" - but doesn't offer his backing of the prime minister.

In a post on X, he writes: "Whatever is happening elsewhere in British politics, national security is the first responsibility of government and something I take very seriously."

He doesn't mention the prime minister by name, but says he recognises the decision his colleagues are making "about the Leadership of our party".

"I too want bold leadership to deliver the change our country needs," he adds.

The total number of Labour MPs calling for Starmer to resign or set out a timetable for his resignation has reached 86.

The latest appears to be MP Andrew Cooper, who in a statement says it is now "important for the Prime Minister to set out a clear and considered timetable for his departure".

The BBC has counted MPs who have made public statements or interviews saying the PM should resign or set a timetable to go since the local elections last week.

Sima Kotecha
Senior UK correspondent

Debbie Jones is the founder and CEO of the domestic violence charity, Resolute, in south Yorkshire.

In response to the resignations of Jess Philips and Alex Davies Jones - both of whom were responsible for coming up with the government's violence against women and girls' (VAWG) strategy - she says it has reduced trust among survivors of abuse.

"When you've got people in positions of power stepping down because they don't think the PM is doing his job properly, you've got to wonder how women who've been victims of horrific abuse trust people in these jobs to help them and improve their lives.

"Your faith in government goes down."

Message coming from No 10 is business as usual, but it really is chaospublished at 15:53 BST

15:53 BST

Harry Farley
Political correspondent, reporting from Downing Street

The picture and the message coming from No 10 in defiance of all the chaos that we see out here is this is business as usual.

But it really is chaos.

To give you an indication of that, we've had Transport Secretary Heidi Alexander feeling the need to publicly restate her loyalty to the prime minister, and publicly restate that she does not support Greater Manchester Mayor Andy Burnham - that is not normal.

We've also had Marie Rimmer coming out this afternoon - she was one of the Labour MPs who was speculated to be standing down in her seat of St Helens to make way for Andy Burnham to return to Parliament.

Her team has just sent me a statement saying that "Andy and I have not spoken to each other since the general election campaign in 2024. Rumours that suggest otherwise are absolute nonsense".

She says she does not intend to stand down for him or anyone else.

All of which is to say, these are not normal times.

Image source, PA Media

Against a backdrop of political chaos, Wednesday will see the King head to Westminster for the official State Opening of Parliament.

With the pressure Keir Starmer finds himself under, the King's speech is shaping up to be a particularly unique event.

The speech sees the monarch sit in a throne in the House of Lords and read out the government's planned new laws for the next parliamentary session and beyond.

As our political editor Chris Mason noted earlier, Starmer can't currently be certain of his political future over the next few hours "let alone the duration of those bills that his government will read out via the monarch tomorrow".

After the King's speech, MPs then debate its contents - normally for about six days.

They then vote on it - governments very rarely lose.

The last time the government lost such a vote was in January 1924, and Conservative PM Stanley Baldwin was forced to resign.

How bad were the election results for Labour?published at 15:42 BST

15:42 BST

By Becky Dale and Wesley Stephenson

That statement called last week's election results "devastatingly tough" for Labour - but how bad were they for the party?

Wales saw the most dramatic drop in Labour support, where even the party’s Welsh leader failed to be re-elected.

The strong showing of Plaid Cymru and Reform UK relegated Labour to third place.

In England, where the party was defending 2,566 councillor seats, more than half were lost. This cost Labour control of 38 councils in total.

Although significant, it’s not the biggest loss for a sitting PM in recent election years. Gordon Brown in 2009 and Keir Starmer just a year ago both experienced larger defeats.

In Scotland Labour fared a little better with its vote share only dropping by 2.4 points. But with 17 seats at Holyrood the Scottish party’s support continues to decline.

You can get more detail about what’s changed here.

More than 100 Labour MPs are understood to have signed a statement backing Keir Starmer.

“Last week we had a devastatingly tough set of election results. It shows we have a hard job ahead to win back trust from the electorate," the statement says.

“That job needs to start today – with all of us working together to deliver the change the country needs."

The statement urges Labour Party MPs to "focus on that. This is no time for a leadership contest.”

Image source, Getty Images

Labour minister Ian Murray says a Labour leadership challenge would be the "complete antidote" to enacting change on key issues in the UK.

Murray, a minister in the Department of Culture, says the current political instability is "absolutely chaotic" - but urged his party to maintain "calm heads" and avoid "knee-jerk reaction".

He says Labour should not be "talking to ourselves when we should be talking to the country", adding: "We're as impatient as they are for that change".

Murray says Jess Phillips and Alex Davies-Jones, two junior ministers who have today resigned, are "asking for change to be quicker" - something Murray says the PM himself has acknowledged.

"So the message to the prime minister is to bolder, to be faster, to be deeper and to be quicker."

As pressure mounts on Keir Starmer, we're keeping an eye on the questions you're searching. Here are the answers to some of the ones we've seen so far.

How many MPs have called for Starmer to resign? More than 80Labour MPs have publicly called for the PM to either leave his post or to set out a timetable for when he will.

What happens if Starmer resigns? A leadership contest - this can also happen if 20% of the party's MPs (currently 81) nominate a member of parliament to challenge the sitting leader. Earlier, Starmer told his cabinet this process had not been triggered.

Who could replace Starmer? The three names that have been doing the rounds are Health Secretary Wes Streeting, former Deputy PM Angela Rayner and Mayor of Greater Manchester Andy Burnham. However, neither Streeting nor Rayner have said publicly when, or if, they would launch a bid - and Burnham is not currently an MP having been blocked from standing in January.

When did Starmer become prime minister? He took office in 2024 after winning the general election by a landslide - Labour took 412 seats, giving them a majority of 174. They now have 403. Starmer has been leader of the Labour Party since 2020.

Can Starmer call a general election? Yes, the prime minister has the power to call a general election. Starmer would need to ask the King to "dissolve" Parliament - the official term for closing Westminster ahead of an election - at which point any of Westminster's 650 sitting MPs who want to keep their seat would need to seek re-election.

When is the next UK general election? It must be held by 15 August 2029 but, as previously mentioned, Starmer can opt to call an election before this.

Joe Pike
Political correspondent

Keir Starmer has been attempting to carry on with the business of government this lunchtime - chairing a meeting of the Middle East Response Committee.

A No 10 source tells the BBC: “The PM is focused on delivering for families across Britain.”

Chris Mason
Political editor

A further update on my previous post - where I reported that Labour's backbench parliamentary committee has been blocked from seeing the prime minister.

The committee has now been told a time in the prime minister’s diary has not been found yet.

Chris Mason
Political editor

The group asked to see him, as it is their job to represent the views of backbenchers - but No 10 refused.

The committee is made up of around half a dozen MPs and some peers, elected by the Parliamentary Labour Party.

It usually meets weekly with the prime minister when he is in Westminster.

Chris Mason
Political editor

Several sources tell the BBC more ministerial resignations are expected this afternoon.

Resignations make clear Starmer's gambit hasn't quelled frustration in governmentpublished at 13:55 BST

13:55 BST

Henry Zeffman
Chief political correspondent

Image source, PA Wire

This drumbeat of ministerial resignations is awkward for the prime minister.

It makes plain that his gambit this morning has not quelled the frustration in parts of his government.

It recalls the way in which Boris Johnson was ousted by a flood of resignations from his ministers.

But that included cabinet ministers right up to the chancellor. This is a trickle, and the prime minister is a long way off the situation Johnson found himself in, where it was genuinely hard to see how he could form a government.

And it’s worth remembering, as the prime minister pointed out at cabinet this morning, the Labour Party does not operate on a (no) confidence system.

Eighty-one MPs would have to back a specific, named candidate for there to even be a contest - and Starmer is automatically a participant in that contest too.

Image source, PA Media

Here's victims minister Alex Davies-Jones's resignation letter, sent to Prime Minister Keir Starmer, in full:

"Dear Keir,

"It has been the honour of my life to serve his majesty's government as the Minister for Victims and Tackling Violence Against Women and Girls.

"I have been proud to deliver some monumental changes which will help save lives and shift the dial on the conversation.

"However, we have needed to do more and therefore it is with a very, heavy heart that I feel I have no choice but to resign.

"The scale of the electoral defeats at the Senedd Cymru and across the United Kingdom have been catastrophic.

"The country has spoken and we must listen.

"We waited fourteen years to get into power and change the lives of those we represent.

"The time now is for bold, radical action.

"I know you to be a good and honest man.

"But in my heart are my constituents, the victims I have had the honour of working with every day, including the Hillsborough victims and their families, and all those who demand better of us.

"I implore you to act in the country's interest and set out a timetable for your departure."