Image source, EPA/Shutterstock

The result of Thursday's Makerfield by-election has led to a growing number of MPs within the Labour Party calling on Keir Starmer to resign, including figures within his own cabinet.

Transport Secretary Heidi Alexander held a conversation with the prime minister on Friday following Andy Burnham's victory, with the BBC being told she suggested Starmer set out a timetable to leave office.

It is also understood that Foreign Secretary Yvette Cooper told the Labour leader to draft exit plans, while Business Secretary Peter Kyle told BBC's Laura Kuenssberg that there is clear "political uncertainty" and Burnham "could be one of those people" with the talent to lead Labour.

The latest set of comments from Starmer's frontbenchers came after ministers such as Home Secretary Shabana Mahmood and Energy Secretary Ed Miliband urged the PM to set out a resignation timetable following Labour's poor performance in the May elections.

Starmer's senior ministers are scheduled to meet for the weekly cabinet meeting on Tuesday, though some believe the leader's departure could come as soon as Monday.

Has a leadership challenge been triggered?

No - and the timing of any possible challenge is still unclear.

Will the prime minister stand?

Party leaders are automatically on the ballot paper unless they resign. On Friday, Keir Starmer said he "will stand" in any contest.

Who are the possible contenders?

Much of the talk has focused on Andy Burnham and former Health Secretary Wes Streeting.

Angela Rayner is favoured by some on the left of the party, while former armed forces minister Al Carns has hinted he could also enter a leadership race.

BBC Wales News

By Nick Bourne

Welsh Labour MP Tonia Antoniazzi told BBC Radio Wales' Sunday Supplement that voters "want to see change".

"Let's be honest, Keir is a very, very decent man but the country, and Wales especially, is crying out for change," she said earlier.

The Gower MP said a "divide" had been created in the Senedd following May's Welsh Parliament elections, which saw Labour - which had been in power since 1999 - beaten into third place behind Plaid Cymru and Reform.

"I'm not pro-Burnham, pro-Wes, pro-anybody. I just need the change. We need the change," Antoniazzi said.

"I would like to see a leader that takes us up to the next general election and gives us a good foundation in which to win and be in power for another five years and, sadly, that person isn't Keir."

Image source, PA Media

Cabinet minister Peter Kyle told Laura Kuenssberg earlier the prime minister is making time this weekend to reflect on "political rallies" ahead of an expected challenge to his job.

Being Father's Day today, Keir Starmer has made clear on X this morning he's also making time think about another important topic.

"Being a dad is my greatest joy. Today, I’m thinking about my dad, and the father I am to my children because of him. Happy Father’s Day," he says.

Starmer told BBC Radio 4's Desert Island Discs in 2020 that he didn't often talk about his father, Rod, who died in 2018.

At the time he spoke of his regret at not being close to his late father, who he described as a "difficult" and "complicated" man.

Throughout Laura Kuenssberg's show, her panel of Labour MPs - Jess Phillips, Toby Perkins and Luke Charters - gave their insights on the potential leadership contest Starmer could be facing in the coming weeks.

Phillips said it feels like we've come to "the end of the road" for Starmer. She added that if Andy Burnham were to launch a leadership competition, he would have to prove he is the "unifier" his supporters say he is, beyond Makerfield and Greater Manchester.

• As a reminder, Burnham was elected MP for Makerfield this week - meaning he could, with enough support, launch a leadership contest. He would need 81 MPs backing him

Charters said he believes Burnham would follow Labour's manifesto from the 2024 General Election - adding that the Makerfield by-election was almost like a "referendum" on the future of the Labour Party.

And Perkins called for "calm heads", insisting that the government "isn't actually doing so bad" as he pointed to shorter NHS waiting times, net migration and the asylum backlog.

Prime Minister Keir Starmer is taking time this weekend to reflect on the "political realities" of today, Business Secretary Peter Kyle tells Laura Kuenssberg, adding that there is clearly "political uncertainty" at the moment.

The comments represent a change in tone from Government, our political correspondent Nick Eardley says, after Starmer insisted on Friday he would stay on and contest a leadership election.

Kyle also says Andy Burnham "could be one of those people" with the talent to lead Labour. However, he adds that he doesn't know "for a fact" what is going to happen over the next few days.

Shadow chancellor Mel Stride doubts Burnham's ability to change the "fundamental nature" of the Labour Party in Parliament, saying the country needs "stability" at all times in our political system.

As pressure continues to grow on the PM to set a timetable for his departure, his former adviser Paul Ovenden says Starmer has earned the respect to make whatever decision he will make "in his own way and his own time".

During the programme, former Cabinet Secretary Lord Case said that leadership uncertainty "costs us opportunities".

He points to issues around defence spending, which he says is a "huge issue" with enormous national and international significance, and also "political significance" - pointing to the resignation of former Defence Secretary John Healey.

• For context: Healey stepped down last week citing concerns a yet-to-be-published defence investment plan failed to deliver on the UK's defence needs "at this dangerous time"

Case also says that a further change in leadership is likely to generate "a high degree of eye-rolling", costing the UK "influence on the world stage".

Also in the Sunday with Laura Kuenssberg hot seat is shadow chancellor Mel Stride, who says he doesn't think the Conservatives are responsible for the current political system of successive changes in PMs.

He adds that we need "stability" at all times in our political system as well as the right policies.

Stride says there's no evidence Andy Burnham is in the position to change the "fundamental nature" of the Labour Party in Parliament - claiming that Burnham "flip flops" and "doesn't seem to know what the fiscal rules are".

He notes the Tories' success in the Aberdeen South by-election this week, saying it was based on the party's policies on energy and North Sea oil and gas.

The shadow chancellor also says his party is becoming "increasingly competitive", adding that Reform lost the Makerfield by-election despite throwing the "kitchen sink" at it and describes Nigel Farage's party as "fantasy economists".

• The programme has now concluded but stay with us as we bring you more on the latest political developments and analysis.

Kuenssberg next sits down with former Keir Starmer adviser Paul Ovenden, asking how the PM is likely to be feeling right now.

Ovenden says that Starmer's way of thinking was always: "Put the country first, the Labour Party second, and probably his own ambitions or well-being third." He says this is what will "guide his way of thinking" now.

Reflecting on Starmer's leadership in the 2024 General Election, he says the PM has earned the respect to make whatever decision he will make "in his own way and his own time".

Kuenssberg turns to Andy Burnham, who Ovenden says has "fantastic charisma" and is able to connect with voters.

He says as long as the 2024 manifesto is "honoured in spirit", there shouldn't be a problem in someone elected in a by-election potentially taking on the party leadership.

Nick Eardley
Political correspondent

The firm - perhaps overwhelming - favourite to be the next prime minister is Andy Burnham.

But what will he do with power, if he gets it?

On Laura Kuenssberg's panel, Labour MP Toby Perkins asks: "We do need to know if we've got a change of direction, are we basically still supporting the manifesto we were all elected on?"

Luke Charters, another Labour MP supporting Andy Burnham, insists the answer is yes - but the current leadership has been too timid.

Kuenssberg turns to her panel to discuss the interviews with her guests.

Starmer supporter Toby Perkins says the government is delivering on the main things that it said it would do, and that we could do with "calm heads".

Asked whether it was "serious" for some of Labour to be trying to get rid of an PM in office, Burnham backer Luke Charters says the country is in a "vastly different" now than it was when Labour won the 2024 General Election in a landslide victory.

Jess Phillips weighs in, saying Andy Burnham will have to "prove that is that unifier" that Charters claims he is, beyond Makerfield and Greater Manchester.

She says it looks like a "slow resignation" is taking place after Peter Kyle's interview.

Kyle made it clear Starmer is weighing up his futurepublished at 09:38 BST

09:38 BST

Nick Eardley
Political correspondent

The signs the prime minister is considering resigning are clear from what we've heard this morning.

The business secretary said he did not know for sure what was about to happen.

But he was also clear Keir Starmer is weighing up his future - reflecting on political reality and the challenges he faces.

The prime minister, Peter Kyle said, will do "what is in the best interests of the country".

A growing number of figures in government believe the prime minister is preparing to set out plans for his departure as soon as Monday.

Number Ten continues to point to the PM's words on Friday, when he said he intended to fight and leadership challenge.

Kuenssberg has been speaking with former Defence Secretary Lord Hutton, who says there is a "high chance" that Keir Starmer is on his way out.

He adds that he wants any transition to be done in the "best possible way" and to put the country's interests first.

Hutton says that Burnham has to know where he wants to take the country and be "clear in his mind" about how to address the fundamental challenges it faces.

"I think there's a challenge, for sure," he says. "And I think it must be met and mastered by Andy and any of the other candidates who want to put their hat in the ring.

"We've got to get a sense of where they want to take the country. And I think that's the very least that leadership candidates owe to the electorate at this moment in time. The country is watching."

Hutton says that the Labour Party has a mandate based on the 2024 election that it should stick to, adding he has nothing but respect for Burnham as a leader and he has all the necessary skills "in abundance".

Kyle is then asked if Andy Burnham has the qualifications to lead Labour, to which he says the party is "burgeoning" with talent.

He adds that Burnham "could be one of those people", and that the business secretary would grab the opportunity to serve in any Labour cabinet "with both hands".

Kuenssberg puts to Kyle that Labour is entering some form of "transition", to which he says he doesn't want to appear "delusional" that the prime minister is not being challenged.

He says what is important is that "we govern through whatever unfolds or may not unfold in the days ahead", adding that potential challengers also want this to be the case.

Kuenssberg asks if this means an "orderly transition". Kyle says no, and repeats that the country must be put first.

She notes that is a "world away" from what the PM is saying about fighting any leadership challenge. Kyle responds: "The reality right now is that there is process under way, there are people who seek to challenge Keir." He adds that he doesn't know "for fact" what the next few days will entail.

Any change that may or may not happen should be done in a "functional way", he says, and Labour needs to learn from the Tories - including in understanding that it is not true that when a problem arises, "changing the person at the top would fix everything".

The leadership is "more than one person", he says and all of Labour needs to "bear responsibility" for the failures.

Asked whether there should be a contest, he refuses to answer but says in his view contests are always better.

Kyle says he had a "thoughtful" conversation with the prime minister on Friday, but declines to say what was discussed as it was "private".

The business secretary adds there is clearly "political uncertainty" at the moment and that Starmer has had several conversations with union leaders, among others.

Kyle says Starmer is currently exercising his job with "authority", pointing out the India trade deal negotiation and implementation at the G7 this week, and adding that he himself wants to do his part to ensure his authority "through this period".

Nick Eardley
Political correspondent

The tone from Government has changed this morning.

Peter Kyle is not repeating the prime minister's insistence from Friday - that he would stay on and contest a leadership election.

Kyle says the prime minister was spending the weekend considering the political challenges he faces.

He says the prime minister will be framing his decision based on "what's in the best interests of the country".

Amid heightening speculation in Government that the prime minister is going to stand down - the business secretary is not repeating the often made argument that Sir Keir Starmer plans to fight on.

Peter Kyle says Starmer is making time this weekend to reflect on the political realities today, compared to last week and the week before.

It will always be about the best interests of the country, he says

Labour's leadership struggles are the focus of Sunday's papers. Keir Starmer could announce his departure date as early as tomorrow, a Labour MP has told the Telegraph.

Starmer is expected to resign on Monday, the Observer headlines on. According to the paper, the prime minister "accepts his position is no longer tenable".

Meanwhile, the Sunday Mirror headlines on the "historic royal move" by King Charles in releasing his personal tax return - Britain's first monarch to do so in modern times.

It is 09:00 BST, meaning Sunday with Laura Kuenssberg is starting now.

On today's programme:

• Business Secretary Peter Kyle
• Shadow chancellor Mel Stride
• Former adviser to Keir Starmer, Paul Ovenden
• Former Cabinet Secretary Lord Case
• Former Defence Secretary Lord Hutton

The show's panel will also be giving their insights, with Labour MPs Jess Phillips, Toby Perkins and Luke Charters joining.

We will be bringing you text updates from the programme over the next hour and you can also watch live at the top of this page.