Reform and Greens have exploded the two-party system - but can they storm Westminster?

Sir Keir Starmer is “increasingly unlikely” to lead Labour at the next general election, a campaign group backed by Andy Burnham has said.

Mainstream, a soft-Left pressure group, blamed the party’s dire local election results on a “failed political experiment at the top of the Labour Party that has put control, centralisation, and factional advantage before the founding principles of our movement”.

The group demanded “an orderly transition and a genuinely open, democratic debate about both who and what comes next”.

The statement will fuel further speculation that Mr Burnham, the Mayor of Greater Manchester, could mount a leadership challenge against Sir Keir in the wake of Labour’s election bloodbath.

Read more: https://www.telegraph.co.uk/politics/2026/05/08/local-elections-2026-keir-starmer-premiership-labour-party/

► Sign up to the Telegraph's free new daily newsletter, From the Editor, bringing you the latest news, features and analysis from the Telegraph newsroom: www.telegraph.co.uk/customer/secure/newsletter/from-the-editor/?WT.mc_id=tmgoff_youtube_telegraphmain

► Get the latest headlines: www.telegraph.co.uk?WT.mc_id=tmgoff_youtube_telegraphmain

► Stay ahead with a Telegraph digital subscription:
https://www.telegraph.co.uk/customer/subscription/store?WT.mc_id=tmgoff_youtube_telegraphmain

https://www.telegraph.co.uk/ and https://www.youtube.com/telegraph are websites of The Telegraph, the UK's best-selling quality daily newspaper providing news and analysis on UK and world events, business, sport, lifestyle and culture.