“Oi, Wes Streeting. Come and ‘ave a go if you think you’re ‘ard enough,” knight of the realm Sir Keir Starmer definitely did not say at the start of his high-stakes Cabinet meeting.

The Prime Minister’s style is less Peggy Mitchell ordering a drunk out of her pub, more technocratic barrister. But the meaning was the same. Starmer has suspected Streeting has been plotting against him for months. The Health Secretary insists he has been clear with the Prime Minister he is ready for a leadership contest should one take place. But he has also been adamant that he would not be the prime mover to trigger one, perhaps fearing it would spike his leadership chances.

Against the backdrop of calls to quit Starmer took refuge in the Labour Party rulebook, which dictates 81 Labour MPs have to back a specific replacement to trigger a contest. He was exploiting the divisions in the party to cling on, daring Streeting to challenge him or resign. Unlike the Conservatives, there is no mechanism for triggering a no-confidence vote; instead a challenger must go public and collect the requisite signatures. “The Labour Party has a process for challenging a leader and that has not been triggered,” Starmer told his colleagues.

There is no consensus about getting rid of Starmer for fear of who comes next. Some Labour MPs want to slow down a leadership contest because they support Andy Burnham and need to buy him time to return to Parliament. Others want the Prime Minister out now because they back........

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