Starmer 'takes responsibility' but refuses to resign

Sir Keir Starmer has taken responsibility for Labour’s “tough” local election results. Labour has already lost control of its first eight councils in what is expected to be the worst set of local election results in the party’s history. The Prime Minister is now facing calls to quit after Labour surrendered its majorities on councils in Westminster, Southampton, Exeter, Redditch, Wandsworth, Hartlepool, Tamworth and Tameside following a surge in support for Reform UK. 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.