Chaos returns to Westminster: What next for Keir Starmer and the government?

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Ministerial resignations, letters of no confidence, and Andy Burnham’s determination to return to Westminster have rocked Keir Starmer’s premiership. Plenty of twists and turn await in the coming weeks, with the work of government continuing under a cloud of uncertainty.

So how can a prime minister lead a government if their authority is being questioned by their own MPs? What would a Labour leadership contest mean for the way government operates? What is the impact of this volatility on the civil service and the government’s legislative programme? Do Wes Streeting’s accusations of Starmer’s lack of vision and direction stack up – and, if so, how should this or another PM approach the job in a different way?

To discuss all these questions, and make sense of what a return to chaos means for British government, this expert IfG webinar featured: 

• Dr Catherine Haddon, Senior Fellow at the Institute for Government
• Alex Thomas, Executive Director for Impact and Influence at the Institute for Government
• Giles Wilkes, Senior Fellow at the Institute for Government

The event was chaired by Dr Hannah White, Director and CEO of the Institute for Government.