Keir Starmer to face mutinous Cabinet in just hours after senior ministers urge PM to finally quit

Sir Keir Starmer could face his final Cabinet meeting as Prime Minister today after a number of his own ministers demanded he step down.

The Foreign and Home Secretaries have both reportedly demanded an "orderly transition of power" following Labour's local elections bloodbath - though his closest ally Lord Hermer has urged him to fight on.

Meanwhile, the Deputy PM and Defence Secretary are said to have discussed with Sir Keir about how to take a "responsible, dignified and orderly" approach to whatever he decides to do.

"In the end, Keir has listened to cabinet ministers - there are differences about where this will go and what is in the best interests of party and country," a minister told The Guardian last night.

"He’ll have to make a decision about what he's going to do before cabinet tomorrow."

So far, six ministerial aides have had to be replaced by No10, after they either quit or called for the PM to go - while the number of Labour MPs to have demanded he resign is more than 10 times that figure.

By late last night, just under 80 had publicly called for his head.

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Andy Burnham prepares rallying cry to bond markets - Greater Manchester Mayor faces race against time to become PM

Andy Burnham is reporting to be preparing his pitch to the bond markets in a bid to shore up his credibility before a potential shot at No10.

The Greater Manchester Mayor, according to The Telegraph, will endorse an economics pamphlet to help raise his credentials on the national stage.

"The Productive State: A Framework for Manchesterism" will be published by Mainstream, a Labour-linked group affiliated with Mr Burnham which has called for more left-wing policies, in the coming weeks.

Sources close to discussions said the document would set out how Mr Burnham's ideas in Greater Manchester could be rolled out across the UK - as well as the wider economic theory behind his ideas, which allies hope will reassure markets.

It will also suggest that Mr Burnham is the natural heir to the "titans of political economy" in the Labour movement.

But time is running out, with the PM facing down his Cabinet today.

Allies of the Mayor say he will secure his return to Parliament by triggering another by-election in a nearby seat.

The Telegraph reported a seat has been identified - and that Mr Burnham's team believes it is "broadly confident" that it is "winnable".

Nigel Farage's Reform UK, however, could throw a major spanner in the works, picking up more than 200 seats in the North West last Thursday.