Jess Phillips Resigns as Safeguarding Minister, Citing Stalled Progress and Leadership Inertia
Jess Phillips has resigned as Safeguarding Minister, stating in a letter to Prime Minister Sir Keir Starmer that she was "not seeing the change" the country anticipated and could not continue to serve "under the current leadership." Phillips contended that opportunities for progress in addressing violence against women and girls had been "stalled and delayed," describing Sir Keir's approach as lacking boldness.
Phillips' resignation follows those of Miatta Fahnbulleh, Minister for Devolution, Faith and Communities, and Alex Davies-Jones, Minister for Victims and Violence Against Women and Girls. Both Fahnbulleh and Davies-Jones similarly urged Sir Keir to outline a timetable for his departure. These resignations occur as over 80 Labour MPs have publicly demanded Starmer's resignation or a clear succession plan, prompted by a series of disappointing election results last week.
Despite the growing dissent, Sir Keir Starmer informed cabinet ministers on Tuesday that he would focus on governing, noting that no formal leadership challenge had been triggered. A leadership election requires the leader's resignation or support from 20% of Labour MPs – currently 81 – to initiate a challenge.
In her resignation letter, Phillips claimed that "real change" in her role often resulted from "threats made by me in light of catastrophic mistakes." She further elaborated that it took her a year to secure the Prime Minister's agreement to "threaten" legislation aimed at preventing children in the UK from taking naked images of themselves, which she labelled as the "definition of incremental change." Phillips concluded, "I'm not sure we are grasping this rare opportunity with the gusto that's needed and I cannot keep waiting around for a crisis to push for faster progress."
