Half of British voters now believe Prime Minister Sir Keir Starmer should step down following a major scandal involving his former ambassador and convicted sex offender Jeffrey Epstein.
Starmer is under intense political pressure after admitting this week that he appointed Lord Peter Mandelson as ambassador to the United States despite knowing Mandelson had continued a relationship with Epstein after Epstein’s conviction for child prostitution.
The controversy deepened after the U.S. Department of Justice released documents alleging that Mandelson provided Epstein with confidential government information that could have been used to manipulate financial markets. The documents also claim Mandelson and his husband received thousands of dollars in payments from Epstein.
Following these revelations, London’s Metropolitan Police announced a formal investigation into Mandelson. Officers raided his properties in London and Wiltshire on Friday evening.
The scandal comes during what has already been a difficult first year in office for Starmer. Political rivals within his party are reportedly positioning themselves for a leadership challenge, including his former deputy Angela Rayner.
Public opinion has turned sharply against the prime minister. A YouGov poll shows that 50 percent of voters believe Starmer should resign, while only 24 percent think he should remain in office. Even among Labour voters, opinion is divided: 37 percent say he should step down, while 40 percent want him to stay.
Another YouGov poll found that 51 percent of voters now see Starmer as just as or more corrupt than former Prime Minister Boris Johnson. Nearly one in three respondents believe the current Labour government is sleazier than the previous Conservative government, including 25 percent of Labour voters.
Only 23 percent of voters believe Starmer has handled the Mandelson affair well, while 43 percent say he has performed poorly. Just 14 percent believe he has demonstrated good judgment.
Starmer had previously demanded Boris Johnson’s resignation over lockdown rule violations and later over a sex scandal involving a government appointee. Now, he faces a similar political threat tied to the conduct of someone he personally appointed.
In response, Starmer has attempted to rally Labour MPs by warning that a leadership collapse could pave the way for Nigel Farage’s Reform UK party to take power. Polling over the past year suggests Labour could suffer major electoral losses to Reform UK if internal divisions continue.
The scandal has placed Starmer’s leadership in serious doubt, with growing calls for accountability and resignation coming not just from opponents, but from within his own political base.
