Welsh election now crucial for Starmer, Labour MP says

Labour's attempts to defend seats in the Welsh Parliament and the Gorton and Denton by-election will be crucial to Sir Keir Starmer's survival as prime minister, a senior Welsh Labour MP has said.

Jones said Sir Keir had been "wounded" by the scandal but did not know if it would be "fatal" for his time as prime minister.

Meanwhile an unnamed UK government minister told the BBC that McSweeney's resignation is "too little too late", describing Sir Keir's judgement as "so poor".

On Monday, Sir Keir's spokesperson said the prime minister had no plans to step down following criticism over appointing Lord Mandelson as US ambassador, despite his relationship with convicted sex offender Jeffrey Epstein being a matter of public record.

Speaking on Radio Wales Breakfast earlier on Monday, chair of the Welsh affairs committee Jones said Sir Keir needed to be judged on upcoming elections, including Wales' Senedd election on 7 May.

Jones said McSweeney was perceived "by a lot of MPs as the power behind the throne" and "whispering into his ear".

Ordinary MPs felt he was "always blocking what we might be trying to talk to Keir about," she said.

Asked if the prime minister could survive, she added: "I think he's wounded, absolutely. But is it fatal? I don't know. We'll wait and see."

She said the upcoming elections in Wales and Manchester are "critical."

"Depending on what happens there, then I think we judge the prime minister on those events and the results that the Labour party gets," she said.

The unnamed UK government minister described events at Number 10 as a mess and said they "honestly don't know what happens next".

"I really have a lot of respect for the PM and I believe he is a good man but his judgement has been so poor," they added.

Opinion polling over recent months have suggested that Plaid Cymru and Reform UK are both vying to win the Senedd election. Labour came third in a by-election in Caerphilly last October, losing to Plaid.

With less than three months until the Senedd election, Jones said the Labour party had a "good story to tell" in Wales but that Sir Keir needed to change his approach.

"I think we need to make sure that we tell it better and I think Keir needs to engage more in Wales," she said.

Jones, MP for Newport West and Islwyn, said the prime minister has been seen as "bland and boring", but added: "That's what we needed to get us into power because we tried other options."

"We need to show that actually the Labour Party can get on with things forging ahead, making sure people are feeling better, you know, [with] more money in their pocket - that will happen this year.

"I think Keir needs to get out there to make his own pitch, because I'm not going to make it for him."

Jones said the UK party realises now "what might be coming down the track".

"They are taking it seriously now. It's been a struggle to get them to realise that," she said.

Additional reporting: Mark Palmer