Deborah Meaden has come out strongly in support of Prime Minister Keir Starmer as the Labour leader faces growing pressure to reveal when he plans to step down, with an announcement possibly coming as soon as this morning.
At least four cabinet ministers, including the home and foreign secretaries, have reportedly told the prime minister in private that he should outline a timeline for his departure.
The pressure follows Andy Burnham’s convincing win in last week’s Makerfield by-election, which has triggered long-simmering frustration within Labour.
Starmer is said to have spent the weekend weighing up his options, with colleagues noting that he has seemed increasingly drained and demoralised in recent months.
Britain now appears close to seeing its third prime minister leave office in four years, once again due to internal party pressure rather than an election loss.
The small boats crisis has become one of the most divisive issues of Starmer’s time in office. Since Labour took power in 2024 with a pledge to “smash” the people-smuggling gangs behind illegal Channel crossings, more than 72,000 migrants have reached Britain this way.
Crossings since the government declared the issue a “major incident” in 2018 have now passed 200,000, with roughly 128,000 taking place under previous Conservative governments.
There has been some improvement in recent months, with arrivals between January and mid-May this year down around 40 percent compared with the same period in 2025.
The Home Office says a new enforcement deal with France has helped prevent more than 42,000 attempted crossings since the election.
Boats are now carrying an average of 65 people — more than double the average from 2021 — making the journeys even more dangerous.
The ongoing focus on the small boats issue appeared to frustrate Dragons’ Den star Deborah Meaden over the weekend, prompting her to take to X to challenge claims that it was central to Starmer’s expected downfall.
In one post, Meaden responded to an X user who said Burnham should “insist on a leadership contest” rather than remain a bystander while Starmer is pressured to resign.
Meaden agreed, writing: “Me too… don’t allow it to happen @Keir_Starmer. I know a contest would take an even greater personal toll, but I voted for Labour under your leadership and an untested coronation will fail this country. I want to know what Andy Burnham means by ‘better’ because so far it lacks a great deal of substance.”
She continued defending Starmer in another exchange after one user asked how he could be considered worse than Liz Truss or Rishi Sunak.
“He isn’t … there are plenty of vested interests who want us to believe he is,” she replied.
Not everyone agreed. One critic wrote: “He betrayed the elderly by cutting heating support, targeted farmers, failed to stop the boats, and betrayed WASPI women. Good riddance, Starmer.”
Meaden pushed back, focusing especially on the migration argument.
“Although he rectified all of those as a good leader should, and as for the boats… you have to be kidding. Boat crossings are down dramatically. Happy to discuss facts, not random claims,” she wrote.
She later doubled down when another user asked why Starmer did not “just stop the boats.”
“He did…” Meaden replied bluntly.
Debate is also growing over how quickly any leadership transition should happen.
Some key Burnham allies favour a handover around Labour’s late-September conference, arguing that it would give the government enough time to prepare.
Others, however, fear a three-month transition would leave the government stuck in limbo while speculation over Burnham’s plans intensifies.
“His chance to define himself would be undermined by constant speculation,” one minister warned.
Attention has also turned to who could serve as chancellor under Burnham. Ed Miliband had been viewed as a leading contender alongside Home Secretary Shabana Mahmood, though Mahmood is now expected to remain in her current role.
Sharon Graham, general secretary of Unite the Union, has publicly warned Burnham against appointing Miliband, with one minister claiming such a move would immediately anger around 100 Labour MPs.
