Angela Rayner: Labour's next leader?
A leaked memo has sparked speculation that the deputy PM is positioning herself as a left-of-centre alternative to Keir Starmer

Angela Rayner has said that she "never" wants to be leader of the Labour Party amid mounting speculation that she has ambitions to replace Keir Starmer.
The deputy prime minister's designs on party leadership have been the subject of much discussion after a memo was leaked to The Telegraph in which Rayner suggested tax rises as an alternative to Chancellor Rachel Reeves' planned spending cuts. Sources close to Rayner have strenuously denied she was behind the leak or has ambitions of challenging Starmer's leadership.
Speaking to Sky News' "Sunday Morning with Trevor Phillips", Rayner sought to kill off the speculation. "I don't want to be leader of the Labour Party," she said. "My desire is to deliver for the people of this country who have given me opportunities beyond what I could have dreamed of." When asked by Phillips to say the word never, she replied: "Never."
Subscribe to The Week
Escape your echo chamber. Get the facts behind the news, plus analysis from multiple perspectives.

Sign up for The Week's Free Newsletters
From our morning news briefing to a weekly Good News Newsletter, get the best of The Week delivered directly to your inbox.
From our morning news briefing to a weekly Good News Newsletter, get the best of The Week delivered directly to your inbox.
What did the commentators say?
"Rayner is a consummate political actress," said Anne McElvoy in the i on Politics newsletter, "but even she could not easily pull off the poker-faced feint" during her televised repudiation of leadership aspirations. As one Starmerite supporter "acidly" told McElvoy: "She would like to be PM and chancellor – and she sees the moment to change the course of this government."
Indeed, the leaked memo shows that "the battle to succeed Sir Keir Starmer is already under way", positioning Rayner as "a champion for Labour MPs" frustrated by Reeves' cuts and "tax hikes", said the Daily Express. The memo sends a "clear signal" – "another way is possible".
"Inside the Labour Party, there may not be a vacancy but there is always a contest," said George Eaton in London's The Standard. Rayner nearly led a "union-backed coup" against Starmer in 2021. In the intervening years, her role has sometimes looked "precarious", but she is now in a "stronger position" than both her potential rivals, Reeves and Wes Streeting. Though linked to the "soft left", she can "bridge its warring factions" and is close to New Labour giants Tony Blair and Gordon Brown. It may seem early to debate Starmer's successor, but Labour is "an unusually unpopular government".
Rayner may have leadership ambitions, said Andrew Grice in The Independent, but "that doesn't mean she is plotting against him now". A "Momentum-style" grass-roots rebellion is also unlikely: "Labour MPs don't do regicide", and Starmer's allies "have a firm grip on the Labour machine".
Still, he "won't be prime minister for ever", said Kitty Donaldson in The i Paper. Like Punxsutawney Phil in the film "Groundhog Day", "Rayner's intervention is a politician poking her head out of her hole, sniffing around for signs of spring". She might go back into her hole for now, "but she won't be underground for ever".
What next?
Questions about Rayner’s leadership ambitions come amid "increasing unease over the direction of the party" among Labour's rank and file, said The Independent. This is particularly so over its "hard line on migration, upcoming welfare cuts and last year's decision to means-test winter fuel payments".
While Rayner may over the weekend have denied plans to run for leader, "senior" Labour MPs believe she’s "positioning herself as a 'credible' left-of-centre alternative", said The Times. And it would be "easy" for her "to say she had changed her mind at a later date".
A free daily email with the biggest news stories of the day – and the best features from TheWeek.com
Sorcha Bradley is a writer at The Week and a regular on “The Week Unwrapped” podcast. She worked at The Week magazine for a year and a half before taking up her current role with the digital team, where she mostly covers UK current affairs and politics. Before joining The Week, Sorcha worked at slow-news start-up Tortoise Media. She has also written for Sky News, The Sunday Times, the London Evening Standard and Grazia magazine, among other publications. She has a master’s in newspaper journalism from City, University of London, where she specialised in political journalism.
-
El Palace Barcelona: old-world luxury in the heart of the city
The Week Recommends This historic hotel is set within a former Ritz outpost moments from the Passeig de Gràcia
-
The best history books to read in 2025
The Week Recommends These fascinating deep-dives are perfect for history buffs
-
July 4 editorial cartoons
Cartoons Friday’s political cartoons include the danger of talking politics at a family picnic, and disappearing Medicaid entitlements
-
How will Labour pay for welfare U-turn?
Today's Big Question A dramatic concession to Labour rebels has left the government facing more fiscal dilemmas
-
Backbench rebellions and broken promises: is it getting harder to govern?
Today's Big Question Backbench rebellions and broken promises: is it getting harder to govern?
-
Labour's brewing welfare rebellion
The Explainer Keir Starmer seems determined to press on with disability benefit cuts despite a "nightmare" revolt by his own MPs
-
Are free votes the best way to change British society?
Today's Big Question On 'conscience issues' like abortion and assisted dying, MPs are being left to make the most consequential social decisions without guidance
-
Is the G7 still relevant?
Talking Point Donald Trump's early departure cast a shadow over this week's meeting of the world's major democracies
-
The Chagos Islands: Starmer's 'lousy deal'
Talking Point The PM's adherence to 'legalism' has given Mauritius a 'gift from British taxpayers'
-
How the civil service works – and why critics say it needs reform
The Explainer Keir Starmer wants to 'rewire' Whitehall, which he has claimed is too 'comfortable in the tepid bath of managed decline'
-
Brexit 'reset' deal: how will it work?
In Depth Keir Stamer says the deal is a 'win-win', but he faces claims that he has 'surrendered' to Brussels on fishing rights