A SENIOR Labour MP has quit her role in the party’s shadow cabinet with a veiled attack on leader Keir Starmer.
Dr Rosena Allin-Khan – who continues to work hospital shifts during her time outside of Parliament – has been serving as the party’s shadow minister for mental health since 2020.
But on the day of Starmer’s reshuffle, the Tooting MP decided to leave her post – and criticised the party chief’s attitude towards the role.
“It has been a pleasure to serve as the shadow cabinet minister for mental health over the last three and a half years,” she wrote in her resignation later. “As discussed previously, and in our call earlier, you made clear that you do not see a space for a mental health portfolio in a Labour cabinet, which is why I told you many weeks ago that I would not be able to continue in this role.”
Dr Allin-Khan added that she is proud of her progress working on mental health policies and called for the area to get its “fare share” of NHS funding in order to save lives.
“It is vital that the next Labour government supports those who have been failed by inpatient mental health services and seeks answers and justice for them,” she added, writing that a Labour government must treat reform of the Mental health Act and Suicide Prevention Strategy as a “priority”.
The doctor went on to say she’d continue to stand for Labour values from the backbenches – in a message which can read as a condemnation of Starmer’s recent approach to issues like the two-child cap and plans to continue using barges and military bases to house asylum seekers.
“I want to continue to give a voice to the most vulnerable and marginalised people across the world – including those who have fled war and who seek a better life,” the letter read.
“Children shouldn’t be growing up in poverty – which is why I’ll be campaigning to ensure children get the best possible start in life.”
Previously, Dr Allin-Khan had made her opposition to Labour's plans to use private providers to cut NHS waiting lists clear, saying she was "not totally aligned" with the idea.
"I personally would not like to see money from the NHS going into the pockets of private providers to clear backlogs, I would like to see the NHS rebuilt properly," she said last year.
Shadow health secretary Wes Streeting has long defended these proposals.
In her resignation letter, the MP said she will "never stop" standing up for the NHS.
Elsewhere, Starmer moved Angela Rayner to the post of shadow levelling up secretary.
The reshuffle was put into gear after shadow environment secretary Jim McMahon announced he is standing down to focus on his health.
Rayner, in a widely predicted move, has been shifted to focus on a brief that includes local government, housing and the so-called levelling-up agenda, which involves scrutinising the Conservative government’s pledge to create economic opportunities outside London and the south east.
Sir Keir’s decision to create a new-look team comes as he uses Parliament’s return from the summer recess to further set out his vision for government.
In an interview with the Daily Mirror, the Opposition leader promised not to raise income tax if he wins the next General Election, which is likely to be held next year.
The pre-election shake-up comes on the same day that former top civil servant and partygate investigator Sue Gray starts her new role as the Labour leader’s chief of staff, according to the BBC.
The anti-sleaze watchdog, the Advisory Committee on Business Appointments, had recommended a six-month delay to her starting the job with Starmer – advice Labour accepted.
