UK Prime Minister Keir Starmer doubled down Tuesday on his resolve to stay in office, despite calls to step down.
Starmer told Cabinet ministers that he took responsibility for devastating losses that his centre-left Labour Party suffered in last week's local elections across the UK, but he would fight on.
Starmer said there's a process to oust a leader and that hadn't been triggered.
"The country expects us to get on with governing," he said. "That is what I am doing and what we must do."
The statement from Starmer’s office also said, “The past 48 hours have been destabilising for government, and that has a real economic cost for our country and for families."
Earlier, Starmer lost the first member, a junior minister in his government.
Housing, communities and local government minister Miatta Fahnbulleh stepped down and urged Starmer "to do the right thing for the country" and set a timetable to step aside.
Fahnbulleh, a junior minister who is considered to be on the left of the party, said she was proud of her service, but the government had not acted with the vision, pace and mandate for change it had been given by voters.
"Nor have we governed as a Labour Party clear about our values and strong in our convictions," she said.
Earlier, The Telegraph newspaper had reported that six members of British Prime Minister Keir Starmer's cabinet are expected to tell him to quit.
The Telegraph, citing cabinet sources, said the six were interior minister Shabana Mahmood, defence minister John Healey, energy minister Ed Miliband, culture minister Lisa Nandy, foreign minister Yvette Cooper, and health minister Wes Streeting.