Oh dear. It really does seem like the end of days for Keir Starmer now. The Prime Minister has lost both his chief of staff and his director of communications in less than 24 hours. And while he continues to insist he is in control, others are preparing to take matters into their own hands.

Anas Sarwar, the leader of Scottish Labour, has this afternoon called for the Prime Minister to quit his role, just 18 months after Labour’s landslide triumph. Sarwar told a news conference that Starmer’s leadership is becoming a ‘huge distraction’ from Labour’s positive work across the country. ‘The distraction needs to end and the leadership in Downing Street has to change,’ he said.

The reason for Sarwar’s antipathy is the party’s tanking poll rating across the United Kingdom. For MPs in Westminster, this is less of an issue – they are not due for re-election until 2029. But in Scotland, the Holyrood elections are barely 12 weeks away, and Scottish Labour is on course to finish third. Facing Starmageddon, Sarwar and his colleagues are determined to act. Some 37 Scottish Labour MPs sit in the House of Commons. They are among the jumpiest of the new intake and think change is better than inevitable defeat. With Starmer due to address the parliamentary Labour party tonight, will any of them have the guts to go over the top in committee room 14?

It’s a far cry from July 2024 when Sarwar was on course to take the keys to Bute House. The reverse Midas touch of Sir Keir strikes again…