Australian-born MP at centre of plot to remove British PM

Topic: World Politics

Catherine West was born in country Victoria and has served as an MP in north London for over a decade.

Until recently, Catherine West kept a low profile as a politician.

Most Brits did not know the Australian-born, London-based MP before.

On Saturday, everything changed. Ms West, 59, moved to the UK almost three decades ago and was elected to parliament for Labour in 2015.

She surprised colleagues by announcing plans to challenge her own party's leader Sir Keir Starmer and encouraging others to do the same.

Ms West did not expect to become the next PM, but hoped her move might inspire others to act.

The intervention has sparked chaos. Once-silent MPs have been compelled to take a position on Sir Keir's leadership. Would-be challengers are now scrambling to shore up support.

Sir Keir remains in office for now, but many analysts say he is doomed.

If that is true, he would be the second prime minister Ms West has had a hand in ousting.

Britain's PM Sir Keir Starmer is in London on Tuesday.

Ms West was born in country Victoria and grew up in Sydney. She has two children, dual Australian-British citizenship, and speaks five languages.

After moving to the UK in 1998, she became involved in the Labour Party and held multiple political roles before becoming an MP in a north London constituency.

She entered parliament in the same election as Sir Keir, and a snap of the pair has been dredged up amid this week's stand-off.

Mr Streeting, now the health secretary, is tipped to be among the biggest threats to the PM in any leadership contest, although he has not publicly announced an intention to run.

While Ms West has occupied front-bench positions and been a member of multiple parliamentary committees, it was the part she played in bringing down former Conservative PM Boris Johnson that many will remember her for.

In December 2021, Ms West put to Mr Johnson a question in the House of Commons that ultimately became central to the Partygate scandal that contributed to the then-PM's demise.

She asked Mr Johnson whether there had been a get-together at 10 Downing Street on November 13, 2020, something that would have been at odds with the UK's COVID lockdown.

The culture of breaching COVID restrictions inside the PM's office was central to Mr Johnson's resignation in September 2022.

Ms West's question and Mr Johnson's denial were highlighted by a parliamentary inquiry as an example of the then-PM misleading the house.

She acknowledged that her actions played a part in holding this serial liar to account.

Boris Johnson's position as PM came under enormous pressure because of the Partygate scandal.

Sir Keir, who stormed to power at a general election less than two years ago, has become deeply unpopular among Brits.

The potential for ambitious colleagues to be circling the prime minister had been widely telegraphed over the past few months.

Nevertheless, Ms West's decision to make the first move was something few saw coming. After Labour endured a disastrous set of local election results last week, she threw down the gauntlet to Sir Keir.

While she was not seen as a serious contender herself, analysts argued her ultimatum to the PM could serve as the catalyst for more prominent leadership aspirants to step out of the shadows.

Ms West walked back her challenge on Monday but warned Sir Keir's office she was collecting the names of Labour MPs who no longer had confidence in him.

While Ms West is not alone in wanting Sir Keir to go, some colleagues have criticised her approach.

One MP described Ms West's approach as wholly unserious in a leaked email to her, while another described the challenge as a kind of palace coup on social media.

Nevertheless, the push to remove the PM is gathering momentum. On Tuesday, several frontbenchers resigned, saying they had lost confidence in Sir Keir.

After Ms West made her bombshell announcement, she gave several interviews in a bid to explain the decision.

Since then, she returned to keeping a low profile, as the political storm she helped start rages around her.

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