Keir Starmer Appoints Gordon Brown Special Envoy And Harriet Harman Adviser After Labour Losses

Prime Minister Keir Starmer appointed former prime minister Gordon Brown as his special envoy on global finance and named former deputy Labour leader Baroness Harriet Harman as his adviser on women and girls after Labour suffered heavy election losses across England, Scotland, and Wales.

“British premier reshuffles team after his Labour Party battered in local elections Starmer appoints ex-Premier Brown as special envoy on global finance, names former deputy Labour leader Harman as adviser on women and girls Necva Tastan Sevinc 09 May 2026•Update: 09 May 2026 ISTANBUL British Prime Minister Keir Starmer moved to shore up his leadership on Saturday after the Labour Party suffered heavy election losses across England, Scotland, and Wales”

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Downing Street said Brown would advise on how global finance cooperation can help to achieve “committed to boosting the country's security and resilience,” while a separate No 10 statement said Harman would “advise the PM on how to galvanise government to deliver for women and girls”.

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Starmer framed the appointments as a “future-looking” move, telling broadcasters that “So it’s very future-looking, because this is about making sure that every woman has the opportunities that she deserves.”

The reshuffle followed a political shock in which Reform UK emerged as the biggest winner in England and Labour suffered a historic defeat in Wales, with the BBC describing the prime minister’s authority as “tottering” after Friday’s dire election results.

In the background of the appointments, the BBC reported that Brown and Harman met Sir Keir in Downing Street before their roles were announced, as Starmer planned a reset next week with a major speech and a new programme of legislation.

Reactions to the appointments split sharply inside Labour and among opposition figures, with Reform UK leader Nigel Farage mocking Starmer over Brown’s appointment as he said: “An unpopular prime minister who lost a general election is now seen by Starmer as being the saviour. Labour are doomed.”

Within Labour, deputy leader Lucy Powell told the BBC that the party needed to “reflect, to hear, to listen” and warned that if Labour did not “improve and start doing better” it would face “Nigel Farage walking up Downing Street in three years' time.”

BBC

The BBC also reported that some Labour MPs were “baffled” by the appearance of two veteran Labour figures, quoting one normally loyal minister: "It's a joke. There is no question to which bringing these two back is the answer."

Another Labour MP quoted by the BBC said, “Not sure voters in Wigan, Wandsworth, Salford or Sunderland voted Reform because they thought we needed more advisers from a different era of Labour politics.”

The BBC further described up to 30 Labour MPs publicly calling for Starmer to resign or set a timetable for an orderly transition, while Starmer insisted in a promotional post that “Together, we will build a stronger and fairer Britain,” alongside Brown and Harman in Downing Street’s back garden.

The appointments were designed to steady Starmer as he faced mounting pressure to quit, with the BBC saying some MPs called for him to set a timetable for his departure after election results piled pressure on him.

“Gordon Brown and Baroness Harriet Harman have been given advisory roles by the Prime Minister”

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RTE.ie reported that Starmer would seek to use a major speech on Monday and then the King’s Speech on Wednesday to attempt to reset his premiership in the aftermath of the electoral mauling.

In the same period, the Guardian reported that Abrahams hoped Starmer would “always put the country first” and said: “I think it is a matter of months.”

The Guardian also tied Brown’s new brief to Starmer’s reset, quoting a Downing Street statement that Brown would be “tasked with developing new international finance partnerships that can support defence and security-related investment, including measures that underpin the UK’s relationship with Europe”.

For Harman’s part, No 10 said she would “drive an impactful agenda focusing on tackling violence against women and girls, unlocking economic opportunity and improving representation,” as Starmer sought to rebuild his government’s direction after losses that included Labour losing power for the first time in Wales.