As Wes Streeting resigns, Alastair explains what's happened and what could happen next.

So, West Streeting has resigned as Health Secretary, told Keir Starmer he doesn't have confidence in him, thinks there should be a contest to replace him and suggests others should be involved in that so Labour can have a good old battle of ideas.This just a day after the King set out a legislative programme for the year ahead, which all of the Cabinet, West Streeting included, had signed up to recently.The results are in, is how he began his resignation letter, making us think about the local elections which have precipitated all this.But no, it was an account of the success the government has had, and he has had, in getting waiting lists down.He thanked all and somebody, though not the PM or the Chancellor.What is not clear yet is whether he has the 18 names he needs to add to his own to trigger a contest.

Some say he has, and more, others that he did have, but Angela Rayner suddenly seemed to be back in the game on the back of good news about her tax affairs, and with rumour and counter -rumour about whether Andy Burnham, Manchester Mayor, can get himself a by -election seat and so enter the fray, maybe the numbers fray a little too.I don't know.What I do know is that is that a party with a big majority won under two years ago is portraying a pretty bad spectacle to the country at a time when, well, you know, there are a lot of problems around right now.

If Wes does have the numbers and goes for it and nobody else does, my hunch is Keir Starmer will stand and fight.He doesn't need nominations to be on the ballot.If others then get the numbers to be able to stand, his calculations are probably going to depend on whether he genuinely thinks he can win, and whether, if not, he can help steer the country in an orderly direction for the time he's got left.I remain of the view, frankly, if you think Geir Starmer is the worst person on earth to be Prime Minister, which I don't, that it would have been far better, however bad the results, for everyone just to have sat tight, allowed a bit of focus onto Nigel Farage and his billions for once, Nigel Farage and some of his dreadful candidates, and assessed these results more soberly.That assessment may well have led to a Keir Starmer must go consensus but at least it would have given the spacea bit of genuine reflection, debate around some ideas, and even the prospect of names emerging that few have yet heard of.

This feels, on so many levels, like the wrong time.I couldn't help notice though that Catherine West, the MP and ex -minister who kicked this whole thing into life at the weekend by saying if no minister challenged Keir Starmer she would, now saying Keir Starmer might well win a leadership election and she might vote for him.So can everyone please calm down a bit and try to see beyond the next tweet or the next news bulletin.The next general election is a long, long way off and a lot can happen.between now and then.All the best.