Liberian-born British politician Miatta Fahnbulleh has resigned from the United Kingdom government, becoming the first minister to publicly quit and call for Prime Minister Keir Starmer to step aside following Labour Party losses in recent elections across the UK.
Fahnbulleh, who served as the UK Minister for Devolution, Faith and Communities, announced her resignation in a strongly worded letter shared on social media, joining dozens of Labour Members of Parliament urging Starmer to set a timetable for his departure.
According to reports by the BBC, Fahnbulleh is the first serving government minister to resign amid mounting internal pressure on Starmer after Labour’s disappointing electoral performance.
In her resignation letter, Fahnbulleh accused the government of failing to deliver the “vision, pace and ambition” promised to voters.
“Whilst progress has been made, we have not acted with the vision, pace and ambition that our mandate for change demands of us,” she wrote. “Nor have we governed as a Labour Party clear about our values and strong in our convictions.”
She further criticized controversial government decisions, including cuts affecting pensioners and disabled citizens, saying such policies had damaged public confidence in the Labour leadership.
“Mistakes such as the winter fuel payment and cuts to the support provided to disabled people have left too many of my constituents doubting our mission,” Fahnbulleh stated. “The message on the doorstep was clear: you, Prime Minister, have lost the trust and confidence of the public.”
In a direct challenge to Starmer’s leadership, she added: “The public does not believe that you can lead this change — and nor do I.”
Fahnbulleh urged the prime minister to “do the right thing for the country and the Party” by setting “a timetable for an orderly transition so that a new team can deliver the change we promised the country.”
Before her resignation, Fahnbulleh had held several key portfolios within the Labour government. She previously served as Minister for Energy Consumers, where she said she helped secure energy bill discounts for six million families and advanced the government’s Warm Homes Plan.
In her most recent role, she oversaw initiatives including the Pride in Place Programme and reforms tied to English devolution and community empowerment.
Born in Liberia on September 29, 1979, Fahnbulleh is the daughter of prominent Liberian diplomat and politician Dr. Henry Boimah Fahnbulleh Jr. and a Sierra Leonean mother.
Her family fled Liberia during the First Liberian Civil War and sought asylum in the United Kingdom, eventually settling within the West African community in Peckham, South London.
Despite her refugee background, Fahnbulleh rose to become one of the UK’s most prominent economists and policy thinkers. She studied Philosophy, Politics and Economics at the University of Oxford before earning a PhD in Economic Development from the London School of Economics and Political Science.
Prior to entering Parliament, she served as Chief Executive Officer of the New Economics Foundation from 2017 to 2023, where she became known for her advocacy on social justice, economic reform, and climate policy.
Fahnbulleh was elected to the UK Parliament in 2024 as the Labour MP for Peckham, marking a significant milestone for a woman whose journey began as a refugee fleeing conflict in Liberia.