Sir Keir Starmer is facing mounting criticism from his own MPs after Labour backbenchers accused Downing Street of reacting too slowly to the growing public outrage surrounding the murder of Henry Nowak.
In a damaging sign of unrest within Labour ranks, MPs have privately complained that the Government failed to recognise the political significance of the case until it had already been seized upon by opponents, allowing Nigel Farage and Kemi Badenoch to dominate the debate.
The criticism strikes at one of the Prime Minister’s most prized political assets: his claim to offer competent and disciplined government after years of Conservative turmoil.
Instead, Labour MPs now fear that Downing Street once again appeared slow-moving, reactive and unable to anticipate a rapidly developing political crisis.
One Labour backbencher told The Times that ministers had failed to appreciate the scale of public concern following the sentencing of Vickrum Digwa, who was jailed for life for murdering the 18-year-old student.
“There’s a sense among colleagues that the Government wasn’t quite aware of how big this case was,” the MP said.
“We weren’t speedy enough to get on the front foot and we have once again fallen into the same trap that Farage and Co lay us, which makes us look as though we have downplayed it.”
The complaint goes to the heart of a growing concern among Labour MPs that the Government has repeatedly allowed opponents to define politically sensitive issues before ministers formulate a coherent response.
A second Labour MP delivered an even more devastating assessment.
“It’s a pattern that sums up this Government,” they said.
“It doesn’t seem to smell danger and then when danger hits us we are too slow to react.”
For critics inside the party, the Henry Nowak case has become emblematic of a broader weakness in Starmer’s operation: a tendency to prioritise caution and process at moments when political events are moving at far greater speed.
The controversy surrounding the case has steadily intensified since details emerged of the circumstances surrounding Mr Nowak’s death.
The teenager was fatally stabbed by Digwa in Southampton in December last year. Police officers arriving at the scene were told by Digwa that he had been subjected to a racist attack, while bodycam footage later showed Mr Nowak being handcuffed as he repeatedly told officers that he had been stabbed and could not breathe.
The release of the footage triggered widespread public anger, political scrutiny and growing questions about the actions of police officers in the minutes before Mr Nowak’s death.
As the issue gathered momentum online and across broadcast media, opposition politicians moved quickly to position themselves at the centre of the debate.
Farage, in particular, repeatedly raised concerns about policing and institutional failures, while Badenoch called for greater accountability and transparency.
By contrast, Labour’s response was initially far more restrained.
Government figures argue that caution was both appropriate and necessary given the sensitivities involved.
One Government source defended ministers’ approach, insisting it was vital to respond “with dignity, calmness and empathy” rather than engage in a “knee-jerk reaction”.
Downing Street also points to the Prime Minister’s subsequent engagement with Mr Nowak’s family.
On Wednesday evening, Sir Keir revealed he had held a private meeting with the teenager’s relatives at Downing Street, describing himself as “profoundly humbled” by the discussion.
He said Mr Nowak “deserves a legacy that goes beyond this awful tragedy”.
Yet for many Labour MPs, the political damage may already have been done.
Their concern is not simply about the substance of the Government’s response, but about a recurring pattern that has emerged during Starmer’s premiership.
Time and again, critics argue, ministers appear reluctant to engage with controversial issues until public pressure becomes impossible to ignore. By that stage, opponents have often framed the narrative, forcing Labour into a defensive position.
The danger for Starmer is that such criticisms are no longer coming solely from political rivals.
When MPs on his own benches begin accusing Downing Street of failing to recognise danger until it is too late, questions inevitably arise about the effectiveness of the Prime Minister’s political operation.
For a leader who entered office promising competence, foresight and control, few accusations are more damaging than those now being voiced by members of his own party: that when one of the most explosive public controversies of the year erupted, Downing Street failed to see it coming.
And by the time it did, others had already seized the initiative.
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