Labour has formally requested talks with the civil service in preparation for government if the party wins the election, and discussions are expected to start within two weeks. Keir Starmer, the Labour leader, wrote to Simon Case, the cabinet secretary, to begin the process of access talks, a week after Rishi Sunak gave the go-ahead for them to start. It is understood that the process, through which party officials will discuss with civil servants how they would run a government should they oust the Conservatives after 14 years, is likely to start before the end of the month. The discussions are a routine but a symbolic process before a possible handover of power. A Labour party spokesperson said: “Keir Starmer has today written to the cabinet secretary to begin the access talks process.” The discussions are a necessary step so that an opposition party can step immediately into government if they win an election. The talks must be authorised by the prime minister. For a period in the 2000s, the prime minister would do this in advance of the opening of parliament, meaning they could begin whenever needed. But under David Cameron, that practice ended, and, under Sunak, Downing Street has faced repeated questions in recent weeks about when he would grant permission before an election that could happen as early as spring, although autumn is now seen as more likely. An Institute for Government study of the practice showed that in elections since 1992, access talks began anywhere from 16 months before the election to a matter of weeks. In 2017, they were authorised on the day Theresa May called the election, leaving Labour just 51 days to speak to officials.