Britain’s Prime Minister Keir Starmer announced on Monday that he would step down as both Labour Party leader and prime minister, paving the way for the United Kingdom to have its seventh prime minister in just ten years.
Starmer said he had spoken with King Charles and expected to remain in office until the Labour Party selects a successor.
Having led Labour Party since 2020, Starmer became prime minister after the party’s victory in the 2024 general election.
He said he had asked party officials to begin the nomination process for a new leader on July 9. While he did not specify an exact departure date from 10 Downing Street, he said he anticipated a new prime minister would be in place by September, when Parliament returns from its summer break.
The announcement follows months of political turbulence for Starmer. Critics within his Labour Party argued that his government had failed to deliver the pace of change voters expected after 14 years of Conservative rule.
Pressure on Starmer intensified after May’s local elections, in which the Labour Party lost more than 1,000 council seats. Many party members viewed the results as a clear rebuke of the government’s performance and subsequently urged him to resign.
Although no formal leadership challenge had been launched by Monday, support had increasingly gathered around Andy Burnham, the former mayor of Greater Manchester, as a potential successor.
Burnham, who won a by-election on Friday to become the Member of Parliament for Makerfield, was expected to be sworn into the House of Commons on Monday and also Following Starmer’s announcement, he confirmed on social media that he would seek a nomination in the upcoming Labour Party leadership contest.
