British Prime Minister Keir Starmer announced on Monday that he was resigning his position as leader of the Labour Party and with it, his role as the United Kingdom’s leader.
Karmer had been embroiled in controversy for months with many in the government calling for his resignation. He had remained defiant in calls for him to step down but Thursday’s election of Greater Manchester Mayor Andy Burnham as a Member of Parliament changed things for Starmer. Burnham had reportedly planned to challenge Starmer for the prime minister role.
“The question my party is asking now is whether I am best placed to lead us into the next election,” Starmer said while giving a statement outside 10 Downing Place in London. He acknowledged his party was seeking change before formally announcing his resignation.
“I have heard the answer,” Starmer said. And I accept that answer with good grace. Every decision I have made has been about putting the country I love first.”
“I will resign as leader of the Labour Party,” he said.
Starmer said he would remain as prime minister until a new Labour Party was elected in a parliamentary election in the next few weeks. Depending on a series of political events within the country, Starmer could be out of office as soon as July or as late as September. Whenever he departs, he said he would give his successor his “full and unequivocal support.”
Starmer began his press conference reminiscing of when he was elected prime minister in a landslide election in 2024. He called the moment the “proudest” of his life, touting the accomplishment.
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“Walking out this street two years ago was the proudest moment of my life,” Star said. “A new Labour government, the first in 14 years. A page in our country’s history turned after years of disappointment and despair. The chance to change the lives of millions of people for the better. That’s what I came into politics for.
“The journey to that point was not easy. Six years ago, I inherited a Labour Party that was politically, financially, and morally bankrupt. I was told time and time again that my party was finished, that we were consigned to history, that a majority in a general election, let alone a landslide majority was impossible. But we proved those people wrong.”