Summary
- US President Donald Trump shared his thoughts on Sunday in typically blunt fashion, writing on his Truth Social platform that “Keir Starmer will resign as Prime Minister of The United Kingdom.” Trump added: “He failed badly on two very important subjects IMMIGRATION AND ENERGY (OPEN NORTH SEA OIL!).
- Business Secretary Peter Kyle said on Sunday that Starmer was “making time to reflect on the political realities, challenges and opportunities that he finds himself in.” He added that the Prime Minister had been “engaging in conversations with a wide, wide range of” colleagues, in what he described as “frank” talks.
- He has made clear he intends to bid to lead the slumping centre-left Labour party, warning in his victory speech that the party had a “final chance to change.” If successful in ousting Starmer, Burnham would become prime minister by default, given that ruling Labour has a huge parliamentary majority.
British Prime Minister Keir Starmer was reflecting this weekend on the “political realities” that he faces, a senior minister said on Sunday, amid media reports that the premier would resign within days.
The political turmoil follows veteran Labour politician Andy Burnham’s victory in a by-election on Friday, which paves the way for the 56-year-old Greater Manchester mayor to challenge the beleaguered Starmer for party leadership and the prime ministership. Any Labour leadership candidate must be a member of parliament, and Burnham is expected to be sworn in as an MP on Monday.
If Starmer does leave office this year, Britain will get its seventh prime minister in a decade an unprecedented rate of churn in its modern history.
US President Donald Trump shared his thoughts on Sunday in typically blunt fashion, writing on his Truth Social platform that “Keir Starmer will resign as Prime Minister of The United Kingdom.” Trump added: “He failed badly on two very important subjects IMMIGRATION AND ENERGY (OPEN NORTH SEA OIL!). I wish him well!”
Starmer, who took office in July 2024, has been clinging to power for months after a tenure littered with missteps, policy U-turns, scandals, and ministerial resignations. He was nearly forced out in March over his ill-fated decision to appoint ex-Jeffrey Epstein associate Peter Mandelson as Britain’s ambassador to Washington.
Labour’s poor performance in local and regional polls in England, Scotland, and Wales last month once again intensified pressure on him. The fallout from those polls saw Makerfield’s previous Labour MP quit to allow Burnham to stand there. The emphatic nature of Burnham’s win where he nearly doubled Labour’s majority has increased internal pressure on Starmer to quit.
Business Secretary Peter Kyle said on Sunday that Starmer was “making time to reflect on the political realities, challenges and opportunities that he finds himself in.” He added that the Prime Minister had been “engaging in conversations with a wide, wide range of” colleagues, in what he described as “frank” talks.
Burnham, a former MP and government minister under ex-prime ministers Tony Blair and Gordon Brown, reinforced his reputation as the party’s most popular figure by easily defeating the hard-right populist Reform UK party’s candidate in this week’s by-election. He has made clear he intends to bid to lead the slumping centre-left Labour party, warning in his victory speech that the party had a “final chance to change.”
If successful in ousting Starmer, Burnham would become prime minister by default, given that ruling Labour has a huge parliamentary majority. Starmer, who is deeply unpopular with voters according to polling, has insisted he will fight any attempt to oust him. But with the pressure mounting, his political future hangs in the balance.
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