EditStarmer announces he will resign as UK Prime Minister
He said he will remain in his post until the Labour party contest was complete, and will do everything he can to ensure an orderly handover
British Prime Minister Keir Starmer has announced he will resign, bringing to an end his turbulent premiership after less than two years in office.
In a statement issued on Monday, Starmer said he had concluded that his position had become untenable amid collapsing poll numbers, heavy local election losses, internal party revolt, and a series of damaging policy reversals. He is expected to set out a timetable for his departure in the coming days.
The announcement follows intense pressure from within the Labour Party, with more than 100 MPs reportedly urging him to step down. Senior figures, including Greater Manchester Mayor Andy Burnham, are already being discussed as possible successors.
President Donald Trump had earlier predicted Starmer’s departure on Truth Social, writing: “Keir Starmer will resign as Prime Minister of The United Kingdom. He failed badly on two very important subjects — IMMIGRATION AND ENERGY (OPEN NORTH SEA OIL!). I wish him well!”
Under Britain’s parliamentary system of government, whoever leads the party that has a majority in parliament is the country’s prime minister.
Starmer’s Labour Party currently has a large majority.
The process to replace him as prime minister must therefore start with Labour replacing him as leader.
Starmer said he would ask Labour to set out a timetable for a leadership change, and nominations for candidates would open on 9 July.
He said he will remain in his post until the contest was complete, and will do everything he can to ensure an orderly handover.
Starmer said he expected the new leader and prime minister to be in place by the time parliament returns for its autumn session in September.
Starmer’s exit would mark the seventh UK prime minister in just over a decade and is likely to trigger a fresh period of political instability in Britain.
With Reuters
Caption: British Prime Minister Keir Starmer after making a statement in Downing Street, London, Britain, 22 June 2026. Keir Starmer has resigned as UK Prime Minister. EPA/TOLGA AKMEN
Updated: June 22, 2026 - 11:00
