Starmer Expected to Step Down as Labour Succession Battle Begins

After weeks of political and public pressure, British Prime Minister Keir Starmer is expected to announce on Monday that he will soon step down, according to UK media. Starmer led Labour to one of its biggest landslide victories about two years ago, promising economic repair, stronger public services and cleaner government. Reports say he could leave 10 Downing Street as early as this autumn, once a successor is chosen.

The revolt against him intensified after Labour’s poor performance in May’s local elections across the UK, which exposed his weakness inside the party. In recent weeks, senior and junior ministers resigned, and the party was waiting for Manchester Mayor Andy Burnham to enter Parliament so he could challenge Starmer. Burnham won a parliamentary seat last week, and Labour’s leadership has reportedly told Starmer that if he does not resign, they will back a formal move to oust him. Media reports over the weekend shifted from saying he was determined to fight on, to suggesting he was considering a resignation to serve the country’s interests, and then to claims he wanted an agreed exit that would limit economic and political turmoil.

If the expected announcement comes, Labour will face an internal contest to replace him, and the next British prime minister will effectively emerge from that process. Labour fears a snap return to a general election, which is not due until 2029, and wants time in office to improve its standing against Reform UK and the Conservatives. Burnham, 56, is seen as the leading candidate. Other names mentioned include former health secretary Wes Streeting, energy secretary Ed Miliband, and Chancellor Rachel Reeves.

President Donald Trump welcomed the anticipated resignation before it had happened, writing on Saturday night that Starmer had “failed badly” on immigration and energy, and urging Britain to open North Sea oil reserves. The leadership race is also expected to reopen debate over Labour’s economic direction and its policy toward Israel and Gaza. Burnham has shifted positions over the years, once promising Israel would be his first foreign destination if elected Labour leader in 2015, later calling for a ceasefire after Hamas’s October 7 attack, and more recently saying he could not say whether there had been “genocide” in Gaza because that depends on legal definitions.