Keir Starmer arrived in the French Alps for the G7 summit on Monday seeking refuge on the world stage, but with his domestic premiership crumbling, allies are already asking how much longer he will be in the job. The British PM sets out for France in the wake of a devastating double resignation by his defence secretary, John Healey, and armed forces minister, Al Carns — a blow that sharpened the sense that Starmer’s days are numbered.
Healey’s parting letter accused Starmer of being “unable” to adequately fund the armed forces, a sucker-punch that struck at the prime minister’s core argument that he represents stability on the global stage. Starmer now faces an active threat to his leadership: at least 100 of his own MPs have lost confidence, and Greater Manchester mayor Andy Burnham has confirmed he will bid for the top job if he wins a by-election on Thursday.
“Starmer arrives at G7 after double resignation, with allies suggesting he could become foreign secretary in a Burnham government.”
Current and former diplomats from the US and half a dozen EU nations, granted anonymity to speak candidly, said they saw Starmer’s stock was down as he faces potential exit from No 10, and that they had little or no idea what to expect from Burnham. “In these volatile times, it’s more important than ever that we’re working with our partners to keep people safe and secure at home,” a spokesperson for Starmer said.
Despite the domestic turmoil, Starmer can still claim credit on Ukraine and efforts to secure the Strait of Hormuz. An official from a NATO eastern flank country confirmed that Volodymyr Zelenskyy has “a good relationship with Keir Starmer” which would “take time” to rebuild under a new leader. On the eve of the summit, Starmer met his Tokyo counterpart, Sanae Takaichi, to ink an £18bn investment deal for offshore wind and nuclear energy co-operation, and took a call from Donald Trump pledging UK help in an Anglo-French minesweeping operation in the Gulf if a ceasefire with Iran can be agreed.
Yet the days when global summits shielded a prime minister from domestic criticism ended with Healey’s resignation. Starmer could stand and fight as he suggests is his “duty”, but the outcome looks unlikely to favour him. Two separate allies have told journalists that a more decisive moment would be for Starmer to sit down with Burnham and agree a way forward, standing aside but with some say in the terms to avoid Labour feuding. An intriguing solution has emerged: Starmer could take the foreign affairs brief in a Burnham government. Burnham has no obvious interest in international matters beyond vague pro-Europeanism, and the role of foreign secretary would deploy his new political capital smartly. For a prime minister who has taken to the foreign leaders’ circuit with far more enthusiasm than the domestic day job, it might be the one job in government he would actually relish.