Sir Keir Starmer has been forced out of Downing Street less than two years after his landslide general election victory, making him Labour’s shortest-serving prime minister. In an emotional resignation speech outside Number 10, he said his party had asked “whether I am best placed to lead us into the next general election” and added: “I have heard the answer of my parliamentary party to that question, and I accept that answer with good grace.”
Within hours, the man described as his “assassin” – Andy Burnham, the self-styled “King of the North” – arrived in Westminster to scenes of near-hysteria. The Daily Mail reported that the mayor of Greater Manchester is on course for a “coronation” next month. But in a Mail readers’ poll, 89% said Burnham should call an immediate general election.
“Starmer resigns after less than two years as Labour shortest-serving PM; Burnham arrives as successor.”
Starmer’s 2024 victory – built on a historically low share of the national vote – put him in the company of only Tony Blair and Clement Attlee among Labour leaders who won three‑figure parliamentary majorities. Yet his popularity nosedived within weeks, after a series of mis‑steps and policy U‑turns. He had promised to restore trust in politics and return the country to “calmer waters”, vowing to “end the era of noisy performance”.
A former human rights lawyer who became an MP only in his 50s, Starmer was dubbed “Mr Rules” by his Culture Secretary Lisa Nandy for his procedural, methodical style. But critics said he lacked a clear ideology and was not very good at politics, coming across as stiff and wooden in an age that prizes authenticity. He once boasted that there would never be such a thing as Starmerism – a claim that proved all too accurate.
Now, as Burnham prepares to take the helm, the question of whether he will seek a fresh mandate from voters hangs over Westminster. The departing prime minister, who had promised a “decade of national renewal”, is left contemplating a return to the back benches.