- Pressure on Starmer increased after Andy Burnham entered parliament.
- Wes Streeting also indicates that he is willing to challenge the Starmer government.
- More than 100 Labor MPs reportedly want Starmer to step aside.
LONDON: Prime Minister Keir Starmer was expected to resign on Monday and set a timetable for his departure, the British government said. Observer the newspaper reported, although a government source said Starmer remained focused on getting on with the job of governing.
The threat to Starmer’s position, which has been building for months, increased dramatically on Friday when his rival Andy Burnham won a seat in parliament that would allow him to launch a formal challenge to the leadership.
He Observer The report said Starmer was discussing the matter with his wife at his country residence in Checkers before making a final decision, but that senior Labor officials were expecting a clear statement on his future as soon as Monday.
However, a government source said Starmer remained focused on his job and pointed to previous statements he made to that effect.
The British leader said on Friday he would fight any challenge to his leadership and urged the Labor Party not to tear itself apart with infighting.
Starmer’s popularity has plummeted
Starmer led the centre-left Labor Party to a landslide election victory in 2024, but has become deeply unpopular after a series of scandals and policy U-turns that have given many voters the general impression that he cannot deliver the improvement in living standards he promised.
If he were to resign or be ousted, it would mean the country would install its seventh prime minister in just over a decade – the highest turnover in almost two centuries, reflecting anger at the failures of successive governments to improve public services and tackle issues such as illegal immigration.
More than 100 elected lawmakers from Starmer’s party – about a quarter of all Labor representatives in the House of Commons – have said publicly that they want him to resign or set a timetable for his departure, according to a report. Reuters account.
He Observer The report, which did not name its sources, said Starmer had concluded his position was no longer tenable after speaking to cabinet ministers, advisers, donors and union leaders.
Burnham waiting in the wings
Burnham, a 56-year-old career politician, is seen by many Labor members as Starmer’s most likely successor, whether through a negotiated transfer of power or a formal leadership contest.
Having built a power base within the Labor Party as mayor of Greater Manchester in northern England, he handily defeated the threat from Nigel Farage’s right-wing populist party to win the election for a vacant parliamentary seat on Friday.
Burnham did not immediately formally challenge Starmer, but used her victory speech to promise a new path for the country. His allies have urged Starmer to agree to resign and hand over power voluntarily.
Former Health Minister Wes Streeting has also said he is willing to challenge Starmer.
The times The newspaper reported on Saturday that Burnham would sack Finance Minister Rachel Reeves if she became prime minister after her advisers concluded she did not represent a sufficient change of direction.
Reuters could not immediately verify that report.
