British Prime Minister Keir Starmer announced his retirement on Monday after less than two years in power, a period marked by policy reversals and widespread public disapproval.
“Every decision I have taken has been about putting the country I love first. That is why I will resign as leader of the Labour Party,” Starmer said as he choked up in an emotional speech outside 10 Downing Street.
Starmer said the process of selecting a new leader for the centre-left party would begin in July, and he would serve as prime minister until his successor was chosen, which would be in place when parliament returned from its summer holiday in September.
Starmer’s biggest competitor, veteran politician Andy Burnham, is set to be sworn in as a member of parliament on Monday after winning a critical special election on Thursday, allowing him to return to parliament and paving the way for a run for party leader.
“I will remain in post as prime minister until the contest is complete, and I will do everything I can to ensure an orderly handover of power,” Starmer added.
Until the weekend, Starmer said he would battle on and stay prime minister as he faced challenges and calls to resign.
He has clung to his post for months, despite repeated scandals and high-profile resignations that have piled pressure on him and his Labour Party.
But Britain is about to get its eighth prime leader in a decade.
Starmer’s much-anticipated statement comes a day before the 10-year anniversary of the Brexit referendum, which precipitated the UK’s exit from the European Union and an unprecedented turnover of prime ministers.
Starmer has been credited for transforming Labour into an election-winning party that won a landslide victory in 2024, ending 14 years of Conservative government.
However, his presidency was disrupted by blunders ranging from benefit cuts to criticism of defence budget plans.
He was almost deposed in March for his disastrous choice to select Peter Mandelson, a known associate of the late US sex offender Jeffrey Epstein, as the UK ambassador to Washington.
He has also struggled to counter the quick emergence of the far-right, anti-immigrant Reform UK party, which beat Labour in May’s local elections, severely undermining Starmer’s position.
“I will also give my successor my full and unequivocal support, knowing that they will inherit a Britain that is far stronger and fairer than the one I inherited two years ago,” Starmer said in his resignation speech.
