finance
Keir Starmer Announces Resignation After Two Years as Prime Minister
Starmer steps down after two years, opening nominations next month for a successor. The move follows Labour losses in May local elections and comes amid new data on Brexit costs and population trends.
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Keir Starmer announced on June 23 2026 that he would resign as prime minister after two years in office. Fortune reported that nominations for a successor will open next month. Starmer’s departure follows losses by his Labour Party in local elections in May 2026.
Andy Burnham, the former mayor of Greater Manchester, is positioned to become the next leader if chosen by the party. ’s seventh prime minister since the 2016 referendum. Six prime ministers have held office at 10 Downing Street in the decade since the June 23 2016 vote, in which 52 percent of voters chose to leave the European Union.
David Cameron resigned the morning after the referendum. Theresa May spent three years attempting to pass a Brexit deal before suffering the largest defeat for a sitting government in modern U.K. history.
Boris Johnson served three years before resigning amid the Partygate scandal. Liz Truss held office for 49 days. Rishi Sunak led the Conservatives to their worst electoral defeat in parliamentary history before yielding power in 2024.
Fortune reported that Britain left the European Union on January 31 2020. A National Bureau of Economic Research working paper published the week of June 16 2026 found that Brexit reduced U.K. GDP by 6 percent to 8 percent over the decade, cut investment by 12 percent to 13 percent, lowered employment by 3 percent to 4 percent, and reduced productivity by 3 percent to 4 percent.
Separate data from the Office for National Statistics, published in April 2026, showed that 2025 was the last year in which U.K. births exceeded deaths. The ONS projects deaths will outnumber births starting mid-2026.
Between 2024 and 2034 the agency forecasts 6.4 million births and 6.85 million deaths, producing a natural shortfall of roughly 450,000 people. The U.K. population is still projected to grow by 1.7 million by 2034, driven by net migration.
The number of people of pensionable age is expected to rise by 1.8 million over the next decade while the number of children falls by 1.6 million.
