Keir Starmer Resigns as UK Prime Minister on Monday

Keir Starmer announced his resignation as prime minister on Monday. The announcement came ten years to the day after the 2016 Brexit referendum. Starmer took office after the Labour Party won the July 2024 general election.

Andy Burnham won a by-election last week and was sworn in as a member of Parliament on Monday. Burnham previously served as mayor of Greater Manchester, where the region recorded the fastest economic growth among UK regions. He has said he would pursue greater public ownership of utilities and changes to the social care system.

Britain’s economy ranks as the world’s sixth largest and the country holds one of five permanent seats on the United Nations Security Council. Net migration rose from 335,000 in 2016 to 944,000 in 2023. A U.K.

In a Changing Europe analysis estimated the economy is 6 to 8 percent smaller than it would have been without Brexit. Starmer’s government recorded a decline in net migration and a reduction in hospital waiting lists before his resignation. School spending per pupil fell 9 percent between 2010 and 2019, and welfare budgets were 10 percent lower than projected by 2020, according to government data.

Real average wages have shown no increase since 2008 after adjusting for inflation. A London School of Economics study estimated that austerity measures between 2010 and 2019 reduced average life expectancy in Britain by half a year. The next prime minister will face pressure to raise defense spending as U.S.

Commitments in Europe change. Burnham’s predecessor left office after policy reversals and scandals. No official timeline for the leadership contest has been announced.