Sir Keir Starmer announced his resignation on Monday as Britain’s prime minister, setting in motion a leadership contest that could elevate Andy Burnham, a lapsed Catholic and outgoing socialist mayor of Greater Manchester, to the highest office in the land.
Starmer confirmed on Monday morning that he would be resigning as leader of the Labour Party — and therefore as prime minister — and leave office within weeks, remaining as caretaker leader until his successor is chosen. Speaking outside 10 Downing Street, he acknowledged that Labour now needs a new figure to lead it into the next general election, less than two years after winning a landslide that gave the party a commanding majority.
Burnham, a 56-year-old married father of three, is widely seen as waiting “in the wings” to take over and openly admitted in recent weeks that he would contest the Labour leadership. He formally threw his hat in the ring on Monday.
Effectively helicoptered in to replace an increasingly unpopular Starmer by winning a parliamentary by-election in his hometown just last week, his chances of becoming prime minister significantly increased on Monday when his main rival to becoming leader, former health minister Wes Streeting, said he would
