UK PM Starmer Steps Down, Pledges Smooth Transition as Burnham Leads Race

Outgoing UK Prime Minister Keir Starmer has vowed to make the transition of power as smooth as possible, as two Labour lawmakers consider challenging frontrunner Andy Burnham for the leadership.

Starmer, who announced on Monday he was stepping down after losing the support of his own MPs, has authorised access talks with prospective successors to begin as soon as possible, Downing Street said.

The Prime Minister, in office for nearly two years, told his senior ministerial team during their weekly meeting that he wanted an 'orderly' handover and for whoever replaces him to succeed.

'The Prime Minister said he would seek to make the transition as easy as possible, giving his full support to whoever followed in his footsteps,' a government readout of the meeting said.

Labour veteran Andy Burnham, 56, is the overwhelming favourite to replace Starmer, despite only becoming eligible for the top job after winning a parliamentary by-election last Thursday.

The former Manchester Mayor was clapped and cheered as about 200 Labour MPs welcomed him back to parliament after a nine-year absence for his swearing-in on Monday, hours after Starmer tendered his resignation.

Starmer's official spokesman told reporters that meetings between Burnham's team and senior civil servants could begin before nominations to become Labour leader open on July 9. Nominations close on July 16, and Burnham could be in 10 Downing Street by the following day if unchallenged.

Former armed forces minister Al Carns told an event on Tuesday that he wanted to hear Burnham's 'vision' for the country before deciding whether to stand. UK media reported that government minister Darren Jones was being encouraged to run by some MPs. A person close to Jones told AFP that he considered a run 'very unlikely'.

Government Minister Nick Thomas-Symonds echoed many Labour lawmakers when he told Sky News that a 'swift transition' was in 'the best interests of the country'.

A contest would last several weeks and could be bitterly divisive, but some MPs insist forcing Burnham to win a contest would add legitimacy to his premiership since he would become prime minister without winning a general election. The Labour party won a landslide victory in the July 2024 general election and is the biggest party in parliament, meaning its leader automatically has the right to be prime minister.

Labour MP John Slinger told BBC radio that the public would think 'we'd slightly lost our minds if we didn't go through a process where we subject people who aspire to the highest office in the land to completely normal scrutiny'. Fellow backbencher Nadia Whittome also called for a contest, telling the BBC that 'candidates setting out their stall transparently' would make Labour and the government stronger.

Burnham's path to Number 10 looks clear after his nearest rival, Wes Streeting, announced on Monday he would not compete. Any challenger would likely find it difficult to secure the support of the 81 of Labour's 403 MPs needed to join the race. 'Andy has such a head of steam it would be quixotic,' one Labour MP, who asked not to be named, told AFP, adding that a contest would be 'hugely expensive and time-consuming'. 'We need unity now,' he said.