The outgoing Prime Minister Keir Starmer, who had made history two years ago, when he led the Labour Party in one of the largest victories in modern times, made history again on Monday (July 20, 2026), but this time for becoming the U.K.\u2019s shortest serving Labour Prime Minister<\/p>\n
![\"Britain's](\"https:\/\/th-i.thgim.com\/public\/incoming\/xnubv3\/article71245442.ece\/alternates\/FREE_1200\/APTOPIX_Britain_Politics_75423.jpg\" "\\"Britain's")
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Britain’s outgoing Prime Minister Keir Starmer and wife Victoria wave as they leave 10 Downing Street in London on July 20, 2026.
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<\/div>\n \u201cI go with good grace, I go with a smile, and I go proud of everything that we have achieved,\u201d Mr. Starmer said in brief remarks outside on Downing Street, as he wished his successor \u201cevery success\u201d.<\/p>\n Editorial | Downing streak: On the Starmer resignation, British politics<\/a><\/b><\/strong><\/p>\n \u201cWe will make this moment a circuit breaker for Britain, bringing forward the biggest changes in the last 40 years: a new political model and a new economic model,\u201d Mr. Burnham said outside No.10 Downing Street, minutes after he was ceremonially invited to form a government by Britain\u2019s Monarch King Charles III.\u00a0Mr Burnham\u2019s wife, the Dutch-born Marie-France van Heel, was also present as were large numbers of the Prime Minister\u2019s supporters, including his mother and Josh Simons, the MP who vacated his Makerfield seat, so Mr Burnham could win it and return to Westminster.<\/p>\n \u201cI am acutely conscious that I am \u2026 the seventh Prime Minister since 2016, making this a moment for reflection and new resolution,\u201d Mr. Burnham said, adding that Britain needed to show the world it could regain its stability. He went on to add that the U.K. had taken wrong turns since the 1980s, by privatizing economic power and centralizing political power.<\/p>\n Andy Burnham: U.K.\u2019s latest PM | Infographics<\/a><\/b><\/strong><\/p>\n He reiterated his messages from recent months including his wish to see greater greater public control of utilities, supporting supporting young people to enter and stay\u00a0in the workforce to bring down the welfare bill and spreading power more evenly across the U.K.<\/p>\n \u00a0\u201c\u2026We will take power out of here and carry it into every postcode in the land,\u201d he said.\u00a0Mr Burnham had said in recent weeks that he would create a \u2018No. 10 North\u2019 \u2014 a hub office in Manchester to manage the redistribution of power. His first actions in office on Monday would be to \u201cend rough sleeping [homelessness]\u201d in the U.K., Mr. Burnham said.\u00a0\u00a0<\/p>\n The U.K. would have a new ten year plan, later this year, Mr. Burnham said, adding that he would issue more immediate orders starting Tuesday, to help with the cost of living along with details on how he would fund this.\u00a0His first action in office on Monday would be to \u201cend rough sleeping [homelessness]\u201d in the U.K.<\/p>\n Mr Burnham did not mention Mr. Starmer\u2019s name during his remarks, although he paid tribute to the man he\u00a0ousted, on Friday, after accepting the leadership of their party.\u00a0Mr. Burnham has had longstanding leadership ambitions; he tried unsuccessfully to become party Leader in 2010 and 2015.<\/p>\n The new Prime Minister has used the word \u2018Manchesterism\u2019 to describe his policies \u2013 which included the unification of Manchester\u2019s public transport networks under greater public oversight. Little, however, is known about Mr. Burnham\u2019s foreign policy generally and regarding the U.K.-India relationship.<\/p>\n The 56-year-old Mr, Burnham is pro-European; he has said previously that he hopes to see the U.K. back in the E.U. during his lifetime although he said he would not act to bring that about during his term in office. He apologized in recent days for Labour\u2019s initial position on the Israel-Gaza conflict and has promised firmer actions against Israel. He appears to be pro-NATO and has indicated he will be bound by Mr. Starmer\u2019s \u00a315 billion defence investment plan which was announced in recent days.\u00a0Mr. Burhnam recently said that British support for Ukraine \u201cwill not waiver\u201d and that the U.S. was the county\u2019s most important security ally. The new Prime Minister has committed\u00a0to keeping Jonathan Powell in post as the U.K.\u2019s national security adviser.<\/p>\n Roughly an hour and a half before Mr Burnham\u2019s speech, Mr Starmer had spoken outside No. 10, surrounded by his wife Victoria, supporters and members of his administration \u2014 including\u00a0outgoing\u00a0Chancellor of the Exchequer Rachel Reeves, Deputy Prime Minister David Lammy and London\u2019s mayor Sadiq Khan.<\/p>\n Mr. Starmer, a centrist, struggled to hold Labour together since 2024, with internecine battles growing over policy differences ranging from welfare spending to Labour not taking a strong enough stance against Israel for its killing of civilians in Gaza.<\/p>\n Mr. Starmer\u2019s credibility within the party took a further hit around his appointment of a controversial U.S. envoy and the resignation of several of his key staffers. His relationship with union leaders began to sour when he was still Leader of the Opposition, after he sacked an MP who had made an unauthorised media appearance alongside rail workers on a picket line. These ties frayed further despite his government passing the Employment Rights Acts 2025 to strengthen certain rights for workers. For instance, Labour lost support among energy workers over net-zero policies.<\/p>\n Reports of his managerial style within the party and the Cabinet also cost Mr. Starmer support from his colleagues. The final blows to Mr Starmer\u2019s position came after Labour lost a crucial byelection to the Greens in the north west of England this year, followed by a major defeat to Reform in English council elections and losses to other parties in the Welsh and Scottish Assembly elections in May.<\/p>\n Mr. Starmer was given an emotional farewell during the weekly parliamentary Prime Minister\u2019s Questions (PMQs) last week, with colleagues and Opposition leaders praising him. In speeches, social media posts and interviews, Mr. Starmer and some of his colleagues \u2014 including Mr. Burnham \u2014 have sought in recent days to clearly articulate the outgoing Prime Minister\u2019s achievements as a means to give Mr. Starmer\u2019s exit dignity and order.<\/p>\n The message has included Mr. Starmer being responsible for Labour\u2019s return from the political wilderness in 2024, actions to tackle child poverty in the U.K. such as the two-child benefit cap, strengthening workers\u2019 and tenants\u2019 rights, cutting wait times for medical appointments in the public healthcare system, and his support for Ukraine.<\/p>\n![\"\"](\"https:\/\/th-i.thgim.com\/public\/incoming\/p4icde\/article71245602.ece\/alternates\/SQUARE_80\/2026-07-20T115305Z_833267995_RC2NHMAIIZR4_RTRMADP_3_BRITAIN-POLITICS.JPG\")
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