Starmer bids UK lawmakers 'goodbye,' vows to support Burnham

LONDON (AFP) —Outgoing U.K. Prime Minister Keir Starmer on Wednesday pledged his “wholehearted support” to his successor as he prepares to hand over to premier-in-waiting Andy Burnham.

Facing his last weekly grilling from lawmakers in Parliament, Starmer said he wanted to see the next leader of his center-left Labour party succeed.

“I will give my wholehearted support to my successor. I want this Labour government to be a success,” he said, when asked what advice he had for his successor. “I want our country to be a success. I shall give my support privately if asked for, not publicly when not asked for.”

Starmer announced his resignation last month, bowing to months of pressure to step down after a series of scandals, missteps and policy U-turns. They blighted his two-year tenure, after he led his party to victory in 2024 elections following 14 years in opposition.

Burnham is expected to be crowned Labour’s leader on Friday after securing overwhelming support from the party’s 403 ministers of Parliament, or MPs, and the backing of major trade unions.

The party’s comfortable majority in the 650-seat House of Commons means he will automatically become the next prime minister.

On Wednesday, the usual bad-tempered jibes and angry exchanges witnessed in the political theater of the weekly Prime Minister’s Questions, were replaced by gentle ribbing. Starmer was also relaxed, joking with his political foes.

MPs from all parties wished Starmer well, thanking him for his public service and calling on him to ensure that England wins Wednesday’s World Cup semi-final showdown against Argentina and go on to beat Spain in the final on Sunday.

No silver bullet

Even opposition party Conservative leader Kemi Badenoch softened her tone, but could not stop herself from remarking: “He spent a long time laughing that I’d lost control of my party. I think he should have been paying attention to his backbenchers instead of mine.”

But she warned: “Changing prime minister is not a silver bullet. Indeed, it may be that the Labour Party’s troubles are only just beginning.”

“Solving the fundamental problems in this country will require difficult decisions,” she added.

Burnham is to replace Starmer on Monday, shortly after he is expected to meet King Charles III to be asked to form the next government.

He will become Britain’s seventh prime minister in a decade.

MPs broke into a loud round of applause as fervent soccer fan Starmer wished them an emphatic “Goodbye” from the despatch box in the middle of the Parliament floor, saying he had a date with his television at 8 p.m. for the World Cup match.

“This is the end of my political journey,” he said, although he plans to stay on as an MP for the time being.

“In two years in government, I leave the country in better shape than I found it. I am proud of everything that we have achieved,” he said.

Sitting next to him Finance Minister Rachel Reeves, who seems set to lose her job in the next cabinet, was in tears.

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By Agence France-Presse