Andy Burnham became Prime Minister of the United Kingdom on Monday, taking over from Keir Starmer in a handover choreographed around a visit to Buckingham Palace, where Starmer formally resigned and King Charles III then invited Burnham to form a government.
Before heading to the Palace, Starmer delivered a farewell address outside 10 Downing Street, flanked by colleagues and staff who greeted him with cheers and applause. He framed his six and a half years leading the Labour Party and two as Prime Minister around the 2024 landslide election win, pointing to falling immigration numbers, shorter National Health Service waiting times and children lifted out of poverty as markers of his record. He said the job’s most humbling aspect was witnessing everyday “grit, decency, and compassion” across the country, and closed by wishing Burnham “every success,” pledging him “full support” before thanking his family, staff and the wider Labour Party.
“My work is done,” Starmer said. “It has been the privilege of my life to serve you and this great country, as Prime Minister, and I am confident that Britain is now stronger and fairer than it was two years ago.”
Starmer’s final days in office brought a run of international recognition. On July 14, French President Emmanuel Macron awarded him the Legion of Honor for his work with France on European security. Two days later, on a final visit to Kyiv, Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy presented him with the Order of Freedom, Ukraine’s highest honor for a foreign national, citing his support for the country throughout the war with Russia.
