Tomorrow marks the 10th anniversary of the referendum to leave the EU, which means Wednesday is the 10th anniversary of the day David Cameron announced his resignation as prime minister. After Cameron was forced out by the result of his own referendum, another three Tory PMs were forced out by their own MPs (Theresa May, Boris Johnson, and Liz Truss), and another was forced out by the electorate (Rishi Sunak). Keir Starmer has been PM for less than two years, but he is about to become the sixth PM forced out within a decade, being replaced almost certainly by Andy Burnham.
Britain's Political Turmoil
In the past, the British used to joke about Italy being a country where prime ministers kept changing all the time. These days Italy looks like a beacon of stability, and Britain has become the place never far from another bout of political turmoil. Starmer spent the weekend pondering his future at Chequers. He is back in London now and – although No 10 has not confirmed this – journalists are on standby for an announcement potentially this morning.
According to a report by Peter Walker and Pippa Crerar, Starmer is expected to announce an exit plan to clear the way for Burnham to become PM. While a Starmer resignation looks inevitable, it remains unclear whether there will be a leadership election or, more likely, an uncontested handover of power to Burnham. It is also unknown whether Starmer will propose staying on until September or whether the handover will be accelerated.
Key Timings Today
The crucial event is not in the diary because it has not been confirmed, but these are the timings we do have. At 11:30am, Downing Street is expected to hold a lobby briefing. At 2:30pm, Andy Burnham is due to take his seat in the Commons as the new MP for Makerfield. After 3:30pm, Keir Starmer is expected to make a Commons statement about the G7 summit last week.
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