Sir Keir Starmer has resigned as prime minister and leader of the Labour Party, triggering a leadership contest. He will remain as PM until a successor is elected. His resignation speech moved many, including reader C Finn from Sunderland, who wrote: 'Sir Keir's resignation speech moved me to tears. He had stated he would stay put and yet when the pressure to step down from his own party was too great, he had the good grace to resign with dignity and humility.'
Mixed reactions from readers
Bobby Jones from Kidbrooke praised Starmer's record: 'He has lowered NHS waiting lists, given tenants more rights, renationalised rail companies and expanded state-funded childcare. What a sad day.' However, JWA Caley from St Pancras argued that Starmer lost support because he 'pretended to be on the party’s soft left' but then 'dragged the party so far to the right that it has completely lost its purpose.'
Comparison with Tony Blair
Andrew McLuskey from Middlesex noted: 'Sir Keir Starmer achieved a good part of what Tony Blair managed. Like Blair, he pulled Labour back from unelectability to gain power. He then set about a perfectly reasonable social democratic programme of national renewal.' He added that unlike Blair, Starmer leaves 'without any great big blot on his copybook.'
Brexit and political instability
Bob Readman from Sevenoaks compared the resignation to the 'dignified departure of Mark Rutte, Dutch PM for 14 years,' who 'simply rode away from his office on a bicycle.' Pedro from Hammersmith linked the frequent PM changes to Brexit: 'Six prime ministers in ten years? It is very difficult not to link these with Brexit.'
Looking ahead
Liam from Salford questioned what Andy Burnham would bring on key issues, while Samuel from Tooting joked: 'Let’s make Larry the Downing Street cat our next PM!' The letters reflect a divided public opinion on Starmer's legacy and the future of Labour.
