Key events 5h ago Early evening summary 6h ago Burnham says he is 'concerned' about plans for Freeview TV to be switched off by 2034 6h ago Burnham says his Northern Ireland border poll comment 'misunderstood', and Good Friday agreement could allow one 6h ago Burnham suggests Shropshire could also get devolution benefits without being part of combined authority 6h ago Burnham urges Scottish government to back bringing Glasgow's bus service back under public control 6h ago Burnham says he has 'open mind' about beefing up elections bill with caps on political donations 6h ago Burnham says he '100%' backs getting social media companies to remove non-consensual explict content more quickly 7h ago Burnham says E1 settlement on West Bank could kill off prospects for two-state solution for Israel and Palestine 7h ago Burnham tells Reform UK's Richard Tice he's wrong to think it's either/or with fossil fuels and renewables 7h ago Lib Dems welcome Burnham saying Cornwall won't need to merge with Devon to get benefits of devolution deal 7h ago Burnham says government needs mandate for electoral reform, but it could happen in next parliament 7h ago Burnham says he will focus on farming because he sees it as part of UK's 'sovereign production and manufacturing capacity' 7h ago Burnham says too many young people on benefits - but blames education system for letting them down 8h ago Burnham confirms he wants political reform, including looking at voting system 8h ago Burnham says he cut taxes twice in his first week, as he rejects Badenoch's attack on his economic policies 8h ago Badenoch says Burnham's theory of growth 'completely wrong' 8h ago Burnham says he will ensure areas in England without mayors can also benefit from devolution deals 8h ago Burnham claims he has 'clear diagnosis of what has gone wrong' with UK 8h ago Burnham says country needs 'substantial change', and he will deliver it 8h ago Burnham says problems with indefinite IPP sentences have been 'ignored for too long' 8h ago Burnham says he will attend Cop31 climate conference in Turkey later this year 8h ago Britain's defence 'starts in Ukraine', says Burnham 8h ago Burnham starts statement to MPs with tribute to Starmer, saying he gave Labour a platform 'and we will use it well' 8h ago John Swinney announces plans to slash number of NHS boards in Scotland 9h ago What election experts are saying about Holborn and St Pancras byelection 9h ago Ed Miliband says government accepts need for 'step change' in action to stop expansion of illegal West Bank settlements 9h ago Farage takes seat in Commons after winning Clacton byelection 10h ago How Zack Polanski told an interviewer in April he would 'almost certainly' stand in any London byelection 10h ago Is it unusual for a former PM to quit the Commons before a general election? 11h ago Starmer leaves 'shameful legacy', says Your Party 11h ago Burnham says government has had 'strong sense of momentum' since he became PM 11h ago Starmer says it is 'right to step down' given his decision to focus now on international affairs 11h ago Greens don't rule out Zack Polanski standing in Holborn and St Pancras byelection 11h ago Tories describe Starmer's decision to trigger 'costly' byelection as 'yet another U-turn' given pledge to stay as backbencher 12h ago Starmer to quit parliament, triggering byelection in Holborn and St Pancras in north London 12h ago Badenoch names Alex Burghart as deputy Tory leader 13h ago Higher public spending alone won't make UK richer, Darren Jones tells Burnham 14h ago Long-term UK borrowing costs reach 28-year high 14h ago Healey says next year's spending review will set out 'clear path' to raise defence spending to 3.5% of GDP by 2035 14h ago Justice secretary Alex Norris says prisons will still function under plan to turn laundries into cells 15h ago Small boat crossings during summer months have fallen to seven-year low, Home Office says 15h ago Burnham to say he wants to unlock ‘positivity’ in first statement to MPs since becoming PM How Zack Polanski told an interviewer in April he would 'almost certainly' stand in any London byelection In an interview in April, Zack Polanski , the Green party leader, said he would “almost certainly” run in a future byelection in London. He told La Repubblica’s Antonello Guerrera: double quotation mark So when Gorton and Denton came up and people asked me, obsessively, are you going to run? And I didn’t run because, although I’m from Manchester, I’ve lived in London nearly 20, or over 20, years now.
And so there would have been a narrative to say, oh, it’s my hometown, I’m going back. But I think that would have been dishonest. Secondly, I knew we had amazing candidates like Hannah Spencer, where I wanted a candidate from a local community.
I think I was proven to be right. If there was another byelection outside of London, I still wouldn’t be running in it. We have amazing candidates right across the rest of the country.
If there’s a byelection in London, I’ll almost certainly be running, well, depending on where it is. I live in Hackney, so if it’s somewhere around Hackney, so you could be looking to Hackney North, Hackney South, Walthamstow, Holborn and St Pancras, if Keir Starmer is going anywhere, and even, you know, Tower Hamlets. I think, generally, around the east of London, in the northeast, I’ve lived there for a long time.
I have a connection to the place. I think there are other places in London where I’m already a London Assembly member, but I have less legitimate connection. Keir Starmer has posed a statement on social media about his decision to stand down as an MP.
It is much the same as what he told the Camden New Journal. (See 1.06pm .) Is it unusual for a former PM to quit the Commons before a general election? Keir Starmer is not the first ex-PM to change his mind about remaining in the House of Commons until the next election as a backbencher. David Cameron also resigned as PM in July, only to quit the Commons for good two months later.
He initially thought he could stay as MP without causing trouble for his successor, Theresa May, but quickly realised on some issues he would not be able to support her. (He announced he was going very soon after she hinted she would lift his block on new grammar schools.) Tony Blair did not even leave it that long; he resigned as an MP the same day he left Downing Street, realising that if he were to stay in the Commons with Gordon Brown as PM, that would probably be intolerable for both of them. Boris Johnson also resigned early as an MP after leaving Downing Street – but that was because the privileges committee was about to say he should be suspended for lying about Partygate. Other ex-PMs, like Theresa May and Liz Truss, have remained in the Commons after being forced out of No 10 midway through a parliament.
May even stood for re-election at the subsequent general election (2019) following her return to the backbenches, as did Harold Wilson (in 1979). Most PMs who lose office at a general election when their party loses only subsequently serve one more term in the Commons as a backbencher. But James Callaghan served for two more parliaments after he lost the 1979 general election, ending up as father of the house, and Edward Heath spent another 27 years in the Commons after losing both 1974 general elections.
Before the 2024 election critics claimed that, if Rishi Sunak lost, he would swiftly give up his seat and move to California. But he remains MP for Richmond and North Allerton and seems determined to stay until the next election. Andy Burnham will start his Commons statement at 3.30pm.
The Commons authorities have confirmed that there will be no urgent questions (which would have come first). The statement is being described as being about “government direction”. Afterwards, from about 5.30pm, Alex Norris, the justice secretary, will give one on the prisoner early release scheme.
And then Shabana Mahmood, the home secretary, will give a statement on policing in Cleveland. Starmer leaves 'shameful legacy', says Your Party Your Party , the leftwing party founded by Jeremy Corbyn and others, has said Keir Starmer leaves a “shameful legacy”. A Your Party spokesperson said: double quotation mark Keir Starmer leaves behind a party hollowed out, millions of voters disillusioned and a shameful record of British complicity in the genocide in Gaza.
He entered politics as a human rights lawyer and leaves having abandoned those principles when they mattered most. Now he is abandoning his constituents too. That’s certainly a legacy!
Starmer may run, but he can’t hide from the shameful legacy he leaves behind. Corbyn was suspended and then ultimately expelled from Labour after Starmer replaced him as the party’s leader. Burnham says government has had 'strong sense of momentum' since he became PM Andy Burnham told colleagues at cabinet that he thought the government had established “a strong sense of momentum” since he became PM.
At the No 10 lobby briefing, giving a readout from what was said at cabinet, the PM’s spokesperson said: double quotation mark The prime minister opened cabinet by thanking colleagues for establishing a strong sense of momentum in his first weeks in office. He said the country had noticed a change of pace, with the government setting the agenda and starting the process of giving local areas the levers they need to create good growth. He said that during his summer tour it was clear that life was hard for many people, but that they wanted to have hope and hear a positive outlook for the country.
According to the spokesperson, Burnham also used his opening remarks to thank Alex Norris, the justice secretary, for his work on changing the prisoner early release scheme and Shabana Mahmood, the home secretary, for her “relentless work on small boat crossings”. (See 9.29am .) Andy Burnham leading the cabinet meeting on Tuesday. Photograph: Simon Dawson/No 10 Downing Street Starmer says it is 'right to step down' given his decision to focus now on international affairs Here are some more quotes from the interview Keir Starme r gave to the Camden New Journal announcing his decision to stand down. Starmer said he wanted to focus on issues like international affairs, defence, security, trade and technology.
He said: double quotation mark I will now focus on other things and that will be international affairs including defence, security, trade and technology in a fast-changing world. I will also continue, as I have done for a long time now with others, work on combating violence against women and girls; that is an issue that matters to me hugely. It’s work I started before I became an MP and it’s work I’m keen to continue after I’m an MP.
So international affairs on the one hand, and continuing my work on violence against women and girls on the other. He said that, given his new priorities, he thought it was right to leave parliament. He said: double quotation mark I think once you’ve been prime minister, it’s important to answer the question: what are you going to do next?
Having decided I’m going to concentrate on international affairs, I think it’s right to step down [as MP]. He said he would not be backing any candidate seeking the Labour nomination to succeed him. He said: double quotation mark The constituency Labour party has got many, many fantastic people and there will be no shortage of first class candidates.
He highlighted changes the Labour government had made to his constituency. He said: double quotation mark In terms of some of the things that have changed: we are opening ten breakfast clubs across the constituency – five of them opened in April, five more will be opened when the schools go back this week. I think breakfast clubs make a huge difference for children and parents because everybody knows that a child that hasn’t eaten before they try to start learning is not going to learn as well as other children.” Free school meals are coming again this week, that’s 4,600 children in the constituency that will now benefit, the minimum wage increase will make a difference to thousands of workers across Camden who are on or near the minimum wage and there’s an increase in the number of GPs.
The two child benefit cap being lifted will affect 2,500 children in the constituency who will now begin to be lifted out of poverty. Then there’s the Renters’ Rights Act – 16,500 renters in Holborn and St Pancras – and of course everybody who is at work will benefit under the Employment Rights Act. And he said no Labour leader had ever achieved what he did in rescuing the party from defeat.
He said: double quotation mark My years on the frontline were basically six and a half years because it was from picking up the Labour party in 2019 from the worst election result since 1935 and turning it around to a general election landslide victory in 2024, while most people said it wouldn’t be possible to win the election in 2024 – let alone win it with a landslide. No leader has ever pulled such a swing across from such a low base to a landslide in the way that we did. Greens don't rule out Zack Polanski standing in Holborn and St Pancras byelection The Greens have not ruled out Zack Polanski, the party’s leader, standing as their candidate to replace Keir Starmer as MP for Holborn and St Pancras, my colleague Jessica Elgot reports . double quotation mark NEW - A Green party spokesman said: “Zack has always made it clear he would like to be a London MP.
London has been his home for over 20 years.” Sounds like Polanski might fancy a tilt at Holborn and St Pancras. Tories describe Starmer's decision to trigger 'costly' byelection as 'yet another U-turn' given pledge to stay as backbencher This is from Kevin Hollinrake , the Conservative party chair, on Keir Starmer resigning as an MP. double quotation mark Whilst we have disagreed with almost all of Sir Keir Starmer’s decisions, I wish him and his family well for the future. It is fitting that his final act as a member of parliament is yet another U-turn having pledged to stay on.
The decision to stand down will mean a costly byelection for taxpayers at a time when Andy Burnham are John Healey are plotting tax rises on hardworking families across the country. The Conservatives look forward to giving the people of Holborn and St Pancras a chance to vote for a stronger economy and a stronger country in the weeks ahead. In June, Starmer’s spokesperson said that Starmer would remain as an MP until the next election shortly before Starmer stood down as PM.
Starmer to quit parliament, triggering byelection in Holborn and St Pancras in north London Keir Starmer is going to resign as an MP, his local paper, the Camden New Journal, is reporting. When he resigned as PM, Starmer said he planned to stay as a backbench MP until the next election. But he has changed his mind, the paper reports.
It says: double quotation mark After weeks of speculation about his future plans, [Starmer] chose his local newspaper to explain why he felt it was the “right time” to leave the House of Commons and concentrate on new work on international affairs. He told the New Journal that, after leaving Downing Street at the end of July, he had reflected on what lay ahead and that he was ready to “pass the baton to a successor”, adding: “It has been a huge honour and privilege to represent the best constituency in the country and to have taken over from Frank Dobson, who was such a great constituency MP and a member of the last Labour government. I will now focus on other things and that will be international affairs including defence, security, trade and technology in a fast-changing world.
“I will also continue, as I have done for a long time now with others, work on combating violence against women and girls; that is an issue that matters to me hugely. It’s work I started before I became an MP and it’s work I’m keen to continue after I’m an MP. So international affairs on the one hand, and continuing my work on violence against women and girls on the other.” This means there will be a byelection in Holborn and St Pancras in north London, where Starmer had a majority of 11,572 at the last election.
At one point there were fears this could lead to Labour losing the seat to the Green party, but in recent weeks Labour’s national poll ratings have been rising and support for the Greens is on the wane.
Source: The Guardian
