The Labour leader wants to step down “in a dignified way,” journalist Dan Hodges wrote
Published 17 May, 2026 04:19
| Updated 17 May, 2026 05:48
UK Prime Minister Keir Starmer at the Coin Street Community Centre in London, May 11, 2026. © Carl Court / Getty Images
UK Prime Minister Keir Starmer is considering resigning amid a deepening political crisis in the ruling Labour Party, according to Daily Mail journalist Dan Hodges.
Starmer became prime minister after leading Labour to a landslide victory in the 2024 general election. Less than two years later, however, his government is facing falling approval ratings, internal divisions, and growing pressure following the party’s poor performance in recent local elections.
In a column published on Saturday, Hodges cited an unnamed cabinet minister as saying that Starmer “understands the political reality” and is considering arranging his departure on his own terms.
“He realizes the current chaos is unsustainable. He simply wants to be able to do it in a dignified way and in a manner of his own choosing. He will set out a timetable,” the source said.
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The newspaper said it remained unclear when such an announcement could come, with some of Starmer’s allies urging him to wait until after the upcoming Makerfield by-election, where former Manchester Mayor Andy Burnham is expected to seek a return to Parliament ahead of a possible Labour leadership bid.
Pressure on Starmer intensified after four junior ministers resigned on Monday. According to the BBC, more than 80 Labour MPs have privately or publicly urged the prime minister to step down, although more than 100 backbenchers and junior ministers later signed a statement arguing that it was “no time for a leadership contest.”
Starmer has remained defiant in public and has indicated that he has no intention of resigning.
“The country expects us to get on with governing. That is what I am doing and what we must do as a cabinet,” he said earlier this week.
The UK has experienced repeated political upheaval since the 2016 Brexit referendum, with four Tory prime ministers serving over the following eight years before Starmer took office. Theresa May, Boris Johnson, and Liz Truss all resigned after internal party revolts.