Keir Starmer pledges ‘wholehearted support’ to Andy Burnham in final PMQs
Sir Keir Starmer has pledged to give his “wholehearted support” to prime minister-in-waiting Andy Burnham, as he made his final appearance at the despatch box.
The Prime Minister said he will “give my support privately if asked for, not publicly when not asked for”, as he faced his last Prime Minister’s Questions.
He also thanked Conservative leader Kemi Badenoch for her “kindness” after the death of his brother and the arson attack on his family home.
Sir Keir told the Commons he was “proud to leave this country in a better shape than I found it”, as his wife Victoria watched from the chamber alongside their two children.
Asked whether he had any advice for Mr Burnham, Sir Keir said: “I will give my wholehearted support to my successor.
“I want this Labour Government to be a success. I want our country to be a success. I shall give my support privately if asked for, not publicly when not asked for.”
The former Greater Manchester mayor’s premiership has already been confirmed after he received the backing of 369 of the party’s 403 MPs, making it mathematically impossible for a rival to enter the contest.
Under Labour rules, candidates need the backing of 81 MPs to stand in a contest, meaning he is set for a coronation.
Sir Keir will leave No 10 on Monday to make way for the Labour MP for Makerfield.
He is spending his final days in office highlighting what he sees as his legacy – support for Ukraine and championing domestic campaigns like the Hillsborough Law.
He told the Commons: “I picked up our party, I turned it round. I made a promise to rip antisemitism out of my party, and I did.
“I turned my party to face the country, and we won a landslide Labour general election.
“And after two years, we’ve stabilised the economy. We have invested heavily in our public services. We’ve put better protections in for children, particularly on child poverty, we’ve strengthened our defence, and we’ve enhanced our international reputation.
“I’m proud to leave this country in a better shape than I found it.”
Speaker Sir Lindsay Hoyle paid tribute to Sir Keir, thanking him “for his public service, his international leadership, particularly in his steadfast support for Ukraine”.
Sir Keir reiterated the need for cross-party consensus on support for Ukraine.
Mrs Badenoch said she “admired” him for inviting Volodymyr Zelensky to Downing Street after the Ukrainian president’s confrontation with Donald Trump and other senior members of the US administration.
Sir Keir said: “I had a meeting with him to tell him that in this country we will stand with him and Ukraine, and I didn’t let him leave alone.
“I walked him out to his car because we don’t let people in Britain walk out of our Britain, walk out of our buildings – we escort them out.”
Published: by Radio NewsHub