Starmer says Britain ‘stronger and fairer’ since his election as he bids farewell as PM

By AP 20 July 2026, 1:38 pm

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Britain’s outgoing Prime Minister Keir Starmer speaks as he leaves 10 Downing Street in London, July 20, 2026. (AP Photo/Kirsty Wigglesworth)

British Prime Minister Keir Starmer says goodbye with a short speech outside the prime minister’s 10 Downing Street residence, saying, “My work is done.”

The outgoing leader, forced to resign by his own party, says Britain is now “stronger and fairer than it was two years ago,” when he took office.

“I go with good grace, I go with a smile, and I go proud of everything that we have achieved,” Starmer says before heading to Buckingham Palace to offer his resignation to King Charles III.

Newly elected Labour Party leader Andy Burnham will then go to the palace in his turn, and Charles will ask him to form a government. That’s when he officially becomes prime minister, a moment known as “kissing hands.”