Trump says UK Prime Minister Starmer ’failed badly,’ will resign

Investing.com – U.S. President Donald Trump said on Sunday that British Prime Minister Keir Starmer will resign, lashing out at the UK leader’s record on immigration and energy policy as pressure mounts on Downing Street.

“Keir Starmer will resign as Prime Minister of The United Kingdom,” Trump wrote in a post on his Truth Social platform. “He failed badly on two very important subjects- IMMIGRATION AND ENERGY (OPEN NORTH SEA OIL!). I wish him well!”

Trump’s comments add fuel to a burgeoning political crisis in London, where Starmer is widely expected by allies to announce a timetable for his departure as early as Monday, according to the Observer.

Downing Street has yet to issue an official statement regarding the U.S. president’s comments or the mounting leadership speculation.

The British prime minister’s authority has evaporated following months of intense internal dissent, culminating on Thursday when his high-profile party rival, former Greater Manchester Mayor Andy Burnham, won a crucial parliamentary by-election in the Makerfield constituency.

The by-election was engineered to bring Burnham back into the House of Commons, clearing the path under Labour Party rules for a formal challenge to Starmer’s leadership.

The public rebuke from the U.S. president underscores the breakdown in relations between Washington and London.

While Starmer initially sought to maintain close ties with the Republican administration following Trump’s inauguration, the relationship reportedly fractured over foreign policy, particularly Starmer’s reluctance to offer full British military backing for U.S.-led operations in the Middle East, according to The Guardian. 

If Starmer steps down, it will trigger a Labour leadership contest and set the United Kingdom on course to install its seventh prime minister in a decade.