Andy BurnhaM. (Photo: Henry Nichollis/AFP)
On Monday, Britain will get its seventh prime minister since the start of 2016 when Andy Burnham takes over from Keir Starmer following Starmer’s resignation.
The Labor Party has previously criticized the rapid succession of leaders in the Conservative Party when that party was in power, but then replaced its own unpopular leader within two years of its victory in the July 2024 general election.
The 56-year-old Burnham was expected to acknowledge this trend in his inaugural address and said he was “well aware” of the need for greater political stability.
Starmer announced his resignation in June after months of waning support in opinion polls and political maneuvering by his own MPs who backed Burnham to take over.
Starmer came to power in July 2024 with overwhelming support in the general election, ending 14 years of Conservative rule.
At the time, he criticized the “chaos” of the constant change of leaders in the Conservative Party. The party had five prime ministers between 2016 and 2024, but Starmer’s own party eventually followed suit.
Here is information on the six prime ministers who have been in power since the start of 2016:
David Cameron
David Cameron, May 2010 – July 2016
Britain’s decision to leave the European Union brought Cameron’s second term as prime minister to an end.
After the country voted in a referendum in June 2016 to leave the EU, Cameron, who campaigned for Britain to remain part of the bloc, resigned.
Theresa May announces her resignation as British Prime Minister outside 10 Downing Street in London. (May 24, 2019). (Photo: Yui Mok/PA via AP)
Theresa May, Julie 2016 – Julie 2019
May took over amid the aftermath of the Brexit referendum after serving as home secretary for a long time – a position known for the challenges that come with it.
She held an early election the following year in an attempt to strengthen her hand in Brexit negotiations. However, the decision did not work when her party did remain the largest in parliament, but lost its majority.
After she failed to get her Brexit deal approved by parliament, the Conservative Party suffered a resounding defeat in the European Parliament elections in May 2019, which led to her resignation.
Boris Johnson (Foto: JESSICA TAYLOR/various sources/AFP)
Boris Johnson, Julie 2019 – September 2022
Johnson, a politician known for making a career out of breaking the rules, had to lead Britain through the Covid-19 pandemic and its exit from the European Union.
He led the Conservative Party to victory in the early general election of December 2019.
However, his position was weakened by several scandals and he was finally forced to step down after a wave of resignations by ministers and associates.
Liz Truss (Photo: Adrian Dennis / AFP)
Liz Truss, September 2022 – October 2022
Truss was prime minister for just 49 days – the shortest tenure to date – before she was forced out of office because of her disastrous mini-budget which included tax cuts.
Her economic agenda has spooked the markets and brought the United Kingdom to the brink of financial collapse. This ultimately cost her the support of her own party.
Rishi Sunak (October 2022) (Photo: Daniel Leal/AFP)
Rishi Sunak, October 2022 – Julie 2024
Sunak was at the helm for 20 months before losing the 2024 general election to Starmer. It ended 14 years of Conservative Party rule.
He brought some stability after the Truss debacle, but could not end the bitter infighting in the Conservative Party.
The wealthy former financier ultimately failed to resonate with ordinary voters who were grappling with a cost-of-living crisis.
Keir Starmer, British premier (Photo: Peter Nicholls / POOL / AFP)
Keir Starmer, Julie 2024 – Julie 2026
The 63-year-old Starmer has been praised internationally because he is against the American pres. Donald Trump took a stand on the war in Iran and maintained European support for Ukraine.
At home, however, he took unpopular steps to cut social benefits. These measures were later watered down under pressure from left-leaning members of parliament. He also increased business costs in the midst of a cost of living crisis.
Starmer struggled to counter the rise of the far-right Reform UK party led by Nigel Farage, while the Labor Party suffered humiliating defeats in local elections in May.
Questions were also asked about his judgment after he appointed Peter Mandelson as British ambassador to Washington and later fired him because of his links to Jeffrey Epstein, the American sex offender who died in custody.