Carmichael hopes for quick changeover of PM after Starmer’s resignation
NORTHERN Isles MP Alistair Carmichael has called for a new prime minister to be appointed quickly after Sir Keir Starmer announced his resignation from the role this morning (Monday).
Carmichael said “we cannot allow this to descend into the chaos of psychodrama that we have seen in the last Conservative government”.
Starmer will remain in the post until Labour choses a new leader, with a hope that this happens before parliament returns in September.
Former Manchester mayor Andy Burnham, who was recently elected as an MP for Makerfield in a by-election, is a viewed as a likely successor.
Starmer entered 10 Downing Street in 2024 after Labour comfortably won a general election.
Despite this he has faced repeated calls from many within the party to step down, with Scottish Labour leader Anas Sarwar also backing his resignation in February.
Among the pressures has been Peter Mandelson’s links to Jeffrey Epstein, with the former US ambassador appointed under Starmer’s tenure.
Speaking outside Downing Street this morning, Starmer said: “The question my party is asking now is whether I am best placed to lead us into the next general election.
“I have heard the answer of my parliamentary party to that question, and I accept that answer with good grace. Every decision I have taken has been about putting the country I love first, that is why I will resign as leader of the Labour party.”
Commenting on the news, Lib Dem MP Carmichael said it was difficult to see what else Starmer could have done by this stage.
“We live in an age of unprecedented geopolitical volatility and we need a prime minister with authority to navigate that,” he said.
“Whatever comes next must come as quickly as possible.”
Carmichael added that there is “no good outcome” for the country, or the Labour party.
“The best we can hope for is the least bad,” he said.
“Whoever comes next has got to understand that the United Kingdom doesn’t just need a change of government but a change in how we are governed.
“We need electoral reform and greater decentralisation of power. Labour talk a lot about change. They have to understand that the present political system is incapable of delivering that.”
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