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- Retirement didn't play out: London will maintain support for Ukraine even without Starmer
Retirement didn't play out: London will maintain support for Ukraine even without Starmer
Andy Burnham may become the next British prime minister after Keir Starmer's resignation, experts say. However, the arrival of the former mayor of Greater Manchester does not solve the main problem of the Labor party: the party is losing ratings due to problems in the economy, migration scandals and problems in healthcare. Another change of prime minister — the sixth in 10 years — is unlikely to lead to a warming in relations between London and Moscow. Burnham is known for his harsh statements about Russia, and support for Ukraine has become part of a broader British policy in Europe.
The resignation of Keir Starmer
British Prime Minister Keir Starmer announced his resignation on June 22, less than two years after the victory of the Labor Party in the parliamentary elections. However, he will not be able to leave the post immediately and will remain at the head of the cabinet until the election of a new party leader, that is, until September.
The frequent succession of British prime ministers is already being ironic, even in a comic account run on behalf of Larry the cat, the main mousetrap of the prime minister's residence.
Larry the Cat
"Soon I will be living with the seventh Prime Minister. If this continues, I will stop trying to learn their names," says a post on the social network X.
Larry appeared on Downing Street in 2011 and since then has found David Cameron, Theresa May, Boris Johnson, Liz Truss, Rishi Sunak and finally Keir Starmer. Johnson lasted the longest of all of them — almost three years, the least of all the Tracks — only 50 days. Then the media even launched a challenge: whose "shelf life" would expire earlier — Pistachios or lettuce. Unsurprisingly, the latter turned out to be tougher.
The pressure on Starmer intensified over the weekend. According to media reports, he was called upon to leave not only by Labor MPs, but also by some members of the government. The British prime minister's resignation was expected even in Washington: even before Starmer's official announcement, US President Donald Trump announced his resignation and accused his ally of failures in British domestic policy.
The last straw for Starmer was the internal party struggle. On June 18, former Greater Manchester Mayor Andy Burnham won a by-election and returned to the House of Commons. Prior to that, he could not fully claim leadership in the Labor Party, since the British prime minister is usually chosen from among the deputies of the lower house. Now it is Burnham who the British media call the main contender for the post of head of government.
Andy Burnham talks with Speaker of the House of Commons Lindsey Hoyle after taking the oath of office
But he will inherit falling ratings. The party came to power in 2024, winning an overwhelming majority of seats in the House of Commons and promising to restore stability to the country after years of crises under the Conservatives. Starmer promised to revive the economy, reduce hospital waiting lists, control migration and reduce general tension in society. None of this could be done.
Starmer won only because voters were simply tired of conservatives and frequent changes of prime ministers, said Sergey Shein, a senior researcher at the Central Committee of the Russian Academy of Sciences.
— And as soon as he came to power, the anti-conservative coalition became disillusioned with him. He did not have a clearly formulated program and did not have sufficient competencies to implement this program, even if there was one," the expert emphasized.
Moreover, Starmer's departure should prevent a split among the Labor Party during the election of a new leader and, most likely, a prime minister. If a serious internal party struggle begins, the opposition may raise the issue of new general elections, Shein believes.
The Conservative Party retains its chances of returning to power despite the current crisis, Richard Balfe, a member of the House of Lords, told Izvestia.
— Conservatives are gradually coming to their senses. Even if they don't become a government after the next general election, they will return to power within the next 15 years," he believes.
Balfe recalled that Starmer, although he won a large majority in the elections, became extremely unpopular two years later. This, according to the Lord, shows how quickly the political situation in the United Kingdom can change.
The failures of Starmer's policy
Starmer began to be pressured by his own people for fear of an increase in the ratings of the opposition Reform UK. Nigel Farage's political force is actively playing on issues that are painful for the British and has already become the most popular party in the country. Migration remains the main topic for half of British society. Among the supporters of Reform UK, 83% consider it a key problem. Anti-immigrant demonstrations and attacks on mosques and hotels where asylum seekers live continue in the country.
A few weeks before his resignation, another scandal broke out related to the case of 18-year-old student Henry Novak, who was killed in Southampton in December 2025. In June 2026, the police released a chest camera recording showing how a mortally wounded Novak was handcuffed after his killer, a 23-year-old Sikh, gave false testimony to hide his crime, accusing the Briton of racism. Moreover, a 21-centimeter ceremonial blade was used to kill. In the UK, carrying such weapons in public places is prohibited without a valid reason, but there is a religious exception for Sikhs.
Another notable area of Starmer's policy was the tightening of control on the Internet. The authorities have introduced checks for access to adult content and announced a ban on large social networks for children under the age of 16. Critics saw this as a move towards total control over the online space. Because of this, Starmer received the nickname Kir Stalin in British memes.
Traditional criteria also worked against Starmer. The economy grew weakly, and the national debt remained almost at the level of annual GDP, which limited the government's ability to spend more. The state of the healthcare system also remained a sensitive topic: waiting lists for routine treatment in England are still measured in millions of people. Meanwhile, crime is rampant on the streets, from knife attacks to record levels of shoplifting.
Under Andy Burnham, London can actively intervene in the domestic economy, Richard Balfe believes. Indeed, in fact, it was failures in national politics that cost Starmer the prime minister's chair.
Will Britain continue to support Ukraine
But Britain's foreign policy is unlikely to change dramatically, says Elena Ananyeva, head of the Center for British Studies at the Institute of Europe of the Russian Academy of Sciences. According to her, the new Labor leader will be bound by the party's program, with which she went to the elections in 2024.
— The Labour Party has a certain policy and an election manifesto that it must implement. The next leader can't just turn the course in the other direction and do whatever he likes," the expert noted.
Andy Burnham is considered a representative of the more left wing of the party, but this primarily relates to the socio-economic agenda. He has said little on international issues so far, but his previous statements certainly do not promise a U-turn on issues of relations with Russia and support for Ukraine. In 2024, Burnham said that Greater Manchester would support Ukrainians "as long as necessary," and in 2022 he wrote that Britain should continue to help Ukraine and maintain unity with its allies. Earlier, he also opposed the reunification of Crimea with Russia and even called for depriving our country of the right to host the 2018 FIFA World Cup.
Nothing is expected from the political processes in Britain and Moscow. According to Dmitry Peskov, the press secretary of the President of the Russian Federation, the British prime minister was not remembered for anything remarkable, and the prospects for improving relations between the two countries after his resignation remain in doubt.
Under Starmer, Britain remained one of Ukraine's most active European allies, along with Paris and Berlin. On June 7, Starmer hosted Vladimir Zelensky, Emmanuel Macron and Friedrich Merz at talks on further assistance to Kiev. In a joint statement, the Eurotroika leaders reaffirmed Ukraine's support and willingness to participate in future security guarantees. Thus, the "Ukrainian" direction has become not Starmer's personal line, but part of the broader policy of the United Kingdom and the entire "Eurotroika".
On the other hand, British politics is essentially pragmatic, and if they are lucky, they will realize the advantages of "our common European home," Balfe notes.
"I hope it won't be too late," the member of parliament added, speaking about the prospects of relations with Russia.
Relations between London and Washington can be a decisive factor here, Elena Ananyeva believes. Trump is trying to shift most of the responsibility for European security to the Old World, so the UK will have to take on an additional burden. And money is the main problem for the future prime minister. According to the expert, London does not have enough room for maneuver: it is politically difficult for the Labor Party to reduce social spending, it is dangerous to increase the national debt, and tax increases may cause a negative reaction from the markets.
However, it is too early to definitively talk about the future course of London. The Labor Party has yet to choose a new leader: the internal party election campaign is scheduled to begin in July. Then it will become clear whether Burnham will have a real rival. The coming weeks will show whether Starmer's departure will be a manageable change of leadership for Britain or a new stage of political crisis.
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