Starmer ousted: Why the British government is in turmoil

Summary

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Podcast Summary:

The Morning Edition – "Starmer Ousted: Why the British Government is in Turmoil"
Date: June 23, 2026
Host: Samantha Selinger-Morris (The Age & Sydney Morning Herald)
Guest: David Crowe, Europe Correspondent

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Episode Overview

This episode unpacks the stunning resignation of UK Prime Minister Sir Keir Starmer, only two years after his electoral landslide, and investigates the persistent political instability that may soon result in Britain’s seventh prime minister in a decade. Home Affairs Editor Samantha Selinger-Morris is joined by Europe correspondent David Crowe to discuss the scandals and dissent that ousted Starmer, the rise of Labour's likely new leader Andy Burnham, and the deeper political forces at play in post-Brexit Britain.

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Key Discussion Points & Insights

1. The Tumultuous Fall of Keir Starmer

• Starmer’s Sudden Resignation:

  • Starmer’s swift downfall comes only two years after his landslide win ([00:53]).
  • “It is quite amazing. The spill has been happening in slow motion here for so long, [...] his performance has not been good. He is not a natural politician.” — David Crowe ([01:12]).

• Public & Party Discontent:

  • Starmer’s popularity plummeted, with polls showing 69% unfavorable and merely 23% favorable, a net -46% ([01:12]).
  • Labour suffered huge council election losses in early May 2026, fueling unrest within the party ([02:25]).
  • Losses interpreted as a protest vote against Starmer.

• Scandals & the Mandelson Appointment:

  • The appointment of Peter Mandelson (with links to Jeffrey Epstein) as ambassador to Washington became a major, enduring scandal ([03:03]).
  • “He was warned by his officials, he was warned by his advisors… He didn't do the vetting because he didn't care what the vetting said. [...] Now, he’s blaming someone else.” — Analyst ([03:38]).
  • “It just bashed them around and they couldn’t stay focused on what they were meant to be doing as a government.” — David Crowe ([04:04]).
  • Starmer was seen as disconnected from voters’ everyday concerns.

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2. Andy Burnham: Labour's Next Hope?

• Burnham’s Profile:

  • Sworn in as MP just hours after Starmer’s resignation ([04:23]).
  • “He’s a straight talker, he’s a good communicator, he’s from the North—and Labour needs to win the North.” — David Crowe ([04:52])
  • Notably, Burnham defeated Reform UK’s candidate in Makerfield, a win against Nigel Farage’s surging right-wing party.

• Political and Personal Background:

  • Former Greater Manchester Mayor; Cambridge-educated; known for reading every Shakespeare play and enjoying poetry ([05:45]).
  • Previously failed twice in Labour leadership bids (2010, 2015) ([06:35]).

• Ideology & Policy Stance:

  • Seen as left-leaning: historically supportive of higher taxes on the wealthy and social housing ([06:56]).
  • Crowe notes Burnham will face significant fiscal constraints: “They have got a debt of 2.8 trillion pounds. [...] He cannot come in and say, ‘Oh, welfare payments— we’ll increase those...’ There are going to be a lot of constraints” ([06:56]).
  • Expectation of left-wing disappointment: “People on the left think they’ve got a champion, a hero, and then they’re disappointed because not all things are achievable.” — David Crowe ([08:13])

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3. Why Burnham, Why Now?

• Labour’s Desperation and Political Realignment:
  • Burnham’s authenticity resonates after years of disappointment with leaders ([09:54]).
  • “If Labour has a chance with a more authentic leader to win those people back, well, it’s really their last chance.” — David Crowe ([10:20])
  • No major challengers: Wes Streeting (former health secretary) backs Burnham ([09:54]).
  • Leadership won’t be official until July-August 2026.

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4. Broader Context: Ten Years of Turmoil and the Brexit Aftermath

• Endless Leadership Changes:

  • Britain on the verge of its seventh prime minister in a decade ([15:03]).
  • “That’s the ten years since the Brexit vote…” — David Crowe ([10:48])

• Brexit’s Long Shadow:

  • Crowe calls it “the betrayal of Brexit”: migration not curbed despite promises; public feels let down ([11:30]).
  • “I call it the betrayal of Brexit. Now, I don’t think Andy Burnham’s got a solution yet to that problem, but these things are what are driving the shift to the right, the shift to Nigel Farage and to Reform.” — David Crowe ([12:48])
  • Nigel Farage and Reform continue to rise by blaming poor implementation, not Brexit itself.

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5. Challenges Facing the Next PM

• Domestic Policy Dilemmas:

  • Economic stagnation, high deficit, housing crisis, persistent migration ([13:42]).
  • Burnham has yet to propose detailed policies: “We haven’t heard yet from Andy Burnham what he would do to answer any of those.” — David Crowe ([13:58])

• Foreign Policy Pressures:

  • Ongoing Ukraine war, Middle East instability, rising China, a retreating US ([13:15]).

• Media & Party Machinations:

  • The pro-Burnham media narrative partly enabled Starmer’s fall ([14:38]).
  • Crowe notes that “the only way it’s going to change here is if they do what Australia did” to break the leadership spill cycle ([15:48]).

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6. Will Burnham Last? The Leadership Cycle Problem

• Uncertain Prospects:

  • Analysis suggests leadership churn is likely to continue unless structural party discipline and unity are imposed, as in Australia ([15:48]).
  • “He’s obviously got a part of the British media behind him. But that doesn’t last. He’s the non-Starmer candidate. [...] The only way it’s going to change here is if they do what Australia did.” — David Crowe ([15:48])

• Lessons for Australia:

  • Crowe reflects that Australia stopped such leadership turmoil through greater discipline; recommends UK Labour look to Australia’s example ([16:35]).
  • “They need a political leader who is cautious and cunning. Starmer was cautious. He wasn’t cunning. He did not have political smarts. I think Andy Burnham has the signs of having that cunning way of working.” — David Crowe ([16:58])

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7. Implications for Australia & AUKUS

• Special Relationship:
  • Burnham expected to support AUKUS despite left-leaning reputation; defence ties remain strong ([18:39]).
  • “Even a left wing leader like Andy Burnham will know that.” — David Crowe ([19:17])

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Notable Quotes & Memorable Moments

• “He’s not a natural politician. He hasn’t been great at it and voters are fed up with him.” — David Crowe on Starmer ([01:12])
• “He was warned by his officials, he was warned by his advisors… He didn't do the vetting because he didn't care what the vetting said.” ([03:38])
• “He’s a straight talker, he’s a good communicator, he’s from the North—and Labour needs to win the North.” — David Crowe on Burnham ([04:52])
• “I call it the betrayal of Brexit.” — David Crowe ([11:30])
• “They need a political leader who is cautious and cunning. Starmer was cautious. He wasn’t cunning.” — David Crowe ([16:58])
• “Even a left wing leader like Andy Burnham will know that [AUKUS must be supported].” — David Crowe ([19:17])

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Key Segment Timestamps

| Segment | Timestamp | |---|---| | Start of political analysis | 00:08 | | Keir Starmer’s problems and resignation | 01:12–02:53 | | Mandelson appointment scandal & its fallout | 03:03–04:04 | | Andy Burnham’s biography and appeal | 04:23–06:35 | | Policy constraints for Burnham | 06:56–08:13 | | The Brexit legacy and populism | 09:54–12:48 | | Burnham’s policy gaps & party machinations | 13:42–14:38 | | Leadership volatility and Australia’s example | 15:03–16:58 | | AUKUS and implications for Australia | 18:39–19:17 |

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Flow and Tone

David Crowe combines sharp analysis with a conversational tone, highlighting both the drama and the implications of the UK’s relentless political crises. The discussion strikes a balance between sober assessment (“Burnham has yet to propose detailed policies”) and wry wit (“I don’t think that he’s the Messiah. We’ll get to that later. He’s got a good joke about that.”).

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This episode offers essential context and shrewd analysis for listeners tracking the UK’s political turbulence—and why it matters globally.

Transcript

[Announcer]

Foreign.

[Host Samantha Sellinger Morris]

Criticism and two significant scandals. Sir Keir Starmer has resigned as British Prime Minister. So why is the country on the precipice of voting in a seventh prime minister in only 10 years? I'm Samantha Sellinger Morris and you're listening to the Morning Edition from the Age and the Sydney Morning Herald Today Europe correspondent David Crowe on Keir Starmer's drastic fall and on Andy Burnham, the unconventional politician who's expected to take his place.

[Host or Co-host]

David Crow, welcome back to the podcast.

[David Crowe]

It's so good to be back on the podcast, Sam, good to talk to you.

[Host or Co-host]

We are so lucky you're there because as we are recording this on Tuesday morning, Australian time, UK Prime Minister Keir Starmer, of course, has announced his resignation to make way for a new leader of the Labour Party. So why has he resigned? What happened? Because Keir Starmer won an election landslide

[Host Samantha Sellinger Morris]

only two years ago.

[David Crowe]

Yes, it's. It is quite amazing. The thing is that the spill has been happening in slow motion here for so long. Even though they won in a landslide two years ago, the last year has been characterised by incessant complaining about Keir Starmer. And that comes down to a couple of factors. His performance has not been good. He is not a natural politician. He hasn't been great at it and voters are fed up with him. He's got poor polling. He was just incredibly unpopular. And that's been happening for a while. 69% unfavourable. In terms of voter responses on Keir Starmer, 23% favourable. That's a net negative 46%. So that's quite astonishing. I mean, all politicians here are disliked generally in those results, but his levels are just something else. And people have been feeling that on the street when MPs have been going for elections. They had council elections here in early May. This was a pivotal test and they lost hundreds of local government councillors.

[Host Samantha Sellinger Morris]

Labour has suffered huge losses after millions of people went to the polls in England, Wales.

[Guest or Analyst]

Just look at the Labour Party. So Labour down all the way. A Labour horror show got worse overnight than today. Now down almost 40 councils in England, obliterated in Wales and squeezed in Scotland

[Announcer]

by the Prime Minister.

[David Crowe]

That election became a protest vote against Keir Starmer and he hasn't been able to recover.

[Host or Co-host]

And so tell us, why was his polling so bad? Was much of that to do with the scandals that he faced? Among them, there was, of course, the link to the Epstein files. You can tell us about that. What was it?

[David Crowe]

He certainly lost a lot of ground because of that appointment of Peter Mandelson, an old labor insider who was a mate of Jeffrey Epstein, and they knew he was a mate of Jeffrey Epstein, but they appointed Mandelson to be the ambassador to Washington D.C. they thought that they would send a snake to deal with Donald Trump. And that rebounded on Keir Starmer. What really happened with that was months and months of negative media for Starmer when he was already unpopular.

[Guest or Analyst]

He was warned by his officials, he was warned by his advisors, he was warned by other people. He was warned in the checking process. He didn't do the vetting because he didn't care what the betting said. He'd made his decision to appoint Peter Mandelson and now he's blaming someone else.

[David Crowe]

And it just bashed them around and they couldn't stay focused on what they were meant to be doing as a government. And so he looked even more out of touch to ordinary voters because he wasn't dealing with the things that really mattered to them because he was so consumed with this Mandelson scandal.

[Host or Co-host]

And you mentioned just before that he wasn't a natural politician. Keir Dahmer, he was famously wooden when he speaks. He's not known to be very charismatic, to say the very least. So I guess tell us about the man who's predicted to replace him. This is Andy Burim, because I believe many think he's the opposite. But he was sworn in as an mp, which is a requirement in Britain. Only a member of Parliament can become Prime Minister. And this happened only hours after Keir Starmer announced his resignation. I mean, that's pretty amazing. Yes.

[David Crowe]

This is why I'm thinking Andy Burnham has the makings of a very interesting Prime Minister. But I'm not on the Burnham bandwagon, you might say, because I'm not convinced that it's all going to work. I've seen so many spills. Twenty years in Canberra, I saw this time and time again. You get enthusiastic, you see this media enthusiasm for a new Prime Minister. A couple of months later, the public turns against them and they start making mistakes. So I don't think that he's the Messiah. We'll get to that later. He's got a good joke about that. But he does have something going for him. He's a straight talker, he's a good communicator, he's from the north and labor needs to win the north. When he won his seat of Makerfield last week, he defeated Reform uk, the big right wing party led by Nigel Farage that is leading in the poll. So he looks to labor like he is their answer. He can fight the right and win. What else do we know about him? I mean, he was a minister in Westminster. He became the mayor of Greater Manchester. There's nothing there that tells you he can lead a country of the size of Great Britain. But Labour's decided that he's their guy. He's middle class kid from the North. He went to Cambridge University, he studied English literature. He has said to people and they've reported it, they believe it. He's read every Shakespeare play, he's a reader of poetry and he likes Philip Larkin. This is not somebody who is sort of a working class kid from the north in the old style of Labour. However, he's got the Labor Parliamentary party right behind him now.

[Host or Co-host]

Interesting though, because he did run twice for the leadership of the Labour Party in 2010 and 2015 and lost quite badly each time. That's a bit of an interesting backstory, I think. And I think he wants a high tax, high spend economy. Right? He wants to tax the rich and fund social housing. Are those amongst his sort of cornerstone policy proposals.

[David Crowe]

That's where he's been over time. And I think that that's part of his appeal within Labor. Now, they won the 2024 election by telling people that they would be centrists and that they had an economic manifesto that it was going to, you know, deliver growth. A lot of the MPs who were elected are of the left. They're naturally drawn to Andy Burnham because he has this history of being fairly leftist with his views. But I don't think he's going to be able to do that. I mean, they've got huge constraints on them in government. They have got a debt of 2.8 trillion pounds. It's heading to 3 trillion. The bond markets are jittery about the government's lending. So he cannot come in and say, oh, welfare payments, we'll increase those, or taxes on the rich. Here they go, let's let rip. There are going to be a lot of constraints on how he gets things done. And I think that's going to disappoint people on the left because that is inevitable. We see that time and time again when something like this happens. People on the left think they've got a champion, a hero, and then they're disappointed because not all things are achievable. That, I think, is going to be the Andy Burnham story

[Host Samantha Sellinger Morris]

after the break.

[David Crowe]

And that's why they're shifting to Farage. And that's why labor has had a terrible time trying to come up with an answer.

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[Host or Co-host]

Okay, well, this brings us very neatly to the next question, which is then why Andy Burnham? You know you wrote that labor, in its desperation, have turned to an outsider. So tell us, I guess, a bit more about what's happening in UK politics right now, that they are very likely to choose this man as the next leader of the Labour Party and therefore the prime Minister.

[David Crowe]

Yes, by the way, we should really be cautious and say they're very likely to choose him. But at the moment, there is no challenger to him. Starmer has announced he's going. Andy Burnham has put up his hand. One of the other challengers who might have put up his hand, Wes Streeding, former health secretary, has decided not to enter the race and is backing Burnham and is probably going to gather Cabinet ministry. I think he would be a very natural choice as Chancellor of the Exchequer, but let's see how that goes. So Andy Burnham is at the moment the only contender, but it's still not going to be done and dusted until July and August. I think what he has and what a lot of people say he's got, is that he's authentic. And in current British politics, voters have turned against people because they've been so disappointed with their leaders. And so if labor has a chance with a more authentic leader to win those people back, well, it's really their last chance. The election's not till 2029 and they've got a big majority, so they can see that out unless there's a major crisis. But they really need to lift their game and that's why they're turning to this authentic leader from the north to try and reconnect with ordinary voters. But let's face it, the last 10 years, six prime ministers already, they're now having their seventh prime minister in 10 years, and that's the 10 years since the Brexit vote. Now, I don't think it's all about Brexit, but I do think that Brexit has shaped British politics as we see it today. And one of the big things, whether you were for it or against it, one of the big things that I think is undeniable is that it did not deliver this great future that was talked about in 2016 when people went to the referendum, it didn't deliver a lot of the things that people thought they were going to get. When they chose Brexit by 52% to 48%, they were told the only way to curb migration is to break from the European Union. Boris Johnson told that he became prime minister, and then after the pandemic, migration went through the roof. Now, whether you're for it or against it, you can see, you know, that that is basically a broken pledge to the British public. Get Brexit, we'll control migration. It didn't happen. It was. I call it the betrayal of Brexit. Now, I don't think that Andy Burnham's got a solution yet to that problem, but these things are what's driving, or what are driving the shift to the right, the shift to Nigel Farage and to reform. Farage was pro Brexit. Brexit hasn't delivered. But that hasn't hurt Farage in a funny kind of way, because he is blaming the implementation of Brexit, saying, Boris Johnson got it wrong. It's all Boris Johnson's fault. Choose me and I'll fix it. I really will fix it. And I think we shouldn't sort of dance around this topic. We shouldn't overanalyze it. In a way, a lot of the British public want migration controlled. They don't see it being controlled in the way they want, and they're looking for other people to do it. And that's why they're shifting to Farage. And that's why labor has had a terrible time trying to come up with an answer, which is a really interesting

[Host or Co-host]

backdrop for what Andy Burnham will have to face if he does, as we do expect, take the job as prime minister. And there's other challenges he's got right, because whoever takes over from Starmer is going to need to confront the ongoing war in Ukraine, in instability in the Middle East, a rising China and a US that is pulling back from decades long commitments to Europe and to NATO. So what's the feeling on the ground there where you are in London? Like, is Andy Burnham up to that task?

[David Crowe]

I think it's a huge question mark and I don't think he's proven he's up to that task. Keir Starmer was getting net migration down, but was not able to stop boats coming across the English Channel. 1000 people came on boats last week. So that's a major challenge and we don't see that Andy Burnham has got a different answer to that. There's a growth challenge, there's a housing challenge, there's a tax challenge, there's a huge budget challenge because they're in deficit. We haven't heard yet from Andy Burnham what he would do to answer any of those. He does talk a lot about housing and that's a natural thing for him to focus on. It's important for the lesser of labour, but it's also something that's so important for everyday people because of the cost of housing in this country. But he hasn't even needed to flesh out an agenda as an alternative leader. And that, I think is an interesting thing about why he's so good as a politician. The media has done a lot of this for him, chipped away at Keir Starmer. There's been a solid group of Burnham advocates for the last year talking to the media, talking him up and talking Starmer down. And now we see the results. He is an incredibly sharp political operator. What we don't know about him is whether he's got a policy agenda that's going to fix Britain.

[Host or Co-host]

I mean, it is quite astonishing. And as you've mentioned, you know, assuming he does get the job, he will be the seventh prime minister in 10 years. I mean, that's even worse than our Rudd Gillard Rudd era years when there was five PMs in 10 years here. And I've seen some analysis that suggests that this rotation of Prime Ministers in the UK is actually likely to continue no matter what Andy Burnham sort of puts forward. Because as you mentioned with Brexit 10 years ago, you know, British Prime Ministers, I've read they entered the job with hope, but then this mixture of continued poor economic growth, political chaos, just undoes them. So what's your feeling, Crowie? What's the feeling in Britain there? But Andy Burnham, you know, that he'll similarly be churned out or is he going to be the stayer?

[David Crowe]

I don't know whether he'll be the stayer I think it's impossible to tell at this point. I mean, I've read some very flowery profiles of him in the British media. So I think he's obviously got a part of the British media behind him. But that doesn't last. You know, that's only because he's the not. He's the non starmer candidate. And everybody wanted to tear down Starmer and he was. The way to do won't last. The only way it's going to change here is if they do what Australia did. I've been saying to people here, if you want to improve your political performance, get your MPs on a plane to Australia and figure out how Australia stopped the leadership spill cycle. There are some core lessons that they've got to learn. They need a political leader who is cautious and cunning. Starmer was cautious. He wasn't cunning. He did not have political smarts. I think Andy Burnham has the signs of having that cunning way of working. I think Anthony Albanese has that caution and cunning. I think that he has basically been brought stability to the government. But he's only been able to do that because he's had stable Cabinet ministers who haven't panicked and he has had a caucus that's been disciplined. And clearly in the uk, they don't have those factors either. They've got cabinet ministers who whinge and whine about their Prime Minister to the media to talk themselves up, therefore talking the whole government down, that's incessant in the UK. They also have panicky MPs in parliament who are relatively new and they're the party of government and they don't know how to do it. The way you do it is to hold your nerve and to be disciplined and to support strong government policy even when it's tough. They were not able to do that. What's happened on Monday is damning of labor in the uk.

[Guest or Analyst]

Every decision I've taken has been about putting the country I love first. That is why I will resign as leader of the Labour Party. That's an emotional.

[David Crowe]

Sir Keir Starmer announcing his resignation as Prime Minister of the United Kingdom. But why is he going. If they don't learn that, it's a reflection on all of them, not just on Keir Starmer. They won't be any better. So let's see if they can learn those lessons, then they'll break the cycle in the way that Australia broke the cycle and crowie.

[Host Samantha Sellinger Morris]

Just to wrap up then, I guess.

[Host or Co-host]

Are there any takeaways here for our own politicians. And I wonder, are they perhaps looking on nervously given our entwined relationship with Britain, in particular over Aukus?

[David Crowe]

I think that Burnham will support Aukus and I think that it's so important to both countries that it's essential to support it. I know that there are a lot of critics of Aukus. People think it's not going to deliver. I think there are huge question marks about whether it can deliver. But at the moment, the UK absolutely needs a new fleet of attack submarines. They've got to control their northern waters from Russia, so they need the new design that they're sharing with us. We need it. Also, there is a joint interest in getting it done. Even a left wing leader like Andy Burnham will know that.

[Host Samantha Sellinger Morris]

Well, thank you so much, David, for your time.

[David Crowe]

It's great to talk.

[Host Samantha Sellinger Morris]

In other news today, a new party of teal independence is poised to be announced to counter the rise of one nation. Labour will water down some of its National Disability Insurance Scheme proposals in exchange for support from the Greens for the government's tax overhaul. And Australian Palestinian academic Randa Abdelfata's book Discipline has been shortlisted for the prestigious Miles Franklin Literary Award. You can read more@the age.comau or smh.comau Today's episode was produced by Chee Wong. Our executive producer is Tammy Mills, and our podcasts are overseen by Lisa Muxworthy and Tom McKendrick. If you like our show, follow the Morning Edition and leave a review for us on Apple or Spotify. Thanks for listening.