Immediately after Keir Starmer’s resignation, the BBC began circulating scenarios for the person who could take over the new leadership of Great Britain.
According to political correspondent Nick Eardley, at this stage the candidate seen as ahead of the others is Andy Burnham.
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Starmer himself has announced that the nomination process for his successor will begin in two weeks.
Within Labour ranks, there is growing belief that the contest could end without a real challenge. More and more party MPs think this could result in a direct coronation, with Andy Burnham regarded as the overwhelming favourite. The question being asked is who would choose to enter the race against him.
Wes Streeting has previously said he would run. However, significantly, some of his allies have admitted that he may ultimately decide not to enter the contest. In that situation, the possibility also arises of whether Burnham could offer him a senior post.
Although this is the dominant perception, the current deadline still leaves open the possibility that another name could enter the race.
It also remains to be seen whether any figure from the centre-right wing will see it as necessary to trigger a contest for the party leadership.
Again, the vast majority of assessments point in the same direction: Andy Burnham is expected to become prime minister soon.
Andy Burnham
The MP for Makerfield and former mayor of Greater Manchester has broad support among Labour MPs, while polls also present him as the Labour Party’s most popular politician.
Raised in Aintree, Merseyside, Andy Burnham positions himself as a candidate from the party’s left wing. He has said that he was inspired to join Labour by the miners’ strike in the 1980s.
He represented Leigh as an MP from 2001 to 2017 and served in the governments of Tony Blair and Gordon Brown, placing him among the most experienced candidates in this race.
Wes Streeting
In May, Wes Streeting left Starmer’s cabinet, saying that “where we need a vision, we have a vacuum.”
Since 2024, in his role as Health Secretary, he had been seen as one of the cabinet’s strongest figures in public communication.
In his memoir published in 2023, he recounted a youth spent in social housing in London’s East End, visits to his grandfather while he was serving a prison sentence for bank robbery, as well as growing up as a gay Christian.
He is seen as part of the party’s right wing, which may make him less appealing to the membership, although he has considerable support among Labour MPs.
Angela Rayner
Angela Rayner grew up in poverty and left school at the age of 16 without any qualifications, but for a period she was the most powerful woman in British politics.
In 2025, she resigned from her roles as Deputy Prime Minister, Deputy Leader of the Labour Party and Housing Secretary after admitting she had not paid enough tax.
Known for her support on the party’s left wing, she says she has now been cleared of any wrongdoing by the British tax authority, leaving open the possibility of a campaign for the party leadership.
