Keir Starmer resigns as prime minister in a statement outside 10 Downing Street - watch live at the top of the page
He says every decision he has made in office has been about "putting the country I love first"
Andy Burnham - who could replace the PM - will be in Westminster today to be sworn in as MP for Makerfield, after winning the by-election last week
If Starmer does resign, many people inside Labour anticipate a "coronation" - meaning Burnham would be the only candidate to replace him
That could mean he takes over by late September, around the Labour conference - but some of his supporters think that timetable is too slow
Before he announced his resignation, Starmer said he inherited Labour Party that was "politically, financially and morally bankrupt".
He says he was told "time and time again" that the party was "finished", but says he "proved those people wrong".
He says he changed the party by "ripping out the poison of anti-Semitism".
"Restoring trust on the economy, defence and national security," he adds.
Keir Starmer has announced he will resign as prime minister and leader of the Labour Party.
Keir Starmer exits No 10 with his wife to cheers and applause.
Walking up Downing Street two years ago was the proudest moment of my life, he says.
He says he came into politics for the chance to change the lives of millions of people for the better.
Starmer then outlines the journey that saw Labour take power in July 2024.
Nick Eardley
Political correspondent
The prime minister is setting out the ways in which he changed the Labour Party.
There is no doubt the victory he oversaw at the general election was a massive achievement.
That’s why it’s so remarkable that two years on, the PM is on the way out.
Keir Starmer has stepped out to make a statement on Downing Street.
You can watch what he says live at the top of this page.
Nick Eardley
Political correspondent
Image source, PA MediaA number of cabinet ministers - including the Deputy Prime Minister David Lammy - are outside Number 11 Downing Street to watch Keir Starmer’s statement.
Nick Eardley
Political correspondent
The prime minister’s top team have come out into Downing Street. The lectern is out.
Starmer's announcement is imminent.
Image source, Getty Images
Chris Mason
Political editor
The lectern is out. The moment is imminent. Perhaps inside ten minutes, one source tells me.
Staff are gathering to watch — for many a sad moment personally as well as politically, losing their jobs as the prime minister loses his.
Henry Zeffman
Chief political correspondent on Downing Street
Again, we don't have confirmation of this, but I think pretty well the only reason the prime minister would be making a statement in Downing Street this morning is because he's resigning.
Chris Mason
Political editor
Downing Street staff have just brought speakers out into the street. The preparations for a prime ministerial statement are beginning.
Nick Eardley
Political correspondent
We are still waiting for confirmation (or otherwise) of whether the prime minister will resign today. That’s the overwhelming expectation in Westminster.
The No 10 team remains very quiet this morning.
It’s worth remembering though; if Keir Starmer doesn’t confirm his departure soon, there are plenty of Labour MPs prepared to try and force it.
Image source, House of CommonsLabour MP and Andy Burnham supporter, Anna Dixon, says she wants Starmer to step down without a leadership contest being triggered.
"I think it's clear now that the PM recognises it's time to go, I think he's seen the writing on the wall," she tells Radio 4's Today programme.
She says she hopes Starmer will set out timetable for transition "whether that's in weeks or months", in order to "preserve stability for the country".
Dixon says its important for the country to have a "smooth handover", but says it does not need to see leadership hopefuls "pull each other apart" in debates.
Asked if that means she wants to see Burnham given the job without a contest, Dixon says Burnham has "already shown he's a very successful politician for some 25 years".
"He's sat round the cabinet table previously... he's run a major city as mayor for nine years, so I think he has been tested."
If Keir Starmer announces his resignation today, his biographer suggests the PM could quit politics altogether.
Journalist Tom Baldwin tells the BBC that no-one knows what decision Keir Starmer will make today, but emphasises he is a "very private, very intensely emotional man making one of the very biggest decisions of his life".
Baldwin suggests Starmer feels "deeply frustrated" by the fact Labour's achievements might be clouded by the challenge to his leadership, adding: "I think he's hurt by some of the behaviour of people around him, some of the people he trusted, who he gave jobs to."
"If Keir Starmer does decide to leave - and I don't know what he's going to do - I don't think he's going to stick around in politics for long," he says.
"For him it's always been something he needs to endure rather than do out of love."
Image source, EPAAndy Burnham is due in Westminster to be sworn in as Makerfield’s new MP later today, following his victory in last week's by-election.
Douglas Lumsden, the new Conservative MP for Aberdeen South, and Lara Bird, who was elected as the SNP’s new MP for Arbroath and Broughty Ferry - both of whom were also elected in separate by-elections last week - are also expected at the House of Commons .
Henry Zeffman
Chief political correspondent, reporting from Downing Street
No disrespect to Jacqui Smith, who's a very distinguished, experienced figure, but if Keir Starmer were fighting on, I would expect a member of the cabinet to be out there batting for him this morning.
They're not and I think that does tell a bit of a story.
Skills minister Baroness Jacqui Smith says Keir Starmer has spent the weekend "governing" as she's asked whether she expects him to resign today.
"This is a period of time when there is a challenge to the prime minister," Smith accepts.
"He is reflecting on that, he's thinking about how to respond to it."
Pressed further on whether Starmer might step down to allow Andy Burnham to become prime minister without a leadership contest, Smith says he should be afforded the "time and space" to consider the country's best interests and carry on the "process of government".
Former health minister Zubir Ahmed says he believes Prime Minister Keir Starmer setting out a timetable for him to step down is "the right thing to do".
Last month, Ahmed - an ally of Wes Streeting - resigned his ministerial role after having "lost confidence" in Starmer as PM.
"I think what's been happening over the weekend... is that he has been reflecting - cabinet colleagues have been telling him that the current situation is unsustainable," Ahmed tells Radio 4's Today programme.
"It sounds like we're slowly getting to a point where the PM is going to set out a timetable to allow for an orderly transition to new leadership," he says.
"I think that's the right thing to do."
Image source, PA MediaThere is no need for the government to call a general election if Starmer is ousted as prime minister, says Conservative shadow Northern Ireland secretary Alex Burghart.
Asked if the Conservatives will call for such a general election, Burhghart tells Radio 4's Today programme: "No, look, constitutionally there doesn't have to be a general election. You can change prime minister."
Burhghart, who earlier spoke to BBC Breakfast, adds that "what matters is that the prime minister has the support of MPs in Parliament".
However, he adds that if a general election is called, his party is "ready for it".
Henry Zeffman
Chief political correspondent
If Andy Burnham gains the keys to No 10, here are some of the MPs and advisers who could be given key roles:
Louise Haigh: The former transport secretary was the first of Keir Starmer's cabinet ministers to quit, after it emerged in November 2024 that she had a fraud conviction prior to entering parliament. On the backbenches she emerged as a crucial power broker on Labour's "soft left" and has been a major figure in Burnham's Makerfield campaign.
Image source, EPALouise Haigh and Anneliese Midgley
Anneliese Midgley: Midgley has been Knowsley MP since 2024. She previously worked for Starmer's office in opposition following stints at the TUC, Unite and in former Labour leader Jeremy Corbyn's team. She is seen as a plausible candidate for chief whip or even to be the political secretary in Downing Street.
Miatta Fahnbulleh: She resigned as a junior minister for communities in the aftermath of the May elections. Since then she has been working on policy ideas for a potential Burnham government.
Image source, ReutersJosh Simons and Miatta Fahnbulleh
Josh Simons: He's the man who gave up his seat for Burnham. Simons is said to have been helping Team Burnham on policy, though he has a different ideological background to Fahnbulleh, and is seen as a likely candidate for a role in a Burnham Downing Street.
Image source, PA MediaKeir Starmer stepping down would not be a shock following poor polling since May's local elections, says Sophie Stowers, from the research and polling organisation More in Common.
Stowers tells Radio 4's Today Programme that More in Common's polling showed that more than half of people questioned believed Starmer should step down as PM after May's elections.
“So it’s not necessarily a shock if the prime minister does decide to leave,” she says.
She says “most” people in that same poll said they would like to see a general election “earlier rather than later”.
“But they are split on whether that means an election should be held immediately or just at some point ahead of schedule before 2029,” she adds.
