Sir Keir Starmer to step down as MP
It will mean a by-election in his London constituency
Last updated 2 hours ago
Former Prime Minister Sir Keir Starmer is stepping down as an MP in London.
He'd previously said he'd continue to represent the Holborn and St Pancras seat after leaving Downing Street, but this will now trigger a bi-election in central London.
Sir Keir was replaced by Andy Burnham as prime minister and Labour leader in July after losing the support of his party in the wake of dire local election results.
Speaking to the Camden New Journal, he said;
“It has been a huge honour and privilege to represent the best constituency in the country and to have taken over from Frank Dobson, who was such a great constituency MP and a member of the last Labour government.
“I will now focus on other things and that will be international affairs including defence, security, trade and technology in a fast-changing world.
“I will also continue, as I have done for a long time now with others, work on combating violence against women and girls; that is an issue that matters to me hugely. It’s work I started before I became an MP and it’s work I’m keen to continue after I’m an MP.
“So international affairs on the one hand, and continuing my work on violence against women and girls on the other.”
He has informed local Labour constituency party staff of his decision to exit Parliament after eleven years representing the north London seat.
Sir Keir Starmer said his legacy as an MP and as prime minister will benefit his constituency going forward.
“I want to thank all of those I was privileged to work with in the constituency on issues that matter hugely: affordable housing, first-class education and the work we did on knife crime through the Camden youth support, which was really, really important.
“In terms of some of the things that have changed: we are opening 10 breakfast clubs across the constituency – five of them opened in April, five more will be opened when the schools go back this week. I think breakfast clubs make a huge difference for children and parents because everybody knows that a child that hasn’t eaten before they try to start learning is not going to learn as well as other children.
“Free school meals are coming again this week, that’s 4,600 children in the constituency that will now benefit, the minimum wage increase will make a difference to thousands of workers across Camden who are on or near the minimum wage and there’s an increase in the number of GPs.
“The two-child benefit cap being lifted will affect 2,500 children in the constituency who will now begin to be lifted out of poverty. Then there’s the Renters’ Rights Act – 16,500 renters in Holborn and St Pancras – and of course everybody who is at work will benefit under the Employment Rights Act.”