Keir Starmer should ‘put the country first’ by announcing a timeline for his departure, says a Left-wing think-tank.

The Institute for Government (IFG) has urged the Prime Minister to set out ‘the manner of his exit’ in the now likely event that Andy Burnham wins the Makerfield by-election.

Joining a growing chorus of Labour voices pushing Sir Keir to go, directors of the IFG, Dr Hannah White and Alex Thomas, wrote online that: ‘Nothing in politics or government is inevitable. 

But it looks like the game is nearly up for Keir Starmer.’ They added that ‘ministers have been resigning and the Prime Minister’s authority appears to be waning rapidly’.

Sir Keir has vowed to fight any leadership contest triggered by Mr Burnham’s potential return to Westminster – and reiterated yesterday that he was ‘not going to walk away’ from the job.

But the think-tank, much-vaunted by Labour MPs, has called on Sir Keir to fulfil the promise he made when he won power, by setting out a plan for his departure. 

‘When he entered office, the Prime Minister promised to put country before party,’ the authors wrote. ‘As his personal control over his political future declines, now is the time for him to fulfil that promise.

‘A well-prepared transition is in the interests of the country. The painful but responsible choice for the Prime Minister now is to put the country first.’

And the IFG suggested Sir Keir step down before the Labour conference in September, which would allow him to then grant ‘access talks’ – usually held between the civil service and opposition parties before a general election – to his successor.

The IFG said this would also give time for a ‘proper’ debate on policy.

The authors wrote: ‘However unwelcome it may seem to the Prime Minister, there is a case to be made that the sooner he seizes the initiative the better.

‘Events after the by-election on 18 June could easily spiral out of his control.

‘So, it is in his interests to act fast – either before or just after the Makerfield result.’

Kevin Hollinrake, chairman of the Conservative Party, said: ‘We all know that Keir Starmer’s premiership is over. Yet, while he desperately scrambles for a legacy, the country is lurching from one crisis and one U-turn to the next and we are all paying the price.

‘In the words of the former defence secretary, if he is unable to keep our country safe, he should resign now and set out a rapid timescale for the selection of his replacement.’