After becoming leader of the Labour party, Andy Burnham will officially become prime minister of the UK as Keir Starmer leaves Number 10. That many people considered this day an inevitability doesn’t make it any less momentous.

Six years ago, Starmer inherited a Labour party that had failed to win four general elections and was battling a tarnished reputation. In the month he took over as leader, Labour were polling at 29%, 22 points behind Boris Johnson’s Conservative party. Starmer was described as “ruthless”, which he occasionally admitted himself, in turning the party around. He expelled those associated with anti-semitism or who disavowed Labour and spent four years preparing to fight a winning electoral campaign.

The scandals and changes in leadership for the then-governing Conservative party certainly helped Starmer. Labour became more popular than the Tories in November 2021 and held that lead until the July 2024 general election. Starmer looked to persuade voters by promising “national renewal” and a principle of “country first, party second”.

It worked, to a degree. Labour did win a landslide victory in 2024, but it was just as much a function of the electoral system as a Starmer success story. Two thirds of those who voted – and swathes of people didn’t – opted for parties that weren’t Labour. Yet they........

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