Whiplash on the Labour benches
Your weekly dose of gossip from around Westminster.
ByKeir Starmer
Keir Rodney Starmer is a Labour Party politician who became Prime Minister on 5 July 2024. He has been MP for Holborn and St Pancras since 2015 and leader of Labour since April 2020. Starmer, born in 1962, studied law at the University of Leeds and Oxford, then became a barrister specialising in human rights. In 2008 he was appointed director of public prosecutions, for a five-year term. Find news, comment, and analysis about him here.
Labour’s belated bid for definition
Keir Starmer has discovered that technocratic management is not enough – his party needs political leadership.
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PMQs review: Richard Hermer is Starmer’s biggest weakness
The Attorney General’s reverence for international law is a potent target for the right – but Kemi Badenoch is incapable…
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Rachel Reeves’ growth pains
What story will Labour tell if the economy doesn’t improve?
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Labour’s Reformation
Under threat from the populist right, Keir Starmer is forging a hard new politics.
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The battle for Labour’s soul
An insurgent Blue Labour is colliding with the Treasury and the progressive left.
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“There is no such thing as Starmerism”
An account of the Labour Party’s rise to power presents the PM as a man with a deep aversion to…
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PMQs review: Starmer flounders on Chagos
“He’s freezing pensioners, while shovelling money to Mauritius,” Kemi Badenoch quipped.
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The Tories go from SW1A to CR0
Your weekly dose of gossip from around Westminster.
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Reform is coming for Labour in its old heartlands
In the wake of Trump’s victory, Nigel Farage is upbeat and promising “the biggest political change this country has ever…
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The Tories’ Brexit tailspin
Kemi Badenoch’s strategy of agreeing with Reform risks backfiring.
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Defenceless Britain
Keir Starmer must rebuild the UK’s enfeebled armed forces – but he faces an almighty row first.
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Keir Starmer can’t escape the European question
The political winds driving integration are growing stronger.
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PMQs review: Starmer is finally up for a fight
The parliamentary battle over workers’ rights has commenced.
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Labour’s lead on the economy has crumbled
The party is suffering as a result of general national apathy.
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Cabinet splits on Heathrow are a defining test for Starmer
The debate over whether to build a third runway pits Rachel Reeves against Ed Miliband.
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PMQs review: Starmer confronts some awkward realities
Badenoch highlighted the Conservative record on education and called Labour's legislation “an act of vandalism”.
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What is Labour in power for?
The government is failing, the Tories are out of ideas. Welcome to Britain in 2025.
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Southport and the changing face of terror
Keir Starmer is correct: the Prevent programme failed to comprehend Axel Rudakubana’s obsession with violence.
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How will Labour handle Trump 2.0?
Japan’s Shinzo Abe is viewed as a pragmatic model for Keir Starmer to emulate.
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