The fightback
A spate of interviews around Starmer’s first anniversary as PM have shown him to be in a reflective mood.
He admitted his Downing Street garden warning had “squeezed the hope out,” adding: “We were so determined to show how bad it was that we forgot people wanted something to look forward to as well.”
The second Labour figure close to No. 10 quoted above also reckons Starmer’s team now know their enemy: “It’s not the Tories anymore — it’s the forces of populism, and not just Reform.”
“The PM can be a bulwark against populism and division. If the next election is going to be populism versus delivery, competence versus protest, I can’t think of a better person to do that than Keir,” they said.
Allies also point out that Starmer’s first year as Labour leader almost culminated in his resignation after a drubbing in a crucial by-election, but he battled on to prove the doubters wrong, see off multiple Tory leaders, and win a landslide. Starmer has said that having cleared up the Conservative mess, people will “see the difference that the Labour government made.”
Others are going to need much more convincing.
“If you asked Keir Starmer to sit down and write on a piece of paper the three things he’d be remembered for in 50 years, what would he say? I bet he couldn’t do it,” said the former Labour Cabinet minister.
Noah Keate and Emilio Casalicchio contributed reporting.