Downing Street course: Labour party benefits from Conservative chaos
Published: Thursday, May 23rd 2024, 04:20
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Rishi Sunak stood in the London rain like a watered poodle - and rarely has a picture made the situation of a politician as clear as that of the British Prime Minister. With pithy words, the Conservative head of government announced the general election for July 4. But if he does not manage to turn public opinion around within weeks, his next appearance in front of the famous black door in Downing Street is likely to be his last as Prime Minister - to concede defeat. Sunak's Conservatives are around 20 percentage points behind the Labor Party in the polls.
Barring a major miracle, opposition leader Keir Starmer will move into Downing Street on July 5 as the first Labour prime minister in 14 years - and 100 years after the first social democratic head of government in British history.
Starmer's plus point: the Conservative Party
Labor's lead is mainly due to the huge anger at the Conservatives. Many people do not yet know what the party stands for. Only recently, Starmer presented an immediate program consisting of six points. He wants to ensure economic stability, reduce waiting times at the National Health Service (NHS), create a new command structure for border protection, establish a national energy company, take action against antisocial behavior and hire 6,500 new teachers.
Starmer promises the British a change. According to commentators, many voters are counting above all on Labour bringing a new tone to government and finally putting an end to the chaos of recent years with three prime ministers, frequent scandals and constant changes of minister. "Sir Keir Starmer's strategy is to reassure the public that the biggest risk this time is to keep a discredited government in office," says political scientist Mark Garnett from Lancaster University to the German Press Agency. Starmer is certainly considered boring. But this is exactly what many Britons are longing for, it is often said.
Who is the Labor Party?
The Social Democrats were often overshadowed by the Conservatives. Starmer would be only the seventh Labor prime minister in history. Originating from the labor movement, the Labour Party united the left-wing movements when it was founded in 1900. From the very beginning, it has been closely linked to the trade unions, which still have a great deal of influence today.
A comparison with German politics is not easy. It is true that Labor maintains close relations with the SPD. Also due to the British electoral system, in which only the candidate with the most votes wins in each constituency, regardless of the margin of victory, both major parties cover a broad spectrum. For example, Labour also has positions that would be more likely to be associated with the left, the Greens and some with the FDP.
Arsenal fan and former head of law enforcement
Former lawyer Starmer has been the "Leader of His Majesty's Most Loyal Opposition", as the leader of the largest opposition party in the British House of Commons is traditionally known, since April 2020. The 61-year-old took over the Social Democrats from Jeremy Corbyn, who lost the 2019 election to then Prime Minister Boris Johnson by a landslide. Starmer has led the party from Corbyn's very left-wing positions back to the political center.
Initially, however, things did not go well. After a defeat in a by-election for the British parliament in the north-east English Labour stronghold of Hartlepool in May 2021, Starmer wanted to quit, as he recently admitted. But many scandals under Conservative Prime Ministers Johnson and Liz Truss brought him new support. Recently, Starmer has also adopted moderate conservative positions - using the space left to him by the Tories' right-wing course.
Like his rival Sunak, the former head of the CPS law enforcement agency is not regarded as a rousing speaker. But many people appreciate the father of two teenage children for his down-to-earth attitude, calmness and empathy. In his private life, Sir Keir, as he has been able to call himself for several years now, is a big fan of London's premier league football club Arsenal and also kicks a ball around with his mates as often as possible.
Under predecessor Corbyn there were accusations of anti-Semitism
Starmer repeatedly emphasizes that he has overhauled Labour. While anti-Semitic accusations against the party, which traditionally sympathizes strongly with the Palestinian movement, arose under Corbyn, Starmer is taking a clear stance against anti-Israeli comments. He clearly denounced the terror of the Islamist Hamas against Israel.
However, there are still MPs or candidates who make disparaging remarks about Israel. In one such case at the beginning of February, Labour withdrew support for its actual candidate in the parliamentary by-election in Rochdale near Manchester, although no substitute candidate was allowed to be nominated. Shortly afterwards, around 40 percent of respondents in a poll felt that the party was still struggling with anti-Jewish prejudice.
Labor and the EU
In Corbyn's shadow cabinet, Starmer acted as his party's Brexit spokesperson. In contrast to the party leader at the time, he campaigned for a second referendum in order to reverse the exit from the EU. However, he has since made it clear that he does not see a way back into the EU. He does want to move closer to the EU again, and such hopes are also regularly heard from the EU. However, Starmer has so far rejected re-entry into at least the EU customs union or the single market. Commentators point out that the Labour leader is afraid of losing important votes in the traditionally EU-critical north of England.
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