LONDON (AP) — Prime Minister Keir Starmer pledged Monday to prove the “doubters” in his own party and among the electorate as a whole wrong as he tries to fight off demands to step down after devastating local election results for his Labour Party.
Starmer argued that he will “face up to the big challenges” and restore hope to the country. That includes getting closer to the European Union and “putting Britain at the heart of Europe,” a decade after the U.K. voted to leave the EU.
“I know I have my doubters and I know I need to prove them wrong, and I will," Starmer said during a speech in London. He vowed to prove to millions of people “tired of a status quo that has failed them” that the government is on their side.
He said Labour is in “a battle for the soul of our nation,” and the U.K. will go down “a dark path” if Reform UK, the anti-immigration party led by Nigel Farage, comes to power.
Starmer is warned it's his last chance
But Starmer's position is fragile, with dozens of lawmakers calling for him to announce a date for his departure.
Labour has been plunged into gloom by heavy losses last week in local elections across England and legislative votes in Scotland and Wales. The elections have been interpreted as an unofficial referendum on Starmer, whose popularity has plummeted since he swept to power in a landslide less than two years ago.
Former Deputy Prime Minister Angela Rayner, a powerful lawmaker often seen as a potential challenger, said “what we are doing isn’t working, and it needs to change."
Rayner did not explicitly call for Starmer to quit, but accused him of presiding over “a toxic culture of cronyism" and said the government must “stay true to labor and social democratic values” and ease the cost of living for working people.
“This may be our last chance,” Rayner said in a statement on Sunday.
Starmer's government has struggled to deliver promised economic growth, repair tattered public services and ease the cost of living, and been hamstrung by repeated missteps and policy U-turns on issues including welfare reform. He has been further hurt by his disastrous decision to appoint Peter Mandelson, a scandal-tarnished friend of Jeffrey Epstein, as Britain’s ambassador to Washington.
Last week’s elections saw Labour squeezed from both right and left, losing votes to both Reform UK and the “eco-populist” Green Party. It reflects the increasing fragmentation of British politics, long dominated by Labour and the Conservatives.
Starmer hopes to regain momentum with Monday’s speech and an ambitious set of legislative plans to be set out in a speech Wednesday by King Charles III at the State Opening of Parliament.
He told party lawmakers and activists in his speech that the government will take control of Britain's energy, economic and defense security and make the country fairer.
A key policy is closer ties with the EU, which the United Kingdom left in 2020, four years after the “leave” side narrowly won a membership referendum. Starmer’s government has already moved to ease some of the trade restrictions that have burdened British businesses since Brexit, and he says he will secure a youth mobility deal so young people can spend a few years working across the continent.
Starmer said the government would be “defined by rebuilding our relationship with Europe.”
Labour campaigned to stay in the EU during the 2016 referendum campaign, but has been reluctant to reopen a debate that bitterly divided the country. Starmer has ruled out seeking to reenter the EU, or to rejoin the bloc's customs union or single market, things that would make a big difference to British businesses.
Rivals weigh making a move
None of the high-profile Labour politicians considered potential challengers to Starmer — including Rayner, Health Secretary Wes Streeting and Greater Manchester Mayor Andy Burnham — has yet called for him to resign.
But a growing number of Labour lawmakers urged the prime minister to set a timetable for his departure. British politics allows parties to change leader midterm without the need for a new election.
Josh Simons, a formerly loyal Labour lawmaker, wrote in the Times of London that Starmer “has lost the country” and “should take control of the situation by overseeing an orderly transition to a new prime minister.”
Catherine West, a former junior minister, said she would try to trigger a leadership contest unless Starmer delivered a barnstorming speech on Monday. West acknowledged she does not have the support of 81 colleagues, needed to force a contest, and her move appeared to be an attempt to press more high-profile contenders to make a move.
“Working people sent us a message,” West said. “We have to listen to that, and we have to change and we have to do it quickly.”
