Why has Starmer brought Gordon Brown and Harriet Harman back after disastrous election losses?

Sir Keir Starmer has appointed two familiar figures as his new advisers after vowing to shake up Labor following devastating election losses.

Hours after the Prime Minister vowed to “respond to the message that voters are sending us”, Sir Keir Starmer announced that he had brought former prime minister Gordon Brown and former party deputy leader Harriet Harman back into government.

Mr Brown will be the prime minister’s special envoy on global finance, while Lady Harman has been appointed as her adviser on women and girls.

The announcement, which came after the couple were seen leaving Downing Street on Saturday morning, was met with a mixed reaction.

The political opposition described the appointments as a “desperate move”, while some Labor MPs reportedly expressed confusion over the decision to bring them back into government.

So why did the prime minister bring them back?

Gordon Brown

Announcing Mr Brown’s appointment, Sir Keir wrote of X: “As Britain’s longest-serving chancellor, Gordon is well placed to work with our international allies to build a stronger Britain and improve the security and resilience of our country.”

Mr Brown is expected to draw on his experience as chancellor and prime minister to make recommendations on how global financial cooperation can strengthen the UK.

“He will be tasked with developing new international finance partnerships that can support defense and security-related investment, including measures that support the UK’s relationship with Europe,” Downing Street said.

Mr Brown served as chancellor for a decade under Tony Blair, making him the longest-serving chancellor in modern history.

But Britain’s decision to sell half of its gold reserves was met with harsh criticism then and now. Gold was sold for an average of $275 per ounce, well below its current value.

He later became prime minister from 2007 to 2010 and led the country through the 2008 global financial crisis.

Mr Brown inflicted a general election defeat on the party in 2010 after 13 years in power, with many saying he lacked the natural flair of his predecessor Tony Blair.

Since leaving office, Mr. Brown has become a leading advocate for ending child poverty and has served as the United Nations’ special envoy for global education and the World Health Organization’s ambassador for global health financing.

He remains a senior figure in the Labor Party and said in February that Sir Keir was “too slow to do the right things” in the wake of the Peter Mandelson scandal over contact with Jeffrey Epstein and that the leadership crisis facing Sir Keir was “serious”. Mr. Brown was also after documents related to the broader Epstein scandal.

Harriet Harman

Lady Harman has been announced as Sir Keir’s new adviser on women and girls as the Prime Minister tries to salvage his premiership following this week’s election losses.

In her new role, she will work with ministers to combat violence against women and girls, improve job opportunities and increase representation in parliament and public life.

Sir Keir wrote about

“I look forward to working with Harriet to take action on this important issue.”

No 10 said he would work with the head of the Civil Service to “create a shift in culture” across the Civil Service and ministerial offices.

The announcement follows the Labor ambassador being appointed by the foreign secretary last year as special envoy for women and girls to “defend gender equality around the world and help deliver global economic growth”.

Lady Harriet is a member of the House of Lords and has held many senior positions in both the government and the Labor Party in the past.

He was Mr Brown’s deputy party leader and also briefly served as party leader in 2010 and 2015.

Sir Keir’s decision to rally her to his side may be an attempt to quell some of the vocal criticism of his premiership that has come in recent months.

Just hours before the appointment was announced, she told Sky News that Sir Keir should continue as prime minister but warned him that “more of the same is unacceptable”.

In February he said Sir Keir appeared “weak, naive and naive”, blaming Mandelson’s “lies” for the scandal that has posed a major threat to his leadership since September last year.