‘Hamstrung’ Keir Starmer issued huge warning as Labour ‘vultures circle’ | Politics | News

Sir Keir Starmer has been accused of dodging the Brexit issue in a high-stakes speech aimed at saving his premiership as his allies and rivals increasingly circle his embattled Downing Street operation. Following the Prime Minister’s speech at Waterloo, Daily Express commentator Martyn Brown offered a frank analysis.

Mr Brown said Mr Starmer appeared politically “crippled” due to pressure from Labor ranks but was unable to confront the “core issue” hanging over his government – Britain’s future relationship with Europe. The Prime Minister delivered what Mr Brown described as a “make or break speech” following disastrous local election results, growing backbench unrest and growing speculation about possible successors.

Speaking about the Prime Minister’s precarious position, Mr Brown said: “He’s in big trouble, he’s in big trouble.

“Vultures are circling, there are major threats to his time at Number 10.”

Sir Keir sought to reset his premiership with a 20-minute speech in which he promised change, repeatedly criticized the “status quo” and portrayed Labor as a government ready to take radical action.

Appearing without a tie or jacket, with “sleeves rolled up”, the Prime Minister gave what Mr Brown described as a “passionate speech for Starmer”, speaking personally about his family and praising his wife “frivolously”.

But Mr Brown argued there was little substance behind the rhetoric. He doubted the impact of the speech, saying: “He’s trying to convince Labor MPs and Labor supporters that he’s going to change things. But there wasn’t a lot of evidence of that.”

Mr Brown claimed his biggest policy announcement was a pledge to nationalize British steel, but said the proposal remained “hungry with a few hoops to jump through”. He also highlighted the most glaring omission from the speech: Brexit.

On the lack of clarity, Mr Brown said: “As I noted on Brexit, to be honest it hasn’t actually gone there.” Explaining the Prime Minister’s hesitation, he continued: “He’s a bit hamstrung because Europe won’t let him do what he wants to do at this stage.”

The Prime Minister has repeatedly stressed that he will not seek to formally reverse Brexit, but has also spoken of closer ties with the EU ahead of the upcoming UK-EU summit.

Mr Brown argued Sir Keir was trying to balance both sides of the debate. Warning of a hidden agenda, Trump said: “He says he wants to put Britain at the heart of Europe. But we all know he’s trying to kill Brexit and he’s not going to stop there. This is just his final staging post.”

The Prime Minister was also criticized for not explaining how Labor would tackle Britain’s economic problems or cut welfare spending.

Underlining the lack of detail, Mr Brown said: “He didn’t really get into it other than saying how he was going to fix the economy.”

The speech comes amid reports of growing unrest among Labor MPs following local election losses in England, Wales and Scotland. Mr Brown touched on the threat of a leadership challenge by Labor backbencher Catherine West, claiming she was speaking on behalf of “40-odd Labor MPs” who were unhappy with the Prime Minister’s direction.

While he suggested the speech could buy Sir Keir time, he argued that the long-term outlook remained bleak. Questioning the effectiveness of the speech, Mr Brown stressed: “I think it means he’ll survive today, maybe this week, but not much has been done to change the dial.”

Rejecting the Prime Minister’s authority, Brown said: “This is a Prime Minister who is no longer in control, no longer in charge.” He warned that senior Labor figures such as Angela Rayner, Andy Burnham, Wes Streeting and Ed Miliband were increasingly influential.

He added: “They’re calling the shots now.” Attention now turns to whether any of Labour’s big beasts might move against the Prime Minister if his position deteriorates further.

Mr Brown also suggested Mr Streeting could “go early” into any leadership contest to prevent Mr Burnham, who is not currently an MP, from entering the race. Meanwhile, Sir Keir was said to be focusing most of his political fire not on the Conservatives but on Labour’s Left and Right rivals.

Noting the shift in targets, Mr Brown said: “He didn’t actually refer to the Conservatives but he did refer to Nigel Farage, Zack Polanski and the Greens.”

As speculation over Labour’s future intensified, Mr Brown concluded: “At lunchtime on Monday, Keir Starmer is still Prime Minister, but we don’t know how much longer.”