Keir Starmer ‘looked like boy being taken off for his first day at school’ as he clutched wife’s hand on way to King’s Speech
Keir Starmer showed “inner pain” and looked like “a kid being let out for his first day at school” as he held his wife’s hand on the way to the King’s Speech, according to a body language expert.
The beleaguered Prime Minister did not answer reporters’ questions as he climbed into the car with his wife Victoria and held on tightly to her as they left No 10 on Wednesday morning.
Sir Keir’s exit followed brief talks with Wes Streeting in Downing Street this morning.
The Health Secretary looked grumpy as he emerged from Number 10, just 15 minutes after entering the front door.
Judi James said the Prime Minister left shortly afterwards and “failed” to signal “resilience” as he could only manage a “thin smile that looked very fragile and performative”.
The body language expert told the Daily Mail: ‘Starmer’s emergence from hiding in No10 saw him grab his wife’s hand in the tightest of clasps; The extremely long sleeves of her jacket hid her bump, making her look like a new kid heading out for her first day at school.
‘If Starmer intended to signal stoic endurance with his body language, he failed. Her eyes cautiously scanning the cameras as she stepped out into the rain, her mouth only a thin smile that looked very fragile and performative, with none of the angles or movements necessary for true happiness, confidence, or pleasure.
Keir Starmer showed “inner pain” and looked like “a kid being let out for his first day at school” as he held his wife’s hand on the way to the King’s Speech, according to a body language expert
The beleaguered Prime Minister did not answer journalists’ questions and held their hands tightly as he left Number 10 on Wednesday morning.
‘Starmer gently pushed back his clasping hand to pull his wife like a celebrity, and she responded accordingly, smiling down at the floor. As they walked towards the car, Starmer appeared to want to show that he was in control by placing his hand very hard on his wife’s back so that she could steer.
‘As he lowered his head to get into the car, his attempt to shape anything seemed to stop and his eyebrows wrinkled in a micro-expression of what looked like inner pain.’
Sir Keir faces massive revolt from within the Labor Party but has vowed to continue the fight despite being widely unpopular.
The Prime Minister yesterday challenged his critics to sack him and refused to resign amid a growing number of ministers and MPs.
He had a ‘blink and you’ll miss it’ showdown with Mr Streeting today, which his allies dismissed as a ‘quick cup of coffee’ and suggested Mr Streeting did not have the numbers or ‘guts’ to challenge.
The party’s union paymasters jumped into the fray this morning, issuing a joint statement calling for a more Left agenda.
“It is clear that the Prime Minister will not lead Labor at the next election and at some stage a plan will need to be put in place to elect a new leader,” affiliated unions said.
The monarch will hold the State Opening of Parliament amid traditional scenes of pomp and ceremony.
But while the King will read out a list of legislation including proposals to warm up to the EU and strengthen the Net Zero target, there is ‘outrage’ as Labor has been dragged into a messy civil war.
Sir Keir’s exit followed brief talks with Wes Streeting in Downing Street this morning.
The Prime Minister was removed from No10 by his wife as he struggled to remain in power amid an open rebellion by Labor MPs and unions against his premiership.
The Health Secretary looked grumpy as he emerged from Number 10 just 15 minutes after entering the front door
Worryingly for Sir Keir, the next batch of Mandelson papers is due to be released as early as next week.
Manchester mayor Andy Burnham and Angela Rayner are both hanging around as the question of who will replace Sir Keir dominates MPs’ debates.
In a dramatic incident at Westminster yesterday, four Labor Party ministers resigned, saying they no longer trusted the prime minister.
The number of Labor MPs who want him gone has risen to 90 and Home Secretary Shabana Mahmood was forced to deny he was on the verge of resigning after telling the Prime Minister to set a timetable for his departure.
Unions including Unite, Unison and GMB said they recognized progress had been made by the Government on issues such as the Employment Rights Act and the increase in the minimum wage.
But they said last week’s election results were ‘devastating’.
The statement included the following: ‘The Labor Party is not doing enough to deliver the change that workers voted for in the general election. Our focus is not on the personalities in Westminster and the political drama that is unfolding, but on the fundamental change of direction in economic policy and political strategy that the unions have made clear they need.
‘It is clear that the Prime Minister will not lead Labor at the next election and at some stage a plan for the selection of a new Leader will need to be put in place.
‘This is a point where the future of the Party we founded will be debated and determined, and we are working closely as unions to shape a common vision of policy, political strategy and economic policy that will reorient Labor to working people, enabling Labor to do what it was elected to do: be governed in the interests of workers.’
In a bizarre Cabinet meeting yesterday, Sir Keir tried to brush off the uprising against him.
He began the session by promising to continue the fight and insisted he would only discuss the leadership issue one-on-one with ministers. But sources said he refused to meet Mr Streeting individually.
The Health Minister has indicated he will not make any further moves ahead of the King’s Speech to avoid embarrassing the monarch.
The State Opening of Parliament and the King’s Speech will take place on Wednesday in a day of grandeur and pageantry in the capital.
Loyalist minister Nick Thomas-Symonds, who toured the broadcast studios this morning, admitted the Prime Minister was experiencing ‘turbulence’.
But he told BBC Radio 4’s Today programme: ‘Anyone who looks at some of the news we publish might think we’re talking about the final scene in Casino Royale or something.’
He previously told BBC Breakfast: ‘There is no competition for the leadership of the Labor Party.
‘There’s a very clear way to do that under our rules for 81 people to nominate an alternative candidate. This did not happen.
‘The contest was not triggered. We continue. I’m not saying yesterday wasn’t turbulent. ‘Clearly it was, but we’re moving, we’re continuing to deliver.’
Deputy Prime Minister David Lammy attempted to calm the situation last night by calling on Labor MPs to step back from the brink and warned that the party’s ‘navel gazing’ was damaging the country.
The prospect of a Labour-led coup sparked panic in financial markets yesterday, as traders spooked at the thought that a new leader would drag the Government further to the Left.
