Great Britain Down to earth: Keir Starmer wants to go to Downing Street

SDA

4.7.2024 - 08:13

ARCHIVE - The leader of the British Labour Party, Sir Keir Starmer. Photo: Jon Super/AP/dpa
ARCHIVE - The leader of the British Labour Party, Sir Keir Starmer. Photo: Jon Super/AP/dpa
Keystone

According to opinion polls, Keir Starmer (61) is likely to become Britain's next head of government. As leader of the Social Democratic Labour Party, he likes to emphasize his down-to-earth origins and likes to repeat in one sentence that his father was a toolmaker and his mother a nurse.

Starmer's childhood was marked by the fact that his mother was seriously ill and money was sometimes so tight that the telephone was cut off. He was the first of the family to go to university, became a human rights lawyer and head of the CPS prosecuting authority.

"Is Keir Starmer too boring?"

The fact that he talks about this as well as his favourite club, Arsenal FC, is probably an attempt to give his no-nonsense image more color. "Is Keir Starmer too boring to be Prime Minister?" asked "The Spectator" magazine at the end of 2023.

Starmer is now benefiting from the fact that voters are turning away from the ruling Conservatives. While Starmer used to be interested in socialist views, he is now associated with the political center.

Friday evening should belong to the family

Starmer is campaigning for economic stability, a better healthcare system and stronger border protection. He has ruled out his country's return to the EU. As party leader, he emphasizes that, unlike his predecessor Jeremy Corbyn, he will take tough action against anti-Semitism.

He was made a Sir for his services to the justice system. He wants to continue to keep Friday evenings free for his wife Victoria and his two teenage children. He also wants to continue playing football after winning the election, albeit less often than before.