The new man in 10 Downing Street Keir Starmer is the new British Prime Minister
Great Britain is experiencing a political upheaval. For the first time in more than a decade, Labour is back as Prime Minister. Who is Keir Starmer and what problems will he face?
05.07.2024, 13:35
05.07.2024, 13:42
dpa
Keir Starmer is the new Prime Minister of the United Kingdom. King Charles III appointed the Social Democrat to form the government.
The 61-year-old won a clear victory with his Labour Party in the general election and replaced the Conservative Party, which had ruled the UK for 14 years.
Starmer succeeds the previous Prime Minister Rishi Sunak. He is a lawyer, worked as a human rights lawyer and was head of the Crown Prosecution Service. He has led the Labor Party for four years.
He rules out a return to the EU
The new prime minister faces a number of challenges in the country - such as the overburdening of the National Health Service (NHS), problems in housing policy and the question of how the country wants to deal with immigration. The rising cost of living is also a major issue in the United Kingdom.
Politically, he promises economic stability, a better healthcare system and stronger border protection. He wants to set up a national energy company and employ more teachers. He wants to overturn the previous government's plan to deport irregular migrants to Rwanda, regardless of their origin. He has ruled out the possibility of his country returning to the EU.
Starmer still has to win people over
The politician who is now moving into Downing Street, who is considered boring, is not arousing enthusiasm among the British. His resounding victory in the general election is interpreted more as the British people's desire for change than an endorsement of his political vision for the country.
He remained vague in many policy areas. It is therefore eagerly awaited what changes he will introduce and whether he can win over the people of Great Britain. Starmer took over the leadership of the Labour Party from the old leftist Jeremy Corbyn, who was accused of not taking decisive enough action against anti-Semitism in his party.
Starmer led the party back to the political center and took decisive action against anti-Semitic tendencies. However, the war in the Gaza Strip repeatedly led to tensions in his party, which is traditionally close to the Palestinians.
Friday evening should belong to the family
During the election campaign, Starmer liked to emphasize that his father was a toolmaker and his mother a nurse. Because his mother was seriously ill, Starmer took on responsibility in the family at an early age, as his biographer Tom Baldwin writes.
Starmer is a football fan and supporter of the London first division club Arsenal FC. After his election victory, he still wants to be on the pitch himself from time to time. He wants to keep Friday evenings free for his wife Victoria and his two teenage children.
