Keir Starmer is currently in a lot of hot water, this is because of the stances he has taken during his early term which have soured his image. In fact, a survey done by More in Common found Starmer’s net approval rating to be at -16.
But why has something like this happened considering Starmer and the Labour Party have just won the election? Well first off, he actually didn’t win too many votes at the election, only a lot of seats. According to YouGov, 23% of people approve Labour while 51% disapprove.
Secondly, Keir Starmer’s actions in the office of the Prime Minister have caused him to get increasing flak from the British public. For example, thanks to extremely overcrowded prisons, Starmer has been releasing prisoners 40% of the way into their sentence according to the Independent.
He also decided on a controversial decision to apparently “ax winter fuel payments for most pensioners” according to the Express. It was found that 56% of people disapproved of this whereas only 23% of people actually liked it.
There’s also people who are mad at Starmer and the Labour Party for its suspected cronyism. According to the BBC, Lord Waheed Alli is a huge Labour donor. He was given a pass to Number 10 on Downing Street. This allows Alli to sit in on political meetings.
As well as according to the BBC, another object for criticism is Ian Corfield. Corfield is a donor to the Labour party, he gave 20,000 pounds to the party along with a few more to some other folks.
Because of this, he was given a “senior civil service role” in the British Treasury. These accusations have really stained the reputation of Starmer and the Labour Party, but the Labour Party have argued back, saying that civil servants were appointed all the time.
The worst one was Starmer’s reaction to the UK riots and protests. When 3 kids were killed (Bebe King, Elsie Dot Stancombe, Alice Dasilva Aguiar) at a Taylor Swift-themed dance class, it was done by Axel Rudakubana, in response people rioted and protested, causing the government to crack down with a heavy police response, according to the Independent.
However, here in the United States, specifically Coral Glades High, people here on the ground said what they thought about Starmer and the current boiling political situation in the United Kingdom.
Samuel Rodjas in the 11th grade said, “he does not seem like a good man.” Kaden Davis 11th grade said, “the prime minister’s actions clearly show a lack of social justice; he’s clearly trying to oppress the people.”
Police arrested anyone and everyone that was there, but only took the most agitated of the bunch to jail, sparking outrage and distrust with the government. Overall, it’s no surprise why he’s such a controversial figure considering his actions in the UK actively antagonizing the conservative and centrist voter base.
