Keir Starmer, a former human rights lawyer turned Labour Party leader, became Prime Minister of the British government on July 5. Britain has returned to the Labour Party after 14 years of Conservative government. From his first actions, it is clear that The new government wants to move closer to continental Europe and the European Union.
Human rights campaigner Sir Keir Starmer becomes Labour PM
Starmer was born in 1962 into a large family, his father a toolmaker and his mother a nurse. He was the first member of his family to complete a law degree specialising in human rights, first at the University of Leeds and then at Oxford.
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At Oxford after graduation, Starmer worked on the magazine of a Marxist collective called Socialist Alternatives. He then decides to work voluntarily for Death Penalty Project, an NGO that provides legal representation to people sentenced to death in various countries around the world. Death Penalty Project Through his work, he managed to block death sentences in several Eastern Caribbean countries.
In 2014, for his services to law and justice as a prosecutor, Starmer received the award'Bath Order'an honorary title of knight and commander which gives rise to the nickname Sir. At the end of the same year, Starmer decided to resign from his post as prosecutor and stood with the Labour Party in the 2015 elections.
In 2017, he joined the shadow government of Labour leader Jeremy Corbyn, responsible for Brexit. After the 2019 election, won by the Conservatives, Corbyn resigned. Starmer then took the opportunity to step up and replace him. Keir Starmer initially presented himself as a candidate in continuity with Corbyn's policies. Then, over the years, he moved the party's official positions towards the centre.
The Conservative legacy Keir Starmer can rebuild on
His predecessor Rishi Sunak has undertaken several initiatives that could provide a starting point for Starmer. Reducing inflation to 4.2% is very close to the Bank of England's 2% target. Sunak has managed to improve the post-Covid economic situation. In fact, in the first three months of 2024, the economy started growing by 0.6%.
The Conservative Party’s environmental policies confirm the goal of reducing the UK’s net emissions by 2050. But Sunak has sought to do so at no extra cost to families, in what he has called an affordable and pragmatic transition without ecological burden. Keir Starmer will need to start from this practical approach.
The government's priorities concern domestic and economic policy.
Starmer has set out priorities to be achieved in the first 100 days of government: launching a programme of reconstruction and national stability, aimed at relaunching the economy, health, public construction, security and the fight against irregular immigration. Starmer in fact like The first act cancelled the Rwandan plan approved by the previous government to block immigration.
The Rwandan plan would have involved the deportation of migrants who arrived in Britain before their asylum claims had even been examined. Already in 2023, the European Court of Human Rights and the British Supreme Court ruled that transferring migrants before asylum claims had even been examined violates the right of non-refoulement in the Geneva Convention itself and the protocols to which Britain is a party. adheres to.
Government news comes from foreign policy
Geopolitically, there is substantial continuity with the Conservatives. Indeed, his first trip as prime minister was to the US for the Nato summit, where Starmer confirmed the hard line against Russia in Ukraine.
The changes compared to the previous government will be evident at the summit of the European Political Community on 18 July in Woodstock, Oxfordshire. At the summit, the British Prime Minister made clear his desire for a reset of post-Brexit relations with the European continent. The objective of the negotiation is also mentioned a security pact covering a range of areas such as energy, supply chains, pandemics and migration.
At the same summit, Starmer holds a meeting bilateral meeting with our Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni. On the occasion, the British Prime Minister assures that under his leadership, Great Britain will not withdraw from the European Convention on Human Rights. Furthermore, the English Prime Minister guarantees that the United Kingdom intends systematically collaborate with the European police agency Europol against human trafficking.
The Labour government's goal is to change the face of the country, both domestically and internationally. In the short term, the possible victory of Donald Trump in the United States and the reduction of America's international role will lead to a renewal of the United Kingdom's role in Europe. A first step could be represented by the security agreement between London and Brussels.
