UK elections: Keir Starmer leads Labour to landslide victory

LONDON: Labour leader Sir Keir Starmer became the new prime minister of Britain on Friday, promising a “national renewal” after leading his party to a landslide victory, winning more than 400 of the 650 seats in the general election and bringing Labour back to power after 14 years in opposition. “Our work is urgent and we begin it today,” Starmer said.Labour had 412 votes and two seats were left to be declared at the time of going to press.
Outgoing British Indian PM Rishi Sunak (44), who led the Conservatives, Britain’s oldest political party, to their worst electoral defeat in its nearly 200-year history, losing 250 seats (and winning 121), gave his resignation speech outside Downing Street in which he apologised to the country. He said he had given the job his all but the country had sent a clear signal that the govt must change. His wife, Akshata Murty, stood behind him in a blue-and-white striped dress looking close to tears. He will go down in history as the least successful UK PM at the ballot box.
“I have heard your anger, your disappointment and I take responsibility for this loss,” he said. He then held Murty’s hand as they walked to the car to travel to Buckingham Palace for him to formally tender his resignation as PM to King Charles, the head of state, after his gamble of calling the early election failed spectacularly.
Shortly after midday Starmer (61), who had called for the abolition of the monarchy when younger, went to Buckingham Palace to meet the King, accompanied by his wife Victoria in a red dress, where he was formally asked to form a Labour govt and appointed prime minister. It is the first time in more than 60 years that a knight of the realm will take up the office of prime minister.
Starmer arrived in Downing Street to loud cheers and supporters waving Union Jacks where he gave his first speech as PM, first paying tribute to Sunak for being the UK’s first British Asian PM and for his dedication and hard work. But he said: “Our country has voted decisively for change” and “a return of politics to public service”. He said his govt would “restore service and respect to politics”. For too long the previous govt had turned a blind eye as millions slid into insecurity, he said.
“We will govern country first, party second,” he said and promised to create wealth in every community, get the NHS back on its feet, and secure the borders.
His first foreign visit will be to Washington on Tuesday, for the Nato Summit. Apart from his wife and two children, there will be another entrant to Downing Street, Starmer’s cat, Jojo, a rescue, who is expected to have turf wars with Larry, the No. 10 cat.
On Friday morning white vans had already appeared outside Downing Street so that Sunak could move out.
The night brought a string of high-profile Conservative casualties. Liz Truss, the former PM,lost her seat. Setting another record, eight cabinet ministerslost their seats, including defence secretary Grant Shapps, justice secretary Alex Chalk, and Leader of the House of Commons Penny Mordaunt.
Another party which had suffered a crushing defeat was the pro-Scottish independence SNP which lost 38 seats in Westminster and were left with just nine seats.
The election also saw big wins for the Liberal Democrats, Reform UK and Independents. The Liberal Democrats picked up 71 seats, also seizing three seats of former Tory PMs Theresa May, David Cameron and Boris Johnson.
Reform UK, a brand new party set up by pro-Brexit and anti-immigration Nigel Farage, won four seats and came second to Labour in many seats. It was widely blamed for causing the Tories to lose as many seats as it did by splitting the Conservative vote. Farage himself entered the House of Commons for the first time, on his eighth attempt.
The Green party won four seats. Five Independents also wonseats. Jeremy Corbyn, former Labour leader,won Islington North, standing against Labour, with a majority of 7,247. India-origin Praful Nargund had stood against him for Labour and lost with 16,873 votes. Labour frontbencher Jonathan Ashworth suffered a surprise defeat in Leicester South to Independent Shockat Adam, a 51-year-old local. Adam, who like many in the city has Indian roots, has lived in Leicester since the age of three when his family moved from Malawi to England.
In Blackburn Independent Adnan Hussain overturned an 18,000 Labour majority to win by just 132 votes. City councillor Ayoub Khan won Birmingham Perry Barr, unseating Labour’s most senior British Pakistani MP, Khalid Mahmood, who had been MP since 2001.
Independent candidate Iqbal Mohamed, whose parents arrived in the UK from India in the 1960s, gained Dewsbury and Batley from Labour. All five Independents were endorsed by a collective called Muslim Vote, which is campaigning for an immediate ceasefire in Gaza.
George Galloway’s Workers Party of Britain failed to secure a single seat and he lost his own seat of Rochdale.