Premiership of Keir Starmer

Premiership of Keir Starmer 5 July 2024 – present
Monarch	Charles III
Prime Minister	Keir Starmer
Cabinet	Starmer ministry
Party	Labour
Election	2024
Seat	10 Downing Street
Coat of arms of HM Government

Keir Starmer's tenure as Prime Minister of the United Kingdom began on 5 July 2024 when he accepted an invitation from King Charles III to form a government, succeeding Rishi Sunak of the Conservative Party, after the Labour Party had won the 2024 general election. As prime minister, Starmer is also serving as First Lord of the Treasury and Minister for the Civil Service. He is the first Labour politician since Gordon Brown in 2010 to serve as prime minister, and his landslide victory was similar to the one achieved by Tony Blair at the 1997 general election, the last time a Labour opposition ousted a Conservative government.

Labour leadership as opposition leader

Main articles: 2020 Labour Party leadership election (UK) and Keir Starmer's tenure as Leader of the Opposition

Following Jeremy Corbyn's resignation after Labour's defeat at the 2019 general election, Keir Starmer succeeded him as party leader by winning the 2020 leadership election on a left-wing platform. As the Labour leader, Starmer repositioned the party away from the left and toward the political centre. He emphasised the importance of eliminating antisemitism within the party, a controversial issue during Corbyn's leadership. His supporters praised him for his antisemitism reforms and for helping to improve Labour's credibility with the electorate in the aftermath of the previous leadership, while his critics accused him of unfairly treating leftist Labour members.

Under Starmer's leadership, Labour maintained significant leads in opinion polling over the Conservatives in the years proceeding the 2024 general election, and made gains in the local elections that took place proceeding the general election. In 2023, Starmer set out five missions for his government, targeting issues such as economic growth, health, clean energy, crime and education.

Premiership

Aided by the unpopularity of Rishi Sunak's Conservative government and the Conservatives as a whole during their 14 years in government, Starmer led the Labour Party to victory in the 2024 general election, ending fourteen years of Conservative rule, with the heaviest Conservative defeat in history. This landslide victory was similar to the one achieved by Tony Blair at the 1997 general election, the last time a Labour opposition ousted a Conservative government.

In his victory speech, Starmer thanked party workers for their hard work – including nearly five years of revamping and rebranding Labour in the face of Tory dominance – and urged them to savour the moment, but warned them of challenges ahead and pledged his government would work for "national renewal":

We did it. Thank you truly... you have changed our country. Four-and-a-half years of work changing this party... this is what it is for. A changed Labour... ready to restore Britain to the service of the working people.

Entering government

Starmer became the prime minister of the United Kingdom on 5 July 2024. After Sunak tended his resignation to King Charles III, Starmer was invited by the King to form a government and become prime minister. After he accepted the King's invitation to form a government, Starmer was driven from Buckingham Palace to Downing Street, where he was greeted by a crowd of supporters and gave his first speech as prime minister.

Cabinet

Main article: Starmer ministry

The new government is expected to be formed from 6–7 July, with the new Parliament being called to meet on 9 July. Starmer's ministry will likely consist of Angela Rayner as Deputy Prime Minister of the United Kingdom, Rachel Reeves as Chancellor of the Exchequer, David Lammy as Foreign Secretary, Yvette Cooper as Home Secretary and Wes Streeting as Health Secretary.

Policies

On 13 June 2024, Starmer released the Labour Party manifesto Change, which focuses on economic growth, planning system reforms, infrastructure, what Starmer describes as ‘clean energy’, healthcare, education, childcare, and strengthening workers' rights. It pledges a new publicly owned energy company, a 'Green Prosperity Plan', reducing patient waiting times in the National Health Service, and renationalisation of the railway network. It includes wealth creation and 'pro-business and pro-worker' policies. The manifesto also pledged to give votes to 16 year olds, reform the House of Lords, and to charge value added tax on private school fees, with money generated going into improving state education.