Keir Starmer must 'build partnerships' with Middle East at first Labour conference as PM

Anger remains in the party over Gaza but the repositioning of the UK's relationship with Israel has helped, insiders tell The National

Prime Minister Keir Starmer in Downing Street ahead of the Labour Party conference next week. PA

Having witnessed first-hand how merciless British government can be as three Conservative prime ministers imploded, Keir Starmer knew stresses lay ahead as he marched up Downing Street as the new prime minister on July 5.

The Labour leader was immediately confronted with overflowing prisons, followed by nationwide riots then the delicate repositioning of Britain’s stance on Israel-Gaza.

On Sunday he will arrive in Liverpool for his party conference with a view to reconnect Britain on the global stage and articulate how he plans to fix the nation.

Palestinian protest

Losing four seats in the election to independent candidates who stood on a pro-Gaza platform probably reinforced Mr Starmer’s decision to signal to Israel that Britain was no longer its unquestioning ally.

The government reinstated funding for the Gaza refugee agency, UNRWA, withdrew opposition to the International Criminal Court arrest warrant for Benjamin Netanyahu and halted some arms exports to Israel.

That heralded an entirely different approach to the Conservatives and, said senior Labour MP Afzal Khan, matched the feeling in the country.

“Upon coming into power, we were able to demonstrate that difference and give assurances to people that the rule of law mattered,” Mr Khan told The National. “We understood that the British people were not happy, seeing the carnage that was taking place in Gaza day in, day out.”

He suggested that it was unlikely that this would stop the pro-Palestinian protests at conference because “until the carnage in Gaza has stopped the protests will continue”. “But more and more people will be satisfied that the positioning of the British government is now in line with the British people,” he added.

Beware internal debate

Labour should not allow its foreign policy to be led by internal factions but by what is best for Britain, said the peer John Woodcock, the government’s adviser on political violence and disruption.

“It is really important that the Labour Party, particularly now it's in a position of government, does not start cutting its cloth on strategic foreign policy on the basis of domestic internal opposition,” said Lord Walney. The government has to remain credible in the Middle East where “it can play a critical role” amid the “whirlwind of difficulties” from the Israeli-Gaza conflict.

“It's really important that the government keeps its focus on the longer-term objective of bringing a return to peace and stability within the region and the way in which the UK can play an important and constructive role.”

The conference should also be used to send a message to the international community that Britain is open for business and “hungry to build partnerships with its allies across the Middle East”.

Brutal government

Mr Starmer has rapidly experienced how brutal governing can be after the challenges of this summer’s anti-immigration riots. Then there was dismay among his MPs over the decision to ditch winter fuel allowance of £300 ($400) for many pensioners.

This was followed by revelations this week that his chief of staff Sue Gray received a salary of £170,000 which was £3,000 more than the Prime Minister, along with the revelation that Mr Starmer and his wife had accepted more than £100,000 in “freebies” from clothing to football tickets.

While it has been a tricky week, since becoming Labour leader in 2020, Mr Starmer has implemented iron discipline, marginalising the hard left and ensuring that the rest stay in line.

While his personal polling numbers have dropped slightly since taking office, the Prime Minister should remain “very relaxed about it”, a Labour insider told The National.

“He came to power off the back of 14 years of Tory government, with the last few years characterised by sheer chaos, and the public decided change was required,” said the former Downing Street adviser. “However, the public do not expect to see immediate change, they know the problems facing the country are deep and structural.”

That leads to the significant amount of “fixing” Labour need to do after the apparent damage caused by the years of Tory populism that started under Boris Johnson.

“Right-wing populism can be electorally successful, but it can never govern successfully,” said another Labour source, which was why the Tories had ended up with five prime ministers since 2016.

The future

It is understood that Mr Starmer will use the conference to steer his party and country towards hope after the gloom he has imposed by blaming Britain’s ills, including an apparent £22 billion budget black hole, on the Tories.

His keynote speech on Tuesday should, said Andrew Harrop of the Labour-supporting Fabian Society, show “where he hopes to get to over the next five years”.

“He also needs to bring hope and expectation to the public, because we're obviously going to have a very hard budget in October,” Mr Harrop added. “He needs to paint the picture of why short-term pain is going to lead to a much better country over the course of a decade.”

The story of hope should be that within this parliamentary five-year term the NHS will be overhauled, education reformed, planning laws liberalised, onshore wind farms built and more workers’ rights alongside rail nationalisation.

Tough years ahead

Mr Starmer understands that if he is to be re-elected in 2029 he needs to bring along the coalition of Labour voters who put him power and who “expect to see a difference in two years”, said the Labour insider. “That, combined with the huge majority they have, means Starmer has permission to take his time to fix the country’s issues.”

MP Mr Khan, who chairs the Labour Muslim Network, agrees that while Labour will want to celebrate their first election success in five attempts, “the truth is the challenges that the country and public are facing are huge and people have lot of expectations”.

Mr Starmer needs to strike a balance between those difficulties and giving some hope on how things can change “but the reality may be tough,” he added.