On Sunday, October 13, Keir Starmer passed the symbolic milestone of 100 days as head of the British government. While the Labour Party leader certainly didn't expect the journey to be easy, he perhaps did not envision such a calamitous start either. According to a YouGov poll published to mark the occasion, six out of 10 Britons already disapprove of his government's action and 47% of those who voted Labour are disappointed. What happened to the hope inspired by the historic victory of this party of the British left in the July 4 general election?
On the steps of Downing Street, Starmer promised to turn the page once and for all on 14 chaotic years of Conservative rule, marked by Brexit, austerity and scandal. He campaigned on the theme of "change" and spoke of leading the country into a "decade of renewal."
But the atmosphere soon turned gloomy. Instead of outlining prospects and offering hope, the leader and his Chancellor of the Exchequer, Rachel Reeves, blackened the picture, denouncing an "unexpected" slate of £22 billion left by Rishi Sunak's government. The first budget will be "painful," they warned.
Dysfunctional teams
The racist riots of early August were promptly put down and Starmer's firmness was praised. As the former director of public prosecutions for England, he had dealt with similar events during the London riots of 2011. However, this political capital very quickly dissipated by the end of the summer, when the national media began covering the "freebies" scandal, which revealed the multiple gifts that Starmer, his wife and a few ministers had accepted, including suits, glasses, dresses, evenings in Ibiza, tickets to Taylor Swift's concert and to multiple football matches...
The leader, who, while in opposition, had criticized the dubious legal or moral arrangements of Tory elected representatives – such as public contracts awarded to relatives during the pandemic and Boris Johnson's vacations and wedding paid for by donors – now appears to be a hypocrite. Especially at a time when the government seems to be attacking the finances of the most vulnerable. Indeed, Reeves has announced the abolition of the "fuel allowance," an energy allowance that 11 million pensioners benefit from. While the poorest will still receive assistance, millions of others will be deprived of it despite having modest pensions.
The incident further eroded Britons' already low confidence in their politicians and overshadowed the government's other announcements: the promise to build 1.5 million new homes within five years, the creation of a state-owned energy operator, GB Energy, the renationalization of railways, the partial ban on arms sales to Israel and the cession of one of Britain's last colonies, the Chagos Islands, to Mauritius.
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