What went wrong for Keir Starmer? | Joe Gill | MEE Opinion

Joe Gill, an editor at Middle East Eye, says that Keir Starmer’s collapse in popularity stems from his failure to deliver meaningful change after 14 years of Conservative rule. Despite promising stable government, Starmer instead became associated with scandals, corporate influence, and policies that failed to address Britain’s worsening cost of living crisis. Gill argues that Starmer alienated large sections of Labour’s traditional base by refusing measures such as rent controls and wealth taxes, while cutting winter fuel support and maintaining the two-child benefit cap until forced into a reversal. He also says Starmer backed Israel during the genocide in Gaza despite widespread public opposition, while overseeing what he describes as an authoritarian crackdown on protest and free speech. He says that Starmer reassured corporate donors and the right-wing press that little would fundamentally change under Labour, but in doing so lost voters looking for a break from austerity and privatisation. Promises of economic renewal, green investment and housing reform, Gill argues, failed to materialise, while firms such as Palantir Technologies gained increasing influence over public services. Gill concludes that Britain is now at a political crossroads between greater public investment and democratic renewal on one side, or what he describes as Reform UK’s “crony Thatcherism and Trump style deportation camps” on the other. Support stories that matter. Join this channel to get access to perks: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCR0fZh5SBxxMNYdg0VzRFkg/join Catch previous episodes of MEE LIVE, our biweekly news programme exploring the stories shaping our world through breaking coverage, expert analysis, and hard-hitting interviews. Originally airing Tuesdays & Thursdays at 12pm ET | 5pm BST Got a story tip or question? Reach us at [email protected] Subscribe to our channel: http://ow.ly/AVlW30n1OWH Subscribe to MEE Telegram channel to stay up to date: https://t.me/MiddleEastEye_TG Middle East Eye Website: https://middleeasteye.net Follow us on TikTok: https://www.tiktok.com/@middleeasteye Follow us on Instagram: https://instagram.com/MiddleEastEye Like us on Facebook: https://facebook.com/MiddleEastEye Follow us on Twitter: https://twitter.com/MiddleEastEye