Keir Rodney Starmer was born in
Southwark, London, on 2 September 1962.[2][3] He grew up in the small town of
Oxted in Surrey.[4][5][6] He was the second of the four children of Josephine (née Baker), a nurse, and Rodney Starmer, who was a
toolmaker.[6][7] His mother had
Still's disease.[8][9] His parents were
Labour Party supporters, and named him after the party's first parliamentary leader,
Keir Hardie,[10][11] although he told an interviewer in 2015 that he didn't actually know.[12] He passed the
11-plus examination and gained entry to
Reigate Grammar School, then a
voluntary aided selective grammar school.[11] The school was converted into an independent fee-paying school in 1976, while he was a student. He was exempt from paying fees until the age of 16, and his sixth-form study fees were paid by a bursary he received from the private school's charity.[13][14][15] Among his classmates were the musician
Norman Cook, alongside whom Starmer took violin lessons;
Andrew Cooper, who went on to become a Conservative peer; and future conservative journalist
Andrew Sullivan. According to Starmer, he and Sullivan "fought over everything ... Politics, religion. You name it."[6]
Starmer became a
barrister in 1987 at the
Middle Temple, becoming a
bencher there in 2009.[2] He served as a legal officer for the campaign group
Liberty until 1990.[10] He was a member of
Doughty Street Chambers from 1990 onwards, primarily working on human rights issues.[8][10] He has been
called to the bar in several
Caribbean countries,[21] where he has defended convicts sentenced to the death penalty.[6] He assisted
Helen Steel and David Morris in the
McLibel case, in the trial and appeal in English courts, also represented them at the European court.[22] The case was seen as a
David and Goliath case; a large team of leading lawyers represented
McDonald's and the legal bills were estimated at £10m. By contrast Steel and Morris were denied legal aid; they acted on their own with help from lawyers including Starmer.[23]
Starmer was appointed
Queen's Counsel on 9 April 2002, aged 39.[24] In the same year, he became joint head of Doughty Street Chambers. Starmer served as a human rights adviser to the
Northern Ireland Policing Board and the
Association of Chief Police Officers, and was also a member of the
Foreign and Commonwealth Office's death penalty advisory panel from 2002 to 2008.[2][10] He later cited his work on policing in Northern Ireland as being a key influence on his decision to pursue a political career: "Some of the things I thought that needed to change in police services we achieved more quickly than we achieved in strategic litigation ... I came better to understand how you can change by being inside and getting the trust of people". During this time he also marched and authored legal opinions against the
Iraq War.[6] In 2007, he was named "QC of the Year" by
Chambers and Partners.[10]
In February 2010, Starmer announced the CPS's decision to prosecute three Labour MPs and a Conservative peer for offences relating to false accounting in the aftermath of the
parliamentary expenses scandal.[26] They were all found guilty.[27] In the same year, he supported proposals to legally recognise different degrees of murder.[28] In December 2010, Starmer changed the decision process, including requiring his personal approval, to prosecute women who withdraw accusations of rape after a woman was convicted for perverting the course of justice "despite judges' belief that her claim of long-term abuse, intimidation and rape at the hands of her husband was true".[29] He later produced guidelines to prevent women in similar circumstances from being unfairly prosecuted.[30] During the
2011 England riots, Starmer prioritised rapid prosecutions of rioters over long sentences, which he later thought had helped to bring "the situation back under control".[31][32]
In February 2012, Starmer announced that
Secretary of State for Energy and Climate Change,
Chris Huhne, and his former wife,
Vicky Pryce, would be prosecuted for
perverting the course of justice in R v Huhne. Huhne became the first
UK cabinet minister in history to be compelled to resign as a result of criminal proceedings.[33] Starmer had previously said in relation to the case that "[w]here there is sufficient evidence we do not shy away from prosecuting politicians".[34] Later that year, he wrote advice for prosecutors, saying that they should consider whether violent protestors organised or prepared for violence, compared to protestors who got "caught up in illegal actions".[35] Later that year, Starmer published a plan for the criminal justice system to better handle cases of
female genital mutilation; at the time, the offence had never been successfully prosecuted.[36] At the end of 2012, he published guidance on prosecuting cases of grossly offensive posts on social media that called for caution in prosecuting cases, and considering whether users quickly removed posts or showed remorse.[37][38]
In 2013, Starmer announced changes to how sexual abuse investigations are handled in the wake of the
Jimmy Savile sexual abuse scandal, including a panel to review historic complaints.[39][40] In the same year, he published a study showing that false reports of rape were rare, saying that the "devastating impact of false allegations" and the perception that they are more common than the data support mean that police forces might adopt what he called a cautious approach that can "lead to injustice for victims" of rape.[41] He also started an inquiry into the cause of a reduction in police reports of rape and domestic abuse.[42] In the same year, he altered guidelines for those improperly claiming benefits enabling them to face ten years in prison under the Fraud Act instead of a maximum of seven years under more specific legislation.[43]
Starmer left office in November 2013, and was replaced by
Alison Saunders.[44][45] Later that month, the Labour Party announced that Starmer would lead an enquiry into changing the law to give further protection to victims in cases of rape and child abuse.[46] On 28 December, he said to
BBC News he was "rather enjoying having some free time" and "considering a number of options".[47] There was speculation at the time that he would stand as a
Labour Party candidate for the
UK Parliament.[48]
In his role as Shadow Brexit Secretary, Starmer questioned the government's destination for the UK outside of the
European Union (EU), as well as calling for
Brexit plans to be made public. On 6 December 2016, the prime minister
Theresa May confirmed the publication of Brexit plans, in what some considered a victory for Starmer.[58] He argued that the government would be needed to pass a large number of new laws quickly, or risk what he called an "unsustainable legal vacuum", if Britain left the EU without a deal.[59] At the
2018 Labour Party Conference on 25 September, Starmer advocated for a
referendum on the Brexit withdrawal agreement, saying that "our options must include campaigning for a public vote, and nobody is ruling out remain as an option".[60]
In January 2017, Starmer called for a reform to the
EU free movement rules following Brexit and for a "fundamental rethink of immigration rules from start to finish".[61] In his first interview after being appointed to the shadow cabinet, Starmer said that immigration should be reduced after Britain left the EU by "making sure we have the skills in this country".[62] Starmer had told Politico in November 2016 that negotiations with the EU should start on the understanding that there must be "some change" to freedom of movement rules, given that remaining in the EU single market is no longer a reality.[63]
In May 2017, Starmer said that "free movement has to go" but that it was important to allow EU citizens to migrate to the UK once they had a job offer, given the importance of immigration for the UK's economy.[64] Starmer was a supporter of a second referendum on Brexit.[65] This position was included as a Labour Party policy in the party's
2019 general election manifesto.[66] In the 2019 general election, Labour suffered its worst election defeat since
1935, with the Conservative Party earning an 80-seat majority.[67][68] This was also the Labour Party's fourth consecutive general election defeat.[69] Following this defeat, Corbyn announced that he would stand down as Leader of the Labour Party.[70]
Leadership of the Labour Party (2020–present)
Labour leadership bid
Starmer announced his candidacy in
the ensuing leadership election on 4 January 2020. By 8 January, it was reported that he had gained enough nominations from Labour MPs and
MEPs to get onto the ballot paper, and that the trade union
Unison was backing him. Unison, with 1.3 million members, said Starmer was the best placed candidate to unite the party and regain public trust.[71] He also gained support from former Labour Prime Minister
Gordon Brown and
Mayor of LondonSadiq Khan.[72]
Starmer went on to win the leadership contest on 4 April 2020, defeating
Rebecca Long-Bailey and
Lisa Nandy, with 56.2% of the vote in the first round,[73] and subsequently became Leader of the Labour Party and
Leader of the Opposition.[74] In his acceptance speech, he said would refrain from "scoring party political points" and that he planned to "engage constructively with the government", having become Opposition Leader amid the
COVID-19 pandemic.[75]
Starmer's tenure has seen the party move closer towards the
political centre.[76][77][78] Speaking at the party's annual conference in 2021, the first time Starmer addressed the annual conference in person since becoming the leader, he presented his focus on stronger economy and tougher stances on crime, repositioning the party away from the previous leadership.[79] By 2022, Starmer had dropped most of the socialist policies he advocated during his leadership run, including pledges made to nationalise water and energy, scrap tuition fees, and defend free movement within the EU.[80][81] Starmer responded to criticism in 2023 by stating that they remained "important statements of value and principle", but cited the
COVID-19 pandemic, the
War in Ukraine, and the economic crisis resulting from the
2022 mini-budget as having meant that these pledges have had to be adapted.[82] Under Starmer's tenure, the party still supports the
renationalisation of Britain's railways,[83] and has pledged to create a publicly owned energy company, GB Energy, to "compete with private industry and promote clean energy", differentiated from full nationalisation of the energy industry as previously pledged.[84][85]
In a speech on 23 February 2023, Starmer set out five "national missions" which would be the basis for Labour's manifesto for the 2024 general election, whilst calling for "a decade of national renewal".[86] In the speech, Starmer aimed for the UK to obtain the highest sustained growth in the
G7 by the end of his first term.[87] He also aimed for the UK to be a "clean energy superpower" with zero-carbon electricity by 2030.[87] Starmer also committed to health and care reform, improving the justice system and also to "break down the barriers to opportunity" with education and childcare reforms.[87]
Following past allegations of
antisemitism in the party during Corbyn's tenure, Starmer pledged to end antisemitism in the party during his acceptance speech.[88][89] Starmer apologised for the "stain" of anti-Semitism within the party, adding that he would "tear out this poison by its roots".[90] In October 2020, following the release of the
Equality and Human Rights Commission (EHRC)'s report into antisemitism in the party, Starmer accepted its findings in full and apologised to Jews on behalf of the party.[91][92] Later that day, Corbyn stated that "the scale of the problem was also dramatically overstated for political reasons".[93] He was later suspended over his response to the report.[93] On 14 November 2022, it was reported that the leadership of the Labour Party would not restore the whip to Corbyn, preventing him from standing for election on behalf of the Labour Party.[94] In February 2023, Starmer's antisemitism reforms resulted in the party no longer being monitored by the EHRC.[95]
During the
2022–2023 industrial strikes, Starmer urged his shadow cabinet members to refrain from joining
picket lines.
Sam Tarry, the shadow minister for buses and local transport, appeared at a
National Union of Rail, Maritime and Transport Workers strike picket outside
Euston train station. He was subsequently dismissed as minister, which was criticised by trade union leaders.[96][97] However, a Labour Party spokesperson said that the sacking wasn't "about appearing on a picket line. Members of the frontbench sign up to collective responsibility. That includes media appearances being approved and speaking to agreed frontbench positions."[97]
Since late 2021, the party has maintained leads in
opinion polling over the governing Conservative Party, often by very wide margins, including the highest poll lead of any party in over 20 years amid the
government crisis during the
Premiership of Liz Truss.[103][104] During the
2023 local elections, the Labour Party gained more than 500 councillors and 22 councils, becoming the largest party in local government for the first time since
2002.[105] Labour made gains in the
2024 local elections, including winning the
West Midlands mayoral election.[106] Starmer has led his party in the
2024 general election, which he said was an "opportunity for change" and offered three reasons why voters should vote Labour, firstly to "stop the chaos", secondly "because it’s time for change" and thirdly because Labour have "a long-term plan to rebuild Britain" that "is ready to go, fully-costed and fully funded."[107]
Political positions
Starmer's politics have been described as unclear and "hard to define".[108][109][110] When he was elected as Labour leader, Starmer was widely believed to belong to the
soft left of the Labour Party.[111] However, he has since moved to the political
centre-ground.[112][113] By the September 2023 shadow cabinet reshuffle, most analysts concluded that Starmer had moved to the right of the party, and had demoted and marginalised those on the soft left, replacing them with
Blairites.[114][115][116][102][101]
The term Starmerism has been coined to refer to Starmer's political ideology and his supporters have been called Starmerites.[117][118] In June 2023, Starmer gave an interview to
Time where he was asked to define Starmerism:[119]
Recognizing that our economy needs to be fixed. Recognizing that [solving] climate change isn’t just an obligation; it’s the single biggest opportunity that we’ve got for our country going forward. Recognizing that public services need to be reformed, that every child and every place should have the best opportunities and that we need a safe environment, safe streets, et cetera.
In April 2023, Starmer gave an interview to The Economist on defining Starmerism.[118][120] In this interview, two main strands of Starmerism were identified.[120] The first strand focused on a critique of the British state for being too ineffective and over-centralised. The answer to this critique was to base governance on
five main missions[broken anchor] to be followed over two terms of government; these missions would determine all government policy. The second strand was the adherence to an economic policy of "
modern supply-side economics" based on expanding economic productivity by increasing participation in the
labour market, mitigating the impact of
Brexit and simplifying the
construction planning process.[120]
Relationship to socialism
Starmer wrote articles for the magazines Socialist Alternatives and Socialist Lawyer as a young man in the 1980s and 1990s.[121] In July 1986, Starmer wrote in the first issue of Socialist Alternatives that trade unions should have had control over the "industry and community".[121] He wrote in Socialist Lawyer that "
Karl Marx was, of course, right" in saying it was pointless to believe a change of society could only be achieved by arguing about fundamental rights.[121]
In 2005, Starmer stated that "I got made a Queen’s Counsel, which is odd since I often used to propose the abolition of the monarchy".[122]
Gavin Millar, a former legal colleague of Starmer, has described his politics as "
red-green", a characterisation Starmer has agreed with.[123] In a January 2020 interview, Starmer described himself as a
socialist,[124] and stated in an opinion piece published by The Guardian the same month that his advocacy of socialism is motivated by "a burning desire to tackle inequality and injustice".[125]
In an interview with the i's
Francis Elliott in December 2021, Starmer refused to characterise himself as a socialist, asking "What does that mean?" He added: "The Labour Party is a party that believes that we get the best from each other when we come together, collectively, and ensure that you know, we give people both opportunity and support as they needed."[126]
In 2023, Starmer removed the ten socialism-based pledges that he had made in the 2020 party leadership contest from his website, after having abandoned or rolled back on many of these, citing the
COVID-19 pandemic and the economic situation as reasons for having to "adapt".[127][82] However, in the run-up to the
2024 general election, Starmer told the BBC "I would describe myself as a socialist. I describe myself as a
progressive. I'd describe myself as somebody who always puts the country first and party second".[128]
Domestic issues
Starmer has repeatedly emphasised the reform of public institutions (against a so-called
tax and spend approach),
localism, and
devolution. He has pledged to
abolish the House of Lords, which he has described as "indefensible", during the first term of a Labour government and to replace it with a directly-elected 'Assembly of the Regions and Nations', but the details of which will be subject to public consultation. He criticised the
Conservative Party for handing peerages to "cronies and donors".[129] Upon becoming leader of the Labour Party, he tasked former Labour Prime Minister
Gordon Brown with recommending constitutional reforms to British democracy.[130] The report was published in 2022 and was endorsed and promoted by Starmer, and recommended the abolition of the House of Lords, greater powers given to local councils and mayors, and deeper devolution to the
countries of the United Kingdom.[131] However, in 2024, early plans for Labour's election manifesto for the 2024 general election reportedly would not call for abolition of the House of Lords, instead committing only to removal of the
remaining hereditary peers from the Lords during the first term of a Labour government.[132]
Starmer supports
social ownership and investment in the UK's public services, including the
National Health Service (NHS).[133][134][135] During the
2020 Labour leadership election, he pledged to increase income tax for the top 5% of earners and to end corporate
tax avoidance,[133] but receded from the income tax commitment in 2023.[136] He advocates the reversal of the Conservative Party's cuts in corporation tax and supported Labour's
anti-austerity proposals under
Jeremy Corbyn's leadership.[133][134] On
social inequality, Starmer proposes "national wellbeing indicators" to measure the country's performance on
health, inequality,
homelessness, and
the environment.[137] He has called for an "overhaul" of the UK's
Universal Credit scheme.[138] Opposing
Scottish independence and a
second referendum on the subject, the Labour Party under Starmer's leadership has set up a constitutional convention to address what he describes as a belief among people across the UK that "decisions about me should be taken closer to me".[139][140] Starmer is against the
reunification of Ireland, having stated that he would be "very much on the side of Unionists" if there were to be a border poll.[141]
Starmer strongly favours
green policies to tackle
climate change and
decarbonise the British economy. He has committed to eliminate
fossil fuels from the
UK electricity grid by 2030, five years earlier than the Conservative government's target.[142] In 2021, Starmer and his
Shadow ChancellorRachel Reeves pledged that a Labour government would invest an extra £28 billion a year in green industries if elected; in June 2023 this was changed to £28 billion per year by the middle of their first term of government.[143]
Starmer vowed in 2021 and 2022 to strip independent schools of their
VAT-exempt charitable status, a move opposed by the
Independent Schools Council.[144][145][146] During the 2020 Labour leadership election, Starmer pledged to scrap
university tuition fees; he dropped this pledge in May 2023, citing a "different financial situation" following
Liz Truss' premiership. Starmer instead said that he aimed to reform the tuition fee system, which he said was unfair to both students and universities.[147] He is supportive of
faith schools, and said he would not change policy on faith schools.[148] He has ruled out extending free school meals to all primary school pupils in England,[149] instead pledging to extend
breakfast clubs including free breakfasts for every primary school in England.[150]
Starmer's position on public ownership over national infrastructure has changed over time. In the 2020 Labour Party leadership election, Starmer ran on a pledge to renationalise rail, mail, water, and energy back into common ownership; he dropped this pledge in July 2022 and said he would take a "pragmatic approach" to public ownership.[151][152] As of September 2023, he remained committed to renationalising the railways as existing contracts expire, the creation of a publicly owned energy company, and stricter regulation of water companies.[153][154][155][156] Starmer favours partnership between government and business, having said: "A political party without a clear plan for making sure businesses are successful and growing ... which doesn't want them to do well and make a profit ... has no hope of being a successful government."[157]
Starmer has pledged to halve the rates of violence against women and girls, halve the rates of serious violent crime, halve the incidents of knife crime, increase confidence in the criminal justice system, and create a 'Charging Commission' which would be "tasked with coming up with reforms to reverse the decline in the number of offences being solved".[158] He has also committed to placing specialist domestic violence workers in the control rooms of every police force responding to 999 calls to support victims of abuse.[159]
During the U.S.'s transition from the
presidency of Donald Trump to
that of Joe Biden, he said: "I'm anti-Trump but I'm pro-American. And I'm incredibly optimistic about the new relationship we can build with President Biden." He argued that "Britain is at its strongest" when it is "the bridge between the US and the rest of Europe."[140]
During the
prelude to the Russian invasion of Ukraine, Starmer met with
Secretary General of NATOJens Stoltenberg and said in an interview with the BBC that his predecessor
Jeremy Corbyn was "wrong" to be a critic of NATO and that the Labour Party's commitment to NATO was "unshakeable"; he added that "stand united in the UK ... Whatever challenges we have with the [Boris Johnson's] government, when it comes to Russian aggression we stand together."[182] Starmer called for "widespread and hard-hitting" economic
sanctions against Russia.[183] He also criticised the
Stop the War Coalition in an
op-ed for The Guardian, writing that the group's members were "not benign voices for peace" but rather "[a]t best they are naive, at worst they actively give succour to authoritarian leaders" such as Russian President
Vladimir Putin "who directly threaten democracies."[184] In February 2023 he met Ukrainian President
Volodomyr Zelenskyy, and pledged support for Ukraine during the
Russian invasion of the country; Starmer that if he became prime minister, there would be no change in Britain's position on the war in Ukraine.[185][186] He also called for Russian leaders, including Putin, to be tried at
The Hague for crimes against humanity.[187][188] Starmer supported the
International Criminal Court's issuance of an
arrest warrant for Putin, after he was
indicted in the ICC.[189]
During the
Israel–Hamas war, Starmer has emphasised his support for Israel, stated he would favour military aid to the country and called the actions of
Hamas and other militants terrorism.[190][191] In an interview with
LBC on 11 October 2023, Starmer was asked whether it would be appropriate for Israel to
totally cut off power and water supplies to Gaza, with Starmer replying that "I think that Israel does have that right" and that "obviously everything should be done within international law".[192][193] On 20 October, after criticism and resignations of Labour councillors, Starmer said that he only meant that Israel had the right to defend itself.[193][194] Starmer had said that a ceasefire would only benefit Hamas for future attacks, instead calling for a humanitarian pause to allow aid to reach Gaza.[195] On 16 November 2023, Starmer suffered a major rebellion when 56 of his MPs (including ten frontbenchers) defied a three-line whip in voting for an SNP motion to support an immediate ceasefire in Gaza.[196][197] Prior to the vote, Starmer stated that Labour MPs with positions in his Shadow Cabinet would be sacked if they voted in favour of the ceasefire vote.[196] This then led to the loss of ten frontbenchers, including eight shadow ministers.[196] In December 2023, Starmer followed
Prime MinisterRishi Sunak in changing his stance by calling for a "sustainable ceasefire" in relation to the conflict in Gaza. This also came after the
Foreign SecretaryDavid Cameron's same change in position. Starmer stated his support for a "two-stage" "two-state solution".[198][199][200] The Labour Party under Starmer suspended several parliamentary candidates and MPs, including
Graham Jones,
Andy McDonald, Azhar Ali and
Kate Osamor, for allegedly making anti-Semitic comments about Israel during the Israel-Hamas war, or for describing its conduct as
genocide.[201][202] In February 2024, Starmer called for a "ceasefire that lasts" and said it must "happen now".[203]
Starmer married Victoria Alexander in 2007.[206] She was previously a solicitor but now works in NHS occupational health.[6][207] The couple's two children are being brought up to know the Jewish faith and background of their maternal grandparents.[208] Starmer himself stated he does not believe in God, but does believe in faith and its power to bring people together.[209] He is a
pescatarian and his wife is a vegetarian. They raised their children as vegetarians until they were 10 years old, at which point they were given the option of eating meat.[210]
Starmer is a keen footballer, having played for Homerton Academicals, a north London amateur team,[11] and supports
Premier League side
Arsenal.[6]
While speaking in the House of Commons on 31 January 2022, then prime minister
Boris Johnson falsely blamed Starmer for the non-prosecution of serial sex offender
Jimmy Savile when Starmer was
Director of Public Prosecutions in the
Crown Prosecution Service. Starmer was DPP in the years immediately prior to Savile's death but there is no evidence he was involved in the decision to not have him prosecuted.[211] On 3 February, during an interview with Sky News, Johnson defended his comments, stating that in 2013, Starmer apologised because the CPS had not investigated Savile; however, Johnson then said: "I totally understand that he [Starmer] had nothing to do personally with those decisions".[212]
Bar Council's Sydney Elland Goldsmith Award in 2005 for his outstanding contribution to pro bono work in challenging the death penalty in Uganda, Kenya, Malawi, and the Caribbean.[214]
Starmer is the author and editor of several books about criminal law and human rights, including:[2]
Justice in Error (1993), edited with Clive Walker, London: Blackstone,
ISBN1-85431-234-0.
The Three Pillars of Liberty: Political Rights and Freedoms in the United Kingdom (1996), with Francesca Klug and Stuart Weir, London: Routledge,
ISBN0-415-09641-3.
Signing Up for Human Rights: The United Kingdom and International Standards (1998), with Conor Foley, London: Amnesty International United Kingdom,
ISBN1-873328-30-3.
Miscarriages of Justice: A Review of Justice in Error (1999), edited with Clive Walker, London: Blackstone,
ISBN1-85431-687-7.
European Human Rights Law: the Human Rights Act 1998 and the European Convention on Human Rights (1999), London: Legal Action Group,
ISBN0-905099-77-X.
Criminal Justice, Police Powers and Human Rights (2001), with Anthony Jennings, Tim Owen, Michelle Strange, and Quincy Whitaker, London: Blackstone,
ISBN1-84174-138-8.
Blackstone's Human Rights Digest (2001), with Iain Byrne, London: Blackstone,
ISBN1-84174-153-1.
A Report on the Policing of the Ardoyne Parades 12 July 2004 (2004), with Jane Gordon, Belfast: Northern Ireland Policing Board.