5 key takeaways from Keir Starmer’s make or break speech

Prime Minister Keir Starmer today delivered a speech designed to save his leadership after a tumultuous few days in Westminster, following a difficult set of local election results for the Labour Party.

After losing hundreds of council seats to Reform and the Green Party, a number of Labour MPs have called on the Prime Minister to step down or set a timetable for his departure. The Prime Minister has insisted that he is going nowhere, saying he took full responsibility for the results, and that he would not walk away from his responsibilities and plunge the country into chaos.

In a major speech this morning, Starmer said: “I know I have my doubters, I know I need to prove them wrong and I will.” Here are some of the key takeaway’s from his speech.

1.’I will prove my doubters wrong’

The Prime Minister acknowledged that he had his doubters, including in his own party, and that he would do his utmost to prove them wrong. It comes after more than 40 Labour MPs had called on the Prime Minister to stand down or set a timetable for his resignation, with Starmer making clear he has no intention of quitting.

Starmer insisted that he knew that ‘incremental change’ was no longer enough and that the party had to be bigger and bolder to meet the challenges ahead.

2. Decision on whether Andy Burnham can return to Parliament is for the NEC

Amidst growing leadership speculation, questions have been raised about the future of Andy Burnham and whether the Mayor of Greater Manchester would be allowed to return to Parliament. 

Angela Rayner has said that the decision to block Burnham was wrong and that he should be allowed to return to Westminster.

Asked about whether Burnham would be allowed to return, Keir Starmer said that the decision rested with the party’s National Executive Committee (NEC) but that he had a good relationship with the mayor of Manchester.

3. Stronger ties with the EU 

The Prime Minister took a swipe at Nigel Farage and his stance on Brexit, which has left the UK poorer and had an adverse impact on the economy, and said that a Labour government would rebuild its relationship with Europe.

On Farage, Starmer said: “He took Britain for a ride.

“He is not just a grifter, he is a chancer.”

At the next EU summit, he says the UK will set a “new direction for Britain”.

“The last government was defined by breaking our relationship with Europe.

“This Labour government will be defined by rebuilding our relationship with Europe, by putting Britain at the heart of Europe, so that we are stronger on the economy, stronger on trade, stronger on defence, you name it,” he adds, to applause in the room.

4. Starmer announces powers to nationalise British Steel

The Prime Minister announced that “legislation will be brought forward this week” to give the government powers to take “full ownership of British Steel”, subject to a public interest test.

“Public ownership is in the public interest,” he says, and will make Labour “stronger through industrial renewal”.

5. PM says he will fight any leadership contest

The Prime Minister came out fighting and said that he would fight any leadership contest should he be challenged.

“I’m not going to walk away,” Starmer says when asked if he will fight in a leadership contest should one be launched by an MP.