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Keir Starmer: The Biography

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Keir Starmer: The Biography
AuthorTom Baldwin
LanguageEnglish
SubjectKeir Starmer
GenrePolitical science
Publication date
15 February 2024
Publication placeUnited Kingdom
Pages448

Keir Starmer: The Biography is a 2024 book by British journalist and political adviser Tom Baldwin. It is a political biography of Labour Party leader Keir Starmer, and follows his time in the Crown Prosecution Service, covering his political alliances, his victory in the 2020 Labour Party leadership election, and subsequent leadership of the Labour Party in opposition.[1] The book, released on 15 February 2024 - six months before Starmer became prime minister after Labour won a landslide victory in the 2024 general election - received positive reviews.

Background

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This article is part of
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Keir Starmer
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After working as a barrister and senior civil servant, Keir Starmer became a Member of Parliament (MP) for the Labour Party, a centre-left political party in the United Kingdom that acted as the main political opposition to the centre-right Conservative government. He has represented the constituency of Holborn and St Pancras in the House of Commons since 2015. He was elected party leader in April 2020, after his predecessor Jeremy Corbyn presided over a landslide defeat in the 2019 general election. During Corbyn's leadership, Labour shifted to the left from the centre ground. For most of the life of Corbyn's shadow cabinet, Starmer served as Shadow Secretary of State for Exiting the European Union.

In the 2020 leadership election, Starmer ran on both a soft left and centrist platform, and was elected leader in April 2020.[2][3][4] Starmer suspended Corbyn from the Parliamentary Labour Party in January 2021, and he was later expelled from the party in May 2024.[5] Under his leadership, Starmer repositioned the party away from the left and toward the political centre, and also emphasised the elimination of antisemitism within the party.[6][7] Prior to his general election win, Starmer had been widely compared to Tony Blair's leadership and New Labour, having taken the party closer to the centre-ground; observes also noted differences from Blair and New Labour.[8][9][10] Figures including Starmer's former boss, the barrister Geoffrey Robertson,[11] as well as his former advisor Simon Fletcher,[12] and the journalist and broadcaster Peter Oborne,[13] have described Starmer as exhibiting an authoritarian approach.[14] Despite the lack of any consensus about the character and even existence of Starmer's ideology, it has acquired a neologism, Starmerism, and his supporters have been called Starmerites.[15][16] The political turmoil from the Conservative scandals and government crises led to Labour having a significant lead in polling over the Conservatives, often by very wide margins, since late 2021, coinciding with the start of the Partygate scandal.[17][18] Labour made gains in local elections: in the 2023 local elections, Labour gained more than 500 councillors and 22 councils, becoming the largest party in local government for the first time since 2002.[19]

Tom Baldwin, the author of the book, is a former Labour Party senior adviser who has worked as a journalist for a number of national titles including The Times and The Sunday Telegraph.[20] He was also a senior political adviser to Ed Miliband, and director of communications and strategy at the Labour Party.[21][22] Baldwin describes Starmer as “someone who is both extraordinary and very ordinary”, but argues that his "love of normality, of family life, of his weekend eight-a-side football games" is authentic and deep.[23] Baldwin interviewed Starmer, as well as his friends and family ahead of writing the book.

Reviews

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The book was released six months before Starmer became prime minister after Labour won a landslide victory in the 2024 general election, he was widely expected to win this election at the time of the book's release. As such, the book received a lot of media attention.

Alastair Campbell said the book was "required reading for anyone who has an interest in who governs Britain'" while Matthew D'Anaconda of the Evening Standard said it would be "the most important political book of the year", saying "The sheer velocity with which Keir Starmer has led the Labour Party from the brink of extinction to the brink of power is unprecedented in the modern era."[23]

The Guardian gave the book a positive review, calling it "insightful and illuminating".[24] The Financial Times said the book "gets closer than most to understanding what makes the elusive politician tick".[25]

References

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  1. ^ Hardman, Isabel (2024-02-22). "Keir Starmer: The Biography reveals a man who's not boring - just human". inews.co.uk. Retrieved 2024-06-04.
  2. ^ Lynch, David (4 April 2020). "Labour leadership: Keir Starmer will lead the party after Jeremy Corbyn's exit". Oxford Mail. Newsquest Media Group. Archived from the original on 6 April 2020. Retrieved 4 April 2020.
  3. ^ Mason, Rowena (2020-04-04). "Keir Starmer wins Labour leadership election". The Guardian. Retrieved 2022-05-01.
  4. ^ Castle, Stephen (2021-09-29). "U.K. Labour Leader Makes a Firm Push to the Political Center". The New York Times. ISSN 0362-4331. Retrieved 2022-05-01.
  5. ^ Watson, Iain; Geiger, Chas (24 May 2024). "Corbyn confirms he will stand against Labour". BBC News. Archived from the original on 27 May 2024. Retrieved 27 May 2024.
  6. ^ Nicholas Cecil. "Sir Keir Starmer to declare Labour is 'party of the centre-ground' once again". Evening Standard. Archived from the original on 10 October 2022. Retrieved 5 May 2023.
  7. ^ Webber, Esther; Courea, Eleni; Casalicchio, Emilio; Rea, Ailbhe (27 September 2022). "'No Drama Starmer': Is the UK Labour Party quietly marching back to power?". Politico. Archived from the original on 5 May 2023. Retrieved 5 May 2023.
  8. ^ Webb, Niles (July 2023). "Labour's Politics of Anti-Neoliberalism from Corbyn to Starmer". The Political Quarterly. 94 (3): 384–392. doi:10.1111/1467-923X.13302. ISSN 0032-3179. Archived from the original on 29 June 2024. Retrieved 5 July 2024.
  9. ^ Webb, Niles (July 2023). "Labour's Politics of Anti-Neoliberalism from Corbyn to Starmer". The Political Quarterly. 94 (3): 384–392. doi:10.1111/1467-923X.13302. ISSN 0032-3179. Archived from the original on 29 June 2024. Retrieved 5 July 2024.
  10. ^ Rogers, Alexandra. "Sir Keir Starmer says election is 'moment country has been waiting for' as he declares 'it is time for change'". Sky News. Archived from the original on 24 June 2024. Retrieved 24 June 2024.
  11. ^ Robertson, Geoffrey (7 July 2024). "Keir Starmer Was Once my Apprentice – and this is How I Think he Might Fare as Prime Minister". The Guardian. London: Guardian Media Group.
  12. ^ Fletcher, Simon (9 October 2023). "Keir Starmer's Authoritarian Approach to Politics Risks Stifling a Labour Government". Byline Times. London: Byline Media Holdings.
  13. ^ Oborne, Peter; Sanders, Richard (26 September 2023). "UK Labour: Why Starmer's growing authoritarianism should be ringing alarm bells". Middle East Eye. London: M.E.E. Ltd.
  14. ^ Eagleton, Oliver (3 July 2024). "Britain's Next Prime Minister Has Shown Us Who He Is, and it's Not Good". The New York Times. NYT Company.
  15. ^ Fielding, Steven (29 December 2020). "What does Starmer stand for?". The Spectator. Archived from the original on 20 June 2023. Retrieved 20 June 2023.
  16. ^ Self, Josh (2 May 2023). "For Starmerites, apostasy on 'tax and spend' is central to the creed". Politics.co.uk. Archived from the original on 20 June 2023. Retrieved 20 June 2023.
  17. ^ James, Liam; Middleton, Joe; Dalton, Jane (11 January 2023). "Boris Johnson's biggest scandals: a timeline". The Independent. Archived from the original on 4 July 2024. Retrieved 30 June 2024.
  18. ^ "Party claims the latest in a string of controversies for Boris Johnson". Richmond and Twickenham Times. 12 January 2022. Archived from the original on 29 June 2024. Retrieved 30 June 2024.
  19. ^ Joshua Nevett (5 May 2023). "Local elections 2023: Labour eyes power after crushing Tory losses". BBC News. Archived from the original on 5 May 2023. Retrieved 5 May 2023.
  20. ^ Parker, George (20 August 2018). "Control Alt Delete, by Tom Baldwin". Financial Times.
  21. ^ "Miliband unveils chief spokesmen". BBC News. 14 December 2010.
  22. ^ "Miliband's new spinner offers fire and fury". www.newstatesman.com. 15 December 2010. Retrieved 2020-05-05.
  23. ^ a b d'Ancona, Matthew (2024-02-21). "Keir Starmer by Tom Baldwin review: the most important political book of the year". Evening Standard. Retrieved 2024-08-05.
  24. ^ Rawnsley, Andrew (2024-02-25). "Keir Starmer: The Biography by Tom Baldwin review – from 'can't win to can't lose': the making of a Labour leader". The Guardian. ISSN 0261-3077. Retrieved 2024-08-05.
  25. ^ "Keir Starmer by Tom Baldwin — Labour's not so accidental leader". https://www.ft.com/content/2bb7e832-7508-4e66-b4fc-defca90bf767. Retrieved 2024-08-05. {{cite web}}: External link in |website= (help)
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