Prime Minister Keir Starmer has warned that the UK “might” be taken over by the politics of populist nationalism if his government fails to deliver change.
“A government of service and government of delivery, that’s what I came into politics to do, that’s what I want a Labour government to do, but it is also what I know has to happen,” he warned allies at a private party last night, “because you only have to look across the Channel at Europe and you see nationalism and populism in all its forms and all its strengths.”
“Do not think for a minute that that could never happen here, it could and it might if we fail in our project of delivering change and our project of being a government of service,” he said, “which carries with it being a government that restores faith in the idea that politics can be a force for good and a force for change.”
Addressing the New Statesman magazine’s summer party, the prime minister said: “But for now, look, we march on. We’ve got important work to do, we’re very pleased to be in the driving seat, in power. This is actually why I came into politics.”
Guests at the party included Chancellor Rachel Reeves, Business Secretary Jonathan Reynolds and Culture Secretary Lisa Nandy, alongside journalists.
The prime minister praised the New Statesman’s editor Jason Cowley and his team. “You were a critical friend, you said you would hold our ideas up to the light and examine them and where you agreed with them you would say so and where you didn’t you would challenge us,” he said, “the New Statesman has always been a great champion of progressive arguments, always been that critical friend, but friend is the important word.”
“We do need challenge. The best decisions I’ve ever made in my life are the ones which are held up to the light and have survived challenge. The worst decisions I’ve made are the ones where no one said that isn’t a good idea. Therefore I welcome that and I think that’s very good for us as we go forward,” he said, encouraging journalists to challenge the government.
“We do understand how important it is that we have the sort of quality journalism that we have in this country where we are properly held to account for very important decisions that we make,” he said.
It is the first time a serving prime minister has attended a New Statesman party in many years. Now it seems the Left-leaning magazine has gained an influential position in the British media landscape under the new Labour government.
