May 15, 2026 — 7:00pm
Viewed from afar, and judged primarily by footage of him interacting with other international leaders, Keir Starmer projects the air at least of a half-decent prime minister. There he is, say, at the Élysée Palace being glad-handed by French President Emmanuel Macron, a rapport that speaks of the repair job he has been conducting with the European Union after Britain’s disastrous Brexit. There he was on the pavement outside 10 Downing Street hugging Volodymyr Zelensky, a consoling embrace after the Ukrainian president had just flown in from Washington following his mauling in the Oval Office at the hands of Donald Trump and henchman JD Vance.
And there he was at the White House, pulling from his suit pocket a letter from King Charles inviting Trump to an unprecedented second state visit to Britain, a stunt that papered over the growing oceanic divide in the trans-Atlantic relationship, which successive UK governments still delude themselves is special.
All the time, however, contempt for Starmer has been mounting. From voters. From Labour backbenchers. And, this week, from senior members of his cabinet, who demanded a timetable for his “Stexit”. His approval rating, as measured by those with a favourable view versus those who look upon him unfavourably, has plummeted below -50 per cent. Only Liz Truss, who did not even have a prime ministerial lifespan of a supermarket iceberg lettuce, has been so reviled.
