It is not easy being UK Prime Minister Keir Starmer these days. For that matter, it is not easy being any leader whose country is traditionally allied with the US. Should Britain join the US and Israel in their strikes against Iran or should London sit this war out and preserve a defensive posture, maybe later carving out a role in trying to mediate an end to the conflict? The Iran war and all its ramifications are testing the special relationship between the UK and the US.

Starmer’s ‘purely defensive’ stance has won support among voters, but what challenges lie ahead for each party when it comes to their base’s view of war?

The prime minister is facing pressure from unions and some backbenchers to prepare a support package as oil and gas prices threaten to push up inflation