A valiant defence of Keir Starmer on the part of Michael Ixer, but I am not convinced.1) Jeremy Corbyn has been deselected because of his refusal to accept that under his leadership, when Keir Starmer was in the shadow cabinet, Labour was guilty of antisemitism. Didn't Keir Starmer notice the treatment of Jewish MPs by the man whom he described as 'a colleague and a friend'? More principled figures in the party, such as Hilary Benn, refused to serve under Jeremy Corbyn.2) If renationalisation of the utilities is not viable, why propose it? I agree with with the view that there should be stricter sanctions against those companies which transgress.3) If the abolition of tuition fees is not affordable, why propose it? I doubt whether it would be introduced in a second term, if there is a second term. The abolition of tuition fees in Scotland has resulted in the underfunding of Scottish universities, a shortfall controversially addressed by offering more places to fee-paying English students to the detriment of Scottish students.4) Again, why propose a tax rise for the top 5% if you haven't thought it through?5) Keir Starmer has clearly stated that Labour will not seek to join the single market, so his pledge to renegotiate the UK-EU trade agreement is an empty promise. The EU has not given the slightest indication that it is willing to discuss anything other than the implementation of the present agreement. He is simply making a vain attempt to please the Red Wall and the metropolitan left at the same time.My view is that Keir Starmer is out of his depth as a politician. Having grown up in relatively humble circumstances, he perhaps inherited his socialist beliefs from his parents, both Labour supporters. But as a lawyer he was never obliged to put these beliefs to the test or even think them through. He then became an MP when the soft left under Miliband and subsequently the hard left under Corbyn controlled the party. His political ambition led him to adopt extreme positions which he believed would curry favour with party voters whose number had been greatly enlarged under Miliband, including many people on the hard left. But now that Labour has a good chance of winning the election, he has been forced to reassess his views in the light of economic realities, hence the number of policy reversals. The result is that Labour's policies on nearly every issue are indistinguishable from those of Rishi Sunak who I consider to be a more substantial politician.
Steven Rose ● 598d