Sir Keir Starmer, Britain’s 62-year-old Prime Minister, is a man in the highest office of political power—a position that demands clarity, direction, and conviction. Yet, increasingly, critics argue that Starmer’s leadership is marked not by steadfast principle but by expedient transformation. His political career, they say, is defined by a pattern of U-turns, repositioning, and an uncanny ability to say what fits the moment.
The latest example of this, critics claim, is his shifting stance on gender identity. In 2022, Starmer publicly declared, “trans women are women,” and the year prior, said it was “not right” to suggest only women have cervixes. Then, in 2023, he said “99.9 per cent of women… haven’t got a penis,” a statement suggesting millions might.
Following a recent Supreme Court ruling affirming that a woman is defined by biological sex, Starmer quietly pivoted again. This time, he confirmed, through a spokesperson, that “a woman is an adult female” and no longer stood by his earlier assertions. There was no apology, nor acknowledgement of Labour MP Rosie Duffield’s treatment after she defended female-only spaces, criticism of which has come from both sides of the political aisle.
J.K. Rowling voiced frustration on X, formerly Twitter, writing: “Imagine being such a coward you can only muster the courage to tell the truth once the Supreme Court has ruled on what the truth is.” Conservative MP Kemi Badenoch added to the criticism, accusing Starmer of lacking “moral courage.”
This isn’t an isolated case. Starmer’s political journey is peppered with dramatic shifts. Once a loyal member of Jeremy Corbyn’s hard-left Shadow Cabinet, he made few objections to the former leader’s radical policies or Labour’s anti-Semitism controversies. In 2020, he ran for leader on a Corbynite platform—championing nationalisation and scrapping Universal Credit—only to abandon those positions shortly after winning, as told Daily Mail.
He once described Corbyn as his “friend,” then oversaw his expulsion from the party. A long-standing republican, Starmer once supported abolishing the monarchy. Now, as Labour leader, he embraces royal pageantry and wraps himself in the Union Jack, even leading a conference chorus of the National Anthem.
Foreign policy reveals similar flip-flops. In 2016, Starmer called Donald Trump “absolutely repugnant.” Today, he boasts about dining with the U.S. president. In December 2023, he praised Margaret Thatcher’s “meaningful change,” only to remove her portrait from No. 10 shortly after taking office.
What remains at the centre of his politics is not belief, but strategy. Critics argue Starmer’s decisions reflect calculation, not conviction. In a time of deep political uncertainty, many wonder whether a leader so willing to shift can ever inspire lasting public trust. As one observer put it, at the heart of Starmer lies “a political vacuum.”
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