And then what?
Those three words are pretty much all that stand between Keir Starmer and the exit of Downing Street. It’s a fair question, and Tom Baldwin articulates the problem brilliantly in his cover story for this week’s magazine.
Tom is Starmer-friendly. A rare thing these days, but it’s not blind loyalty. Tom knows the man and has studied him closely for years. In his candid assessment, Tom laments the actions of a Prime Minister – especially those resulting in the alarmingly high body count of those who have displeased him in office – that contradict what he believes is his true nature.
Next week, the crisis may grow deeper if the local election results are as bad as most expect them to be. Starmer’s opportunity to deliver the kind of change he promised the nation may be further curtailed.
So what’s the immediate answer? Reject this, our sixth Prime Minister in the ten years since the Brexit referendum? And then what?
That’s the question Tom’s piece answers with a clarity lacking in much of the mainstream media.
Also this week:
Jack Dart gives a rundown of the 40 most reprehensible Reform candidates running for office in next week’s elections. It’s grim reading.
Tilly Lawless brings insight into how the sex industry reacts to straitened times.
Alastair Campbell reports back from a fascinating encounter with Alexander Vucic, once Slobodan Milosevic’s comms guy and now leader of Serbia. A lot of water has flowed under that particular bridge.
Marie Le Conte demands tax breaks for artists. Why stop there? What about journalists, say I?!
Simon Barnes recalls how it was David Attenborough who set him on a lifelong appreciation of nature.
Jonn Elledge asks what it is about autocratic strongmen and massive triumphal arches.
John Osborne reflects on the great – if short – life of Ayrton Senna.
And Matthew d’Ancona examines the Trump presidency’s obsession with aliens. Not, for once, those crossing the southern borders. The ones up there, in outer space.
Also worth catching, this week’s Two Matts podcast with myself and Tom Baldwin. It’s a great listen and an antidote to what many complain of as relentless Starmer-bashing! A charge we reject, but we note the sentiment.
