Why is Keir Starmer trying to put so many voters off?

And, let’s not forget that, in 2008 Nick Clegg called for an EU referendum. Now, I joined the LibDems and campaigned for them to reverse brexit, but was shocked to read that the party had called for a referendum. So, much as I hope that people will vote tactically to get the Conservatives out, no party is totally squeaky clean when it comes to the journey that took us to where we are now.

Ilovecheese

So Corbyn was wrong because he wouldn't reverse Brexit but Starmer is right because he won't reverse brexit?

Corbyn was wrong because we all know that, deep down he believed in brexit. Starmer didn’t, he was an out and out supporter of being in the EU) but, having failed to get a peoples vote to reject it has had to accept it. Even if we tried to rejoin it would still take a long time so we have to make it work for now. And, if we did rejoin we’d probably have to accept (I think: correct me if I’m wrong) Schengen and the euro.

varian

The EU referendum was advisory.

The courts found that it had been won by illegal means so that if it had been mandatory it would have been annulled.

The overwhelming majority of polls over the last six years have shown a clear lead for Remain.

All of the damaging consequences of this hard brexit are now becoming more apparent by the day.

Kier Starmer is an intelligent man and must see how disastrous this is. I previously thought he was also a principled politician who would promote the policies he truly believed were best for the country.

The majority of Labour MPs, Labour Party members and two thirds of Labour voters are pro-Remain.

So why on earth is Kier Starmer willing to inflict further damage on our country by pandering to the one third of Labour voters who voted Leave?????

He’s a pragmatist varian. Railing against leaving the EU is pointless now because that horse has bolted. It will take a long time to rebuild trust after the shambolic mess we are in now, and the best way to do that is to accept we won’t be rejoining the EU at any point in the near future and make the best of where we are now, rebuilding links and trust. That’s the immediate priority - and to do anything he has to win the next election.

I am as puzzled as you varian
Today is the anniversary of the introduction of the NHS . Can anyone seriously imagine Keir Starmer and his closest allies coming up with a transformative and radical and wonderful policy like that?

Corbyn was just wrong, as the 2019 election showed. By then the electorate had seen the disaster that was Corbyn as leader

Starmer doesn’t have magical powers. No one can unite the sp called d treme left with the less noisy, more balanced majority of part members. Their darling Long-Bailey impressed no one during the leadership campaign. Lisa Nandy was a contender and is an asset to the party.

The EU referendum was advisory.

The courts found that it had been won by illegal means so that if it had been mandatory it would have been annulled.

The overwhelming majority of polls over the last six years have shown a clear lead for Remain.

All of the damaging consequences of this hard brexit are now becoming more apparent by the day.

Kier Starmer is an intelligent man and must see how disastrous this is. I previously thought he was also a principled politician who would promote the policies he truly believed were best for the country.

The majority of Labour MPs, Labour Party members and two thirds of Labour voters are pro-Remain.

So why on earth is Kier Starmer willing to inflict further damage on our country by pandering to the one third of Labour voters who voted Leave?????

So Corbyn was wrong because he wouldn't reverse Brexit but Starmer is right because he won't reverse brexit?

Grany

It was KS who would not except May's soft Brexit He was saying during 2019 election an option is to remain going against labour. And labour very neatly won 2017 Annie if it wasn't for the Blairites in the party who would rather loose than win election.

A loss is a loss. Corbyn should have stood down after the first defeat.Most party leaders do. Starmer was against Mays brexit because he was still, at the time, helping us fight for a peoples vote. Corbyn always wanted brexit. In fact he asked for article 16(?) to be triggered immediately. Keir was on the peoples vote marches on which people were chanting ‘where’s Jeremy Corbyn’.

They will attack him whatever and however much he courts them, unless they decide he is right wing enough for them.

My understanding is that if KS said there would be a coalition with the SNP it would be yet another reason for the right wing press to attack him.

Grany

It was KS who would not except May's soft Brexit He was saying during 2019 election an option is to remain going against labour. And labour very neatly won 2017 Annie if it wasn't for the Blairites in the party who would rather loose than win election.

He’s a pragmatist.

It was KS who would not except May's soft Brexit He was saying during 2019 election an option is to remain going against labour. And labour very neatly won 2017 Annie if it wasn't for the Blairites in the party who would rather loose than win election.

Corbyn gave Labour the worse general election defeat since 1935

paddyann54

The Labour party doesn't know who it represents anymore .In Scotland Anas Sarwar has siad he wont have a coalition with the SNP even if that means labour wont get power in the next GE ....but he's in coalitions with tories across Scotland in councils ! They have joined with the tories and in one case have put a tory woman, who was expelled from a teaching authority, in charge of Education in th e area ?

So in Scotland vote Labour get tory ? I'm not sure that will win them votes ,they have only ONE MP at Westminster at present their worst result since the 1930's .
They may lose him next time around

Isn’t it in the best interests of the SNP to have a permanent Conservative government, though, because that is more likely to result in the Scottish people voting for independence?

Keir Keir Starmer's associates, Rachel Reeves and Wes Streeting have deliberately alienated some Labour voters though, by saying that they are glad that those who supported the policies of Jeremy Corbyn and John McDonnell have left the party.
Keir Starmer was elected as leader on a left wing manifesto and on ten pledges that he made which he has not kept to.
So maybe one answer to the question posed in the OP, is because he only wants the votes of Conservatives or small "c" conservatives.

I notice that Labour are now saying that they will introduce a national social care policy. This is a very good idea which was in the previous manifesto. It is not a new idea that Keir Starmer should take credit for.

Yes, I think tactical voting, at the next election, is the way to go.

Much as I would love for Brexit not to have happened, I can't see the point of KS wanting to fight that battle again. Apart from anything else it would detract from the more important ones that we really need to be addressing.

paddyann54

The Labour party doesn't know who it represents anymore .In Scotland Anas Sarwar has siad he wont have a coalition with the SNP even if that means labour wont get power in the next GE ....but he's in coalitions with tories across Scotland in councils ! They have joined with the tories and in one case have put a tory woman, who was expelled from a teaching authority, in charge of Education in th e area ?

So in Scotland vote Labour get tory ? I'm not sure that will win them votes ,they have only ONE MP at Westminster at present their worst result since the 1930's .
They may lose him next time around

KS more Tory than labour. He is a liar deceitful gone back on all pledges and polices. Very authoritarian, promised unity

eazybee

Keir Starmer is honouring the result of a democratic vote to leave the European Union, for which I respect him.

I fought long and hard for a peoples vote. Joined the LibDems, campaigned for them. The result was an overwhelming vote (in England at least) to ‘get brexit done’. Which has resulted in a form of dictatorship in this country. We can’t just overturn brexit without a vote on it, that would be behaving as badly as the current government. They must be gleeful about how divided the Labour Party is on so many subjects. Let’s get a Labour/LibDem coalition in power and turn this country into the sort of country that many of us want to live in but no longer recognise as such. I am terrified that this desire for the Labour Party to be 100% the party that people personally want will result in a Conservative government in perpetuity. If that happens I’m done with politics. I know people will say that if Keir stands for rejoining the EU that will be be the same as the peoples vote but it won’t work because Labour will lose the next election. Unless Johnson doesn’t have a snap election and, by the time we do have one it will be even more apparent what a disaster brexit has been.

Thank you for your 9.19 post DaisyAnne.

Keir Starmer sums up exactly how I feel.
No solution or party will be perfect, but we are in a tremendous mess here and only getting rid of the current PM and party will allow us to stop digging and start to put things right.

I hope to vote Labour, but I will vote for whoever is most likely to unseat the Tories - likely LibDem in my ward.

paddyann54

The Labour party doesn't know who it represents anymore .In Scotland Anas Sarwar has siad he wont have a coalition with the SNP even if that means labour wont get power in the next GE ....but he's in coalitions with tories across Scotland in councils ! They have joined with the tories and in one case have put a tory woman, who was expelled from a teaching authority, in charge of Education in th e area ?

So in Scotland vote Labour get tory ? I'm not sure that will win them votes ,they have only ONE MP at Westminster at present their worst result since the 1930's .
They may lose him next time around

That’s not what the polls are saying though paddyann54 is it, they have Labour taking seats from Conservatives, and Anas Sarwar as more popular with voters than Nicola Sturgeon. Do you think they are wrong?

The Labour party doesn't know who it represents anymore .In Scotland Anas Sarwar has siad he wont have a coalition with the SNP even if that means labour wont get power in the next GE ....but he's in coalitions with tories across Scotland in councils ! They have joined with the tories and in one case have put a tory woman, who was expelled from a teaching authority, in charge of Education in th e area ?

So in Scotland vote Labour get tory ? I'm not sure that will win them votes ,they have only ONE MP at Westminster at present their worst result since the 1930's .
They may lose him next time around

I was a remainer but as far as I am concerned KS is making a pragmatic decision, we are out of Europe and most unlikely to ever again be a member. Should we wish to rejoin we would be forced to accept the Euro and I can't help thinking that with inflation and a possible Europe wide recession threatening, we are better having control over our own currency. We need to work with the rest of Europe to make the best we can out of this sorry mess, so I'm totally with KS on this. The LP is it's own worst enemy because there is still too much reliance on the Trade Union movement. The percentage of workers in a trade union continues to drop, year by year (slight rise during the pandemic!) that percentage is largely propped up by the public sector. I just wish the LP would stop it's internal wars and focus on getting into government and I think that is what KS is trying to do. Do we really want more years of BJ and his like???

Starmer also wants to recapture the traditional Labour voters who voted for Brexit and the conservatives - the so called red wall.

Keir is being pragmatic - there are still plenty of people who believe Brexit was right, although I suspect many of them disagree with the deal that was brokered after the referendum vote.

We all know that he would have wanted the vote to go the other way, but he recognises that at this moment rejoining is not an option.