In his first full day at 10 Downing Street, Keir Starmer chaired his inaugural meeting with the newfound Labour cabinet, highlighting the arduous task that lies ahead. Starmer communicated to his top-ranking comrades that it was his lifelong privilege and honour to be invited by His Majesty, King Charles, to form a government after the Labour Party’s historical polling victory.
Starmer, accompanied by his deputy Angela Rayner and cabinet secretary Simon Case, welcomed the cabinet to their first meeting with enthusiasm and excitement. His encouraging words about the monumental task ahead were received with hearty applause from the new cabinet members, most of whom were part of Starmer’s shadow team prior to the election.
Starmer clarified key appointments within his team. Rachel Reeves has been appointed as the country’s first female chancellor, with Angela Rayner serving as his deputy and housing secretary, and Pat McFadden taking the role as chancellor of the Duchy of Lancaster.
Key cabinet roles were assigned to David Lammy as foreign secretary, Yvette Cooper as home secretary, John Healey as defence secretary, Wes Streeting as health secretary and Bridget Phillipson as education secretary. Both Shabana Mahmood and Ed Miliband will continue their roles in justice and energy. Notably, former attorney general Emily Thornberry was replaced by barrister Richard Hermer KC.
Among the ministers entering Number 10 on that Saturday morning was an ecstatic Ed Miliband, a former Labour leader who served in Gordon Brown’s cabinet. He expressed his delight on returning, declaring, “It’s good to be back.”
On a more sombre note, the environment secretary warned that confronting the sewage and nature crises would be a years-long endeavour. He underlined the severity of the situation, stating that there were record levels of sewage contamination in the bodies of water and that nature is in peril. Worryingly, he noted that farmers’ confidence is at its lowest recorded level.
“It will be a lengthy process to undo these impacts, but the efforts of transformation begin today,” as quoted by Keir Starmer, the newly appointed Prime Minister of the UK. The Downing Street saw a meeting of cabinet ministers with Mr Starmer, who braced himself for queries from journalists during his first press meeting as Prime Minister.
[In a surprising turn of events, Boris Johnson’s electoral defeat leads to Keir Starmer, the new UK Prime Minister, extends an invitation to Simon Harris for a Downing Street meeting]
Over the coming weekend, we can expect further announcements of ministerial appointments. Mr Starmer plans to swiftly assign roles ahead of the National Alliance Treaty Organisation (NATO) summit, as per the information from Mr McFadden.
Mr Starmer is set to make his first appearance on the global platform as the reputed UK Prime Minister at the upcoming gathering in Washington DC. The conference, set to take place next week, will focus on discussing the Ukraine support among other matters.
Moreover, Mr Starmer is also scheduled to preside over the summit of the European Political Community in the UK, scheduled for July 18th. This follows Mr Starmer’s assurance that “efforts of change begin right away” after leading the Labour party to a decisive victory at the general elections on Friday.
The Labour party triumphed with 412 seats against the Tories’ 121, recording the most devastating defeat in Conservative history. Mr Starmer, during his first Downing Street speech, committed to ushering in an era characterized by “stability and moderation”. He ensured that his government would work in the favour of all voters, irrespective of their party preference.
However, the record low voter turnout is indicative of a need for trust revival in the political framework after 14 years of Tory administration marked by the infamous Partygate scandal and the disorderly Conservative infighting.
The Labour’s share of the vote indicates that the fresh Government is unlikely to have much of a grace period, as approximately 34% of the electorate backed the party, lower than the support secured by Jeremy Corbyn in 2017.