He is a big football fan and Arsenal fan. Starmer has been married to Victoria Alexander – known in Labor circles as Lady Vic – since 2007 and has two children, a boy and a girl, both teenagers. In an interview with Sky News in June, she said she feared the impact the election for prime minister would have on her family. “They are at a difficult age,” she explained, adding that she has yet to appear in public with her children to “protect them.”
During the election campaign, he defined six priorities. Starmer promised economic stability, reducing NHS waiting lists, strengthening the police, a new energy policy, opening up posts for teachers and creating a command center to boost border security. Asked how he would like to be remembered, he replied: “As someone who had a brave, reformist Labor government. As a great father and friend.”
I hate failure, especially in football and politics. I play football every week, in the middle of the field, commanding. Many say participation is key. I don't think so. Winning is what matters.
Keir Starmer, for The Guardian, August 2023
Ancestral Lineage
The British economy has been in trouble since Brexit in 2016. A key argument from the Conservatives is that Brexit will free the UK from EU restrictions and allow it to strike trade deals with other countries. In practice, the opposite happened: living and business costs increased, bureaucracy increased and part of the foreign workforce left the country. In 2019, according to official data, British gross domestic product (GDP) grew by 1.6%; In 2023, the expansion was 0.1%.
The critical status of services is seen as a conservative legacy. Workers have lost purchasing power, NHS waiting lists – the Brazilian equivalent of the SUS – are getting longer and there are more and more unfilled vacancies. Since 2022, there has been one strike after another in every sector in the UK, with no satisfactory outcome for the unions. According to RFI, it's no surprise that voters see health and education as the most important issues in these general elections.
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