UK Premier Keir Starmer among Labour’s most right-wing MPs, study reveals

LONDON

Keir Starmer, the UK prime minister and leader of the Labour Party, has been identified as one of the most right-wing members of his party, according to new research on Monday.


A study conducted by Chris Hanretty, a professor of politics at Royal Holloway, University of London, positions Starmer’s political stance to the right of nearly all 401 Labour MPs.

The research utilized data collected from 1,006 local councilors, who were asked to compare their MPs’ political positions relative to party leaders.


The study also analyzed the political positioning of other key figures.

Ed Davey, leader of the Liberal Democrats, was found to be further to the left than Starmer, a striking revelation given the Liberal Democrats’ historically centrist reputation.


Meanwhile, Kemi Badenoch, leader of the Conservative Party, sits to the right of her party, with a score that puts her closer to Nigel Farage, leader of Reform UK, than to many of her own Conservative colleagues.

Talking to the Times, Chris Professor Hanretty contextualized these findings by referencing historical norms: "Before Brexit, I would have said it was normal for prime ministers to be more centrally located than most of their party. [David] Cameron was to the left of the Conservative Party, just as [Tony] Blair was to the right of the Labour Party."

With Starmer occupying a more conservative position relative to his colleagues, tensions could arise as he seeks to unify a diverse political coalition within Labour.

For the Conservatives, Badenoch’s alignment with figures like Nigel Farage may signal a further entrenchment of right-wing populism, shaping the party’s approach to governance and campaigning.