Prime Minister Keir Starmer has warned that the new Labour government faces a ‘mountain of mess’ left by the previous Conservative administration, as he highlighted actions taken during its first week in office. In an article for The Guardian, Starmer said the Tories had been ‘arrogant, reckless and irresponsible’, leaving the public finances in the worst state since the Second World War.
Starmer listed several early moves, including lifting the ban on onshore wind, creating a national wealth fund, and meeting NHS bosses to secure 40,000 extra appointments per week and 700,000 urgent dental appointments. The Department for Education has resumed recruitment to hire 6,500 new teachers, while emergency measures have been taken to address the crisis in the justice system. The government also scrapped the Rwanda asylum plan and began setting up a new Border Security Command to tackle people-smuggling gangs.
On the international stage, Starmer attended the NATO summit, reaffirmed support for Ukraine against Russian aggression, and met President Biden, confirming the strength of the special relationship. He also made his first trips as prime minister to Scotland, Wales, and Northern Ireland, meeting devolved leaders, and convened metro mayors to kickstart local growth plans.
Starmer expressed pride in the diversity of the 412 Labour MPs, noting near gender equality, increased minority ethnic representation, and the largest cohort of LGBT+ representatives in any parliament worldwide. He highlighted cabinet members with personal experience of council housing, free school meals, and NHS care, emphasising a commitment to aspiration for all.
However, Starmer cautioned that fixing the fundamentals would not be easy, citing a prison crisis and sewage dumping under the previous government. He accused the Tories of ducking hard choices and leaving a legacy of mess that Labour must now clean up.
