Express & Star

Star Comment: Sir Keir is facing the fight of his life

The difficult questions keep coming

Published
Uneasy allies – Sir Keir with then leader Jeremy Corbyn

The damage wrought by Jeremy Corbyn endures. Vast swathes of Labour heartland remain reluctant to trust the party again.

Yet some members of the left remain a weight determined to bring down Sir Keir Starmer. They enjoyed their moment in the sun, now they are bitter at being put out to grass.

The left now sense an opportunity with Diane Abbott forming an unlikely alliance with Tories calling for Sir Keir’s head if he is found to have broken lockdown rules with his Beergate allegations.

The plight of Sir Keir and the co-ordinated attack against him will delight his enemies.

It is right the allegations are investigated in the same way as the antics in Downing Street were. But a weakened Labour leader is not good for democracy.

Britain’s political system works best when the Opposition is strong and holding the Government to account. After the chaos of Jeremy Corbyn’s time in charge, Labour needs to show the British public it can govern.

It also needs to show Boris Johnson, who has shrugged scandals that would have seen off previous prime ministers, that it means business.

Many people turned away from Labour at the last general election because they saw the party lurch to the left. They did not see Jeremy Corbyn as a credible leader.

Now Sir Keir faces the fight of his life to shake off the shackles of that wing of his party.

Sir Keir remains adamant that he broke no rules, but the difficult questions keep coming. These co-ordinated attacks shift the focus away from Number 10 Downing Street and the most incredible part of is that malcontents from his own party are in on these attacks.

Ukraine will undoubtedly win Eurovision this year. It could get a man on to bang a drum for three minutes and still get ‘douze points’ from most.

Eurovision is all fizz and froth, yet also has a power of its own. A Ukrainian victory with Russia expelled may at least lead to some who live under Putin to question why the war is happening – and why Europe is united in its horror at their leader’s actions.

With the semi-finals starting tonight, the usual nonsense will be expected. That is why some love Eurovision and some find it simply strange.

One thing is for sure and that is the competition really will be a test on how popular us Brits are within Europe post-Brexit. Our entry is, for once, more than half decent and is fourth favourite to win.

If Britain end up at the bottom of the leaderboard, then we know we are really hated.