OPINION: Keir Starmer is right to resist the pressure and stand firm – he’s earned that much

How short-term have our memories become to get to this stage?

In fact, despite the general distain for them in this country of proud moaners, politicians in general do a tough job.

There are few other vocations where a person is scrutinised from so meticulously on how they look, speak, spend their money or just eat a bacon sandwich.

The most minute detail can be the difference between an entire nation tolerating you, or casting you to the depths of YouGov's favourability poll.

Heck, Gordon Brown's name merely rhymed with 'went to town with his trousers down' and it's all kids were singing when I was growing up without having any idea why.

So, it's no surprise that Starmer is under the microscope, especially in the current volatile political landscape, but how - in a country that has seen the Suez Crisis, mass privatisation, the rapid growth of wealth inequality, the 'Dodgy Dossier', the Windrush Scandal, the £1.4bn mis-management of PPE contracts, Partygate, LIZ TRUSS, the Rwanda deportations scheme (just to name a few) - have we become so short-sighted to now be calling Keir Starmer the worst prime minister EVER who has to go?

Look, he might not last the week, or even the next 24 hours, as Labour MPs call for his resignation and challengers line up his position, but no saga ends without a highlight reel.

And, Starmer's highlights have definitely done enough to earn him the chance to stand firm and defend his position.

Policy fulfilment

Look, of course, becoming a good prime minister and party leader is more than just fulfilling policy, it can also be foreign affairs, the general state of the economy, or just how the person in question is perceived.

However, it is undeniable that the number of policies a government has fulfilled is a solid yardstick of a government's performance - really it should be the most important one as an elected representative of the people.

Fortunately for us, such a yardstick exists on news-checking site Full Fact known as 'Government Tracker'.

The site lists 92 'key pledges' out of the more than 300 pledges that Labour have made and judges to what extent they have been fulfilled.

We are almost two years into this Labour mandate and, as per Full Fact, the government has already delivered 21 (23 per cent) of these 92 'key pledges.'

Meanwhile, 17 of these policies 'appear on track' while another 23 are 'in progress'.

Out of these 92 pledges, just six are 'off track' and another six have not been kept - another four remain disputed.

Keir Starmer's Labour have completed or are in the process of fulfilling 66% of pledges. Credit: Getty.

With this in mind, it means Labour have already delivered, or are in the process of delivery, 61 (66 per cent) of their 92 key pledges while not even being half way into their five-year term.

Now, compare these stats to those of the Tories from between 2017 and 2021 and these numbers look even better.

A study from the University of Manchester in collaboration with Civic Tech Platform GovTracker, which was published in 2019, found that the Conservatives failed to fulfil half of their 2017 manifesto pledges after applying a weighting system.

The study said that "the Conservatives fulfilled a large proportion of the promises that the academics’ weighting system classified as ‘less important’."

It listed the five most central Conservative promises, of which four were not fulfilled (EU policies not fulfilled until the next government):

1. Leave the EU (broken)
2. Reduce annual net migration to under 100,000 (broken)
3. Leave the EU’s Customs Union (broken)
4. Introduce a bill making preparations for setting up new trade deals after Brexit (fulfilled)
5. Leave the EU’s single market (broken)

Meanwhile, in 2021, a study by the Institute for Government found that over half (55%) of the Conservative government’s manifesto pledges were completed or on track two year's into Boris Johnson's government - respectable, but still lagging behind supposedly the worst prime minister ever.

Just as a rather humorous side note, while Labour have already fulfilled 21 pledges, Reform don't even have more than 20 policies in their entire manifesto - makes you think.

Did we all just forget the Tories?

Seeing that out of the last 16 years the Conversative party has been in power for 14 of them, maybe people need reminding that it's not the party that has been in power for barely two years that are responsible for all of this mess.

The foundations were laid along time ago by the Tories, just look at Rachel Reeves' Autumn Budget, a Budget which was prefaced by highlighting "broken public finances” and “broken public services” from the previous Tory governments.

Much of the Budget was centred around filling an estimated £22bn "black hole" in public finances allegedly left by the Tories - although this number has been disputed.

Either way, it's safe to say the economy wasn't exactly in the best shape when Labour took over, although there were decisions made that not everyone agreed with.

Beyond the - you know - actual running the country and stuff, we must still be living in a tired hangover of Covid's Partygate from when Tory politicians wined and dined as we sat indoors watching relatives die if people really think Starmer is the worst person ever to run the nation.

The Tories were slammed in the Covid inquiry released in November last year which highlighted "too little, too late" was done to prevent cases spreading and spoke of "toxic and chaotic" culture inside Boris Johnson’s No. 10.

The inquiry also said that, had lockdown been implemented a week earlier, 23,000 lives could have been saved.

This is just one of many shortcomings Tory leaders have been blamed for which also include Lizz Truss' disastrous 45-day tenure and 'mini-budget', the Rwanda deportation scheme which saw no flights happen while they were in office, housing and living crises, Boris Johnson's unlawful prorogation of Parliament and, the sour cherry on top of the cake, the shambles that has been Brexit - an initiative started by one Tory and bundled over the line by another.

Honestly this list is almost endless and we'd all be bored out of our minds if we continued.

Starmer's shortcomings

Let's be honest, this time next year - or even next month - Keir Starmer is very unlikely to still be in charge of the country with around 80 Labour MPs calling for his resignation as of writing with that number set to grow.

The Mandelson affair is bad, that goes without saying, winter fuel payment cuts didn't help, and the constant U-turns are never good for a leader's reputation.

But, to call Starmer the worst PM ever - like some have done - is a flagrant denial of those who have trodden the path before him.

Not much choice elsewhere

Even if people Starmer hasn't done enough to earn him more time in charge, what is the alternative?

The same people shouting 'starmer out' will be the same ones saying that Streeting, Rayner and the rest of his cabinet are worse alternatives.

At the end of the day this is exactly what Labour's opposition wants, a fractious government because it obviously plays into their favour.

In the long run, one man will benefit and one man only - Nigel Farage.

The same opposition that has lamented Starmer for his 'weak leadership' will now be criticising him for 'not taking the hint'.

So, the PM might as well hold his ground because the alternative is complete turmoil.

Labour should come to terms with the fact that it is very likely they won't win the next general election, so they might as well rally to at least stop Reform getting an outright majority by presenting a somewhat competent party.

Defiance as a mark of a strong leader

If Cameron, May and Johnson all could manage longer terms in power with all these controversies that are clearly worse than what Starmer has done, then he is at least owned the chance to give defiance a shot.

In fact, Starmer's defiance is more in keeping with his character which has often been overshadowed by U-turns which have not been helped by a chaotic party.

Look at his stance on war, in 20 years time we might even be praising Starmer for not getting the UK involved in the Iran conflict which seems to have no end, and his choice to stand firm with European allies over Ukraine.

Hindsight is a wonderful thing after all.

If anything, Starmer has shown himself to be defiant in the face of controversy, and if he can get himself out of this sour pickle, he'll certainly find himself in a stronger position than before - and he's earned the opportunity to prove that he can do it.