Keir Starmer has said he is “fed up” with the actions of Donald Trump and Vladimir Putin, arguing that both men are contributing to higher energy bills for people in Britain. The prime minister made the comment as he concluded a visit to Gulf states, during which he discussed regional security, energy, and efforts to restore freedom of navigation in the Strait of Hormuz.
The remarks come at a politically awkward moment for Labour, with the party facing what is expected to be a poor set of results in the Scottish parliament, Welsh Senedd and English local elections. Those votes take place four weeks from today, and although the ballot itself is on a Thursday, most counting will begin on the Friday. The full picture may not be clear until the weekend.
No one involved in Labour appears to expect a comfortable outcome. The source material indicates that the party is braced for results that will be “anything other than grim,” reflecting wider concern about the government’s standing and the likely public mood when the votes are counted.
Leadership speculation appears to be easing
For a period, poor election results were widely assumed to open the door to a Labour leadership challenge. But that now seems less likely. Wes Streeting, the health secretary and a figure often viewed as a possible future leadership contender, has said such a contest should not happen and probably will not happen.
Lucy Powell, Labour’s deputy leader, has also pushed back against the idea. She said party members are firmly against the prospect of an internal fight for the leadership. In her view, a divisive contest would not help Labour deal with the problems that matter most to voters.
“Some kind of messy, bloody internal contest is not going to help us address [the issues that matter to voters] … I think the membership would take a very dim view of [a leadership contest],” she said.
Her comments suggest that, even if the local election results are poor, Labour may try to avoid turning the moment into a confrontation over the leadership.
Talks with Trump and Gulf leaders
The prime minister spoke to President Trump from Qatar on Friday evening. The conversation came at the end of his regional trip, during which he set out discussions he had with Gulf leaders and military planners.
According to the source material, Starmer’s discussions focused on the need to restore freedom of navigation in the Strait of Hormuz and on the UK’s work to bring partners together around a workable plan. That part of the trip reflects the government’s attempt to respond to security tensions in a strategically important waterway.
Starmer’s criticism of Trump sits alongside that wider diplomatic effort. The prime minister’s position, as described in the source, was that the actions of both Trump and Putin are affecting energy costs for British consumers. The comment makes the cost of living issue central to his messaging, linking international politics directly to household bills in the UK.
With local elections approaching and Labour expecting a difficult result, the government now faces pressure on several fronts at once: managing foreign policy, defending its economic record, and containing any fallout from a disappointing night at the polls. For now, though, the signs point away from a leadership crisis and toward a party trying to absorb the damage without turning inward.
