Starmer Issues Warning Amid Middle East Conflict

Keir Starmer has insisted the UK cannot “go back to normal” after the Iran war despite its delicate ceasefire with the US.

Speaking from the Middle East, the prime minister warned Britain is too dependent on international energy markets right now.

He told ITV’s Robert Peston: “I firmly believe that when we had the global shock of the 2008 global financial crash, when we had the shock of Covid, the response was the wrong response.

“What I mean by that is there was a rush to get back to normal, to get back to the status quo. And never to change things fundamentally.

“And the normal and the status quo weren’t working for 20 years.

“They haven’t worked – living standards haven’t improved, public services have been decimated and people have felt more distant from politics.

“We can’t aspire or want to get back to the normal. We have to change that. We need to respond with strength in a number of important fields.”

The PM added that the consequences of this war are “going to be long felt” and Brits cannot “immunise ourselves from that”, pointing to the economic consequences the UK is already feeling from Iran’s closure of the major shipping lane, the Strait of Hormuz.

He said he wants to remove barriers to growth – including being closer to the EU.

He explained: “I’m fed up with the fact that families across the country see their bills go up and down on energy, businesses’ bills go up and down on energy because of the actions of Putin or Trump across the world and saying to families across the country, saying to businesses across the country: ‘We’ve just got to be, we’ve got to put up with being on the international market’.”

The PM also said Israel’s attacks on Lebanon should not have happened.

While he stopped short of calling Israel’s attacks on Iran a “breach” of the ceasefire – claiming he does not have access to all the details of the agreement – he did call the strikes “wrong”.

Starmer said: “That shouldn’t be happening. That should stop. That’s my strong view. And therefore the question isn’t a technical one of whether it’s a breach of the agreement or not.

“This one is actually a matter of principles as far as I’m concerned.

“In a sense, my argument would be it should be included in the ceasefire, and that’s the important part, the overall approach.”

He also countered Iran’s claims that a US bomber took off from a UK base and demolished four residential buildings, killing dozens of Iranians, saying British sites are only for collective self-defence use.

Starmer said: “I’m really clear about that divide – no offensive action, not joining in the war – collective self defence only and our bases will not be, and are not being, used for wider offensive and particular for offensives on civilians.”

The prime minister reiterated that the UK would not be “dragged” into the war, either.

Starmer said: “From the get go we’ve been monitoring this situation so I’m pretty clear on my own mind about what we’ve agreed and what the use of the bases are and that is a really important point of principle because we have to learn the lessons of Iraq.

“We need to be clear where we stand as a country and I’m the British Prime Minister, I make decisions on what’s in the British national interest and that is my focus. And notwithstanding for noise and the pressure and the rhetoric, that has been my firm focus throughout this.”

The prime minister also laid into the US president for his strong language against Tehran, after Trump threatened to wipe out Iranian civilisation unless it ended the war.

Starmer said: “Let me be really clear about this – they are not words I would use, ever use, because I come at this with our British values and principles.

“They’re not language I would use.

“Use those words, a language like that myself, very important that I’m clear that for the United Kingdom, we have our principles, we have our values. We will be guided by them in everything that we do.

“That’s why I’ve said, and obviously it’s caused a degree of criticism and pressure in the last few weeks. I’ve been saying we are not going to be dragged into this war because I say there must be a lawful basis that matters if you’re going to commit our service personnel to.”

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