Britain's Starmer says leadership change would 'not be in national interest'

LONDON — British Prime Minister Keir Starmer ‍said on Sunday he would still be in power this time next year, in the face of low poll numbers and speculation about a possible leadership challenge. Starmer told the BBC's Laura Kuenssberg it was not in the national interest to "chop and change" the country's leader as had happened under the previous Conservative government. His Labour Party is trailing the populist Reform UK in opinion polls 18 months after winning a landslide victory in the 2024 national ‍election. The prime minister's personal rating is at historic lows as Labour prepares for local elections in England, Wales and Scotland in May. Starmer said the elections would not be a "referendum" on his government, but Labour would "fight for every vote." Asked if there were any circumstances in which he could stand down if a ‍poor showing prompted a challenge to his leadership, he said he would ‍stay the course. "Under the last government we saw constant chopping and changing of ‌leadership, of teams — it caused utter chaos, utter chaos, and it's amongst the ‍reasons thWeiter zum vollständigen Artikel bei Korea Times Weiter zum vollständigen Artikel bei Korea Times