Starmer takes over as prime minister after Labour wins historic election victory

LONDON — British Prime Minister Keir Starmer said in his first public remarks Friday that he will lead a service-led government with a mission to transform the country after Labour won a landslide victory after more than a decade in opposition.

In his maiden speech outside 10 Downing Street, Starmer acknowledged that many people were disillusioned and cynical about politics, but said he and his colleagues would work to restore trust in the government.

“Our government will fight every day until you trust us again,” Starmer said as supporters cheered him on outside 10 Downing Street.

He said the work for change begins immediately. We will rebuild Britain, rebuilding the infrastructure of opportunity brick by brick.

In a ruthless performance of British politics, Starmer entered the Royal House almost two hours after Conservative leader Rishi Sunak and his family left the residence, and the monarch accepted the Tory leader's resignation.

“It is a difficult day, but I leave this job with the honour of being prime minister of the greatest country in the world,” Prime Minister Sunak said in his farewell speech.

Sunack conceded defeat early in the morning, saying voters had made a cold judgment.

In a reflective farewell speech to the country where the snap election was held six weeks ago, Sunak wished Starmer all the best but also acknowledged his own mistakes.

“I hear your anger and disappointment, and I take responsibility for this defeat,” Sunack said. “To all the Conservative candidates and campaigners who worked tirelessly but failed, I apologize for not being able to give you what you deserved for your hard work.

With results in all but two seats, Labour won 412 seats in the 650-seat House of Commons, while the Conservatives won 121. The Conservatives' previous worst result was 156 seats in 1906.

For Starmer, it is a huge victory, but it also brings enormous challenges as he faces a weary electorate desperate for change against a grim backdrop of economic recession, growing distrust of institutions and a breakdown in the fabric of society.

London voter James Erskine was optimistic about change just hours before the polls closed, saying nothing had gone right for the past 14 years. “I see this as the potential for seismic change, and that’s what I’m hoping for.

And Starmer promised: “Change starts now.”

Anand Menon, professor of European politics and diplomacy at King's College London, said British voters would see a marked political shift from the tumultuous political climate of the past few years.

“I think we're going to have to get used to relatively stable governments again, where ministers are in office for quite a long time, and where the government can think beyond short-term to medium-term goals,” he said.

Britain has been through turbulent times, some of which were Conservative in nature and some of which were not, leaving many voters pessimistic about the country’s future. After Britain left the European Union, the economy was hit by the COVID-19 pandemic and Russia’s invasion of Ukraine, and then-Prime Minister Boris Johnson and his staff threw a lockdown-breaking party that sparked widespread anger.

Johnson's successor, Liz Truss, further shook up the economy with massive tax cuts and was in office for just 49 days. Truss, who lost seats to Labour, was one of several senior Conservatives to be ousted in the brutal election trial.

Growing poverty, crumbling infrastructure and an overstretched NHS service are fuelling discontent over a 'broken Britain'.

Starmer has begun appointing government ministers to help tackle these issues. He announced that former Bank of England economist Rachel Reeves will become Chancellor of the Exchequer, the first woman to hold the position.

The results seem to go against recent rightward electoral swings in Europe, including France and Italy, but the same popular trend is also playing out in Britain. Reform UK leader Nigel Farage has shaken up his rivals with his party’s anti-immigrant stance, undermining support for the Conservatives and even winning over some Labour voters.

The result was a disaster for the Conservatives, who were punished by voters for 14 years of austerity, Brexit, the pandemic, political scandal and infighting.

The historic defeat, the narrowest margin in the Democratic Party's 200-year history, leaves the party depleted and disoriented and will spark an immediate race to replace Sunack, who has announced his intention to step down as leader.

The incoming parliament will be more divided and ideologically diverse than it has been in years, in a sign of public unrest and anger at the system. Smaller parties, including the centrist Liberal Democrats and Farage's Reform UK, won millions of votes. Farage won four seats, including one in the seaside town of Clacton-on-Sea, to enter parliament for the eighth time.

The Liberal Democrats won about 70 seats, with a slightly lower turnout than the Reform Party, because the votes were distributed more efficiently. In Britain's majority system, the candidate who gets the most votes in each constituency wins.

The Green Party increased its number of seats from just one before the election to four.

One of the biggest losers was the Scottish National Party, which held most of Scotland's 57 seats before the election but looked set to lose all but a handful to Labour.

Labour's pledge to boost the flagging economy, invest in infrastructure and make Britain a clean energy powerhouse has failed to deliver.

But the party's cautious, safety-first campaign has had the desired effect. It has won the support of large sections of the business community and traditionally conservative newspapers, including the Rupert Murdoch-owned Sun tabloid, which praised Starmer for bringing his party back to the centre of British politics.

Meanwhile, the Conservatives’ election campaign has been plagued by missteps. The campaign got off to an inauspicious start when rain poured down as Sunak made his speech outside 10 Downing St. Then Sunak returned home early from a commemoration event in France to mark the 80th anniversary of the D-Day invasion.

Several Conservative figures close to Snack are being investigated over allegations they used inside information to place bets before the election date was announced.

Voters like Patricia Mulcahy, a retiree from Henley-on-Thames, about 40 miles (65km) west of London, felt the country was looking for something different. The community, which had long voted Conservative, had now turned to the Liberal Democrats.

The younger generation is much more interested in change, Mulcahy said ahead of the results. But whoever gets in, they have a lot of work ahead of them. It won't be easy.

___

Associated Press writers Danika Kirka, Van Pilas, Poppy Askham and Bella Sandelski in London and Tian McLeod in Henley-on-Thames contributed.

–

Follow AP’s coverage of elections around the world: https://apnews.com/hub/global-elections/

Sources 1/ https://Google.com/ 2/ https://abcnews.go.com/International/wireStory/uk-labour-party-sweeps-power-historic-election-win-111684580 The mention sources can contact us to remove/changing this article

What Are The Main Benefits Of Comparing Car Insurance Quotes Online

LOS ANGELES, CA / ACCESSWIRE / June 24, 2020, / Compare-autoinsurance.Org has launched a new blog post that presents the main benefits of comparing multiple car insurance quotes. For more info and free online quotes, please visit https://compare-autoinsurance.Org/the-advantages-of-comparing-prices-with-car-insurance-quotes-online/ The modern society has numerous technological advantages. One important advantage is the speed at which information is sent and received. With the help of the internet, the shopping habits of many persons have drastically changed. The car insurance industry hasn't remained untouched by these changes. On the internet, drivers can compare insurance prices and find out which sellers have the best offers. View photos The advantages of comparing online car insurance quotes are the following: Online quotes can be obtained from anywhere and at any time. Unlike physical insurance agencies, websites don't have a specific schedule and they are available at any time. Drivers that have busy working schedules, can compare quotes from anywhere and at any time, even at midnight. Multiple choices. Almost all insurance providers, no matter if they are well-known brands or just local insurers, have an online presence. Online quotes will allow policyholders the chance to discover multiple insurance companies and check their prices. Drivers are no longer required to get quotes from just a few known insurance companies. Also, local and regional insurers can provide lower insurance rates for the same services. Accurate insurance estimates. Online quotes can only be accurate if the customers provide accurate and real info about their car models and driving history. Lying about past driving incidents can make the price estimates to be lower, but when dealing with an insurance company lying to them is useless. Usually, insurance companies will do research about a potential customer before granting him coverage. Online quotes can be sorted easily. Although drivers are recommended to not choose a policy just based on its price, drivers can easily sort quotes by insurance price. Using brokerage websites will allow drivers to get quotes from multiple insurers, thus making the comparison faster and easier. For additional info, money-saving tips, and free car insurance quotes, visit https://compare-autoinsurance.Org/ Compare-autoinsurance.Org is an online provider of life, home, health, and auto insurance quotes. This website is unique because it does not simply stick to one kind of insurance provider, but brings the clients the best deals from many different online insurance carriers. In this way, clients have access to offers from multiple carriers all in one place: this website. On this site, customers have access to quotes for insurance plans from various agencies, such as local or nationwide agencies, brand names insurance companies, etc. "Online quotes can easily help drivers obtain better car insurance deals. All they have to do is to complete an online form with accurate and real info, then compare prices", said Russell Rabichev, Marketing Director of Internet Marketing Company. CONTACT: Company Name: Internet Marketing CompanyPerson for contact Name: Gurgu CPhone Number: (818) 359-3898Email: [email protected]: https://compare-autoinsurance.Org/ SOURCE: Compare-autoinsurance.Org View source version on accesswire.Com:https://www.Accesswire.Com/595055/What-Are-The-Main-Benefits-Of-Comparing-Car-Insurance-Quotes-Online View photos