Orcadian Column, 25/6/26
Seven Prime Ministers in ten years? When I was a student in Edinburgh, I worked part-time in a Wimpy restaurant with a lower staff turnover than 10 Downing Street of late! Since the Brexit referendum exactly a decade ago, we’ve burned through as many Prime Ministers as lasted us for the forty years prior to that vote. It seems ‘taking back control’ has led to a loss of any measure of control.
Even by recent standards, however, Sir Keir Starmer’s fall from grace has been eye-popping. Less than two years ago, he secured a landslide election win for Labour and a parliamentary majority of 160 MPs. Granted, the margin of victory in many constituencies and across the country was slim, but it was a resounding triumph, nevertheless.
The loss of public support and confidence was almost immediate, though, with a series of missteps, notably on cuts to winter fuel payments. A subsequent u-turn on this and other unpopular policies hardly helped and confirmed the impression of a hapless technocrat with no real vision for what he wanted to do in power or certainly no effective way of communicating any vision to an increasingly disgruntled public.
That said, unlike Boris Johnson or Liz Truss, Sir Keir was undoubtedly motivated by a deep sense of public service and can legitimately lay claim to successes that will come to be more objectively recognised over time. In particular, he demonstrated a seriousness and diligence on the world stage that has gone some way to repairing the damage done to the UK’s reputation under Mr Johnson and Ms Truss. For that alone he deserves credit.
Whether Sir Keir’s almost certain successor, Andy Burnham has the political skills to fare any better than his predecessor remains to be seen. He has proved to be an effective and popular Mayor of Manchester and delivered an emphatic win in last week’s Makerfield by-election, halting any momentum Nigel Farage and Reform may have had after the local elections in May.
It was an impressive campaign and Mr Burnham is a decent communicator, but Downing Street is a different proposition to City Hall in Manchester. He will also face all the same challenges that crowded in on his predecessor and do so almost immediately.
Indeed, some commentators have reflected on whether governing feels almost impossible these days. Certainly, the levels of anger being expressed are alarming, invariably fuelled by social media algorithms and even traditional media outlets who see benefit in provoking and stoking that anger.
This, of course, has consequences. It is also ten years since the brutal murder of Labour MP, Jo Cox, at the hands of a man yelling racist, far right abuse as he stabbed and shot her outside an advice surgery in her constituency. At the time, politicians, the media and wider public solemnly declared ‘never again’. Yet, as MSPs gathered this week for a Great Get Together, organised in parliament by Jo Cox Foundation to promote and celebrate what unites us, it’s hard not to conclude that the situation has got worse.
I can think of no better antidote to such pessimism, however, than the example set by Gregor Corse. The four-year-old from Kirkwall captured the public imagination with his ‘loops o the hoose’ earlier this year, which raised over £70,000 for Inclusive Orkney, a brilliant local charity providing wonderful opportunities for youngsters with additional needs.
I’ve got to know Gregor and his remarkable mum, Iona over recent months and am delighted that they’ll be joining me on Saturday as King Charles formally opens the 7th session of parliament. If he plays his cards right, he and Queen Camilla may even get a chance to meet Gregor!
Parliament officials tell me that Gregor will be the youngest ever ‘local hero’ to attend such a ceremony at Holyrood. I can think of no-one more inspirational. His gritty determination coupled with a cheeky, infectious smile have struck a chord with the public in Orkney and far beyond. It’s a connection that is truly special and yet Gregor seems to take it all in his stride. Come to think of it of it, Gregor for Prime Minister has a certain ring to it!