Is Tony Blair right to say Starmer has no coherent plan? episode artwork

EPISODE · Jun 8, 2026 · 13 MIN

Is Tony Blair right to say Starmer has no coherent plan?

from Mark and Pete · host Mark and Pete

Tony Blair has accused Keir Starmer’s Labour government of lacking a coherent plan, which is a little like being told your sermon has no structure by a man who once preached for three hours and then invaded the notices.In this episode of Mark and Pete, we look at Tony Blair’s criticism of Keir Starmer, the growing sense of drift around the Labour government, and the uncomfortable question now hanging over British politics: is Starmer doing less harm because he is cautious, or more harm because he appears to have no real vision at all?Blair says successful governments need an idea, a project, a governing purpose, an analysis of what is wrong, and a plan to put it right. Which sounds basic, really. Almost rude in its simplicity. Like telling a pilot that the plane ought to have wings. Yet that is exactly the charge: Britain has problems everywhere, from the economy and NHS to immigration, housing, taxation, public services and national morale, but the government often feels less like leadership and more like a damp spreadsheet being slowly explained by a committee.We discuss whether Starmer is the worst prime minister in history, or merely one of the greyest. Polling has been brutal, with satisfaction ratings collapsing and voters struggling to describe what the government is actually for. Not what it is against. Not what it inherited. Not what it promises to review, reset, consult on, or deliver after a full strategic assessment. What is it for?From a Christian angle, Proverbs says, “Where there is no vision, the people perish.” That does not always look dramatic. Sometimes a nation perishes by inches: higher bills, fewer children, weaker communities, exhausted institutions, and leaders who speak fluent management but somehow never say anything memorable.A sharp, sardonic, Bible-laced look at Tony Blair, Keir Starmer, Labour, leadership, political failure, and the strange misery of being governed by a risk assessment in a suit.

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Is Tony Blair right to say Starmer has no coherent plan?

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