If nothing else, Sir Keir Starmer is a stolid fellow, rarely betraying a political vulnerability in his own countenance. Reportedly, he sleeps well and is comfortable in the job. If the prospect of a succession of political beatings over the coming months disturbs him, he is showing no signs of it.
There may be more strikes in the public sector, inflation seems set to remain stubbornly high, unemployment is creeping up, welfare reform is as distant as ever, the asylum hotels are full, and economic growth, the supposed defining mission of his administration, will be minimal. The round of elections in local authorities, the Scottish parliament and the Senedd look set to be humiliating.
