‘I’m Very Happy To Write For The Sun’: Labour Leader Keir Starmer Defends U-Turn When Confronted By Reporter
Labour leader Keir Starmer was forced to defend his decision to work with The Sun on Thursday, just one week ahead of his party’s conference in Liverpool, a city where the newspaper faces targeted boycotts and is largely despised.
Starmer was asked to justify his collaboration when challenged in an interview with ITV political correspondent Andrew Misra.
“You promised you wouldn’t give interviews to The Sun in your 2020 leadership campaign, can you tell the people of Liverpool why you continue to write for a paper that is widely boycotted in the city?” Misra asked.
“I have to make sure that what we have to say is communicated to as many people as possible in the time that we’ve got available,” Starmer said. “That is why I’m very happy to work with The Sun, to write for The Sun, to do interviews with The Sun.”
This new position represents a complete u-turn in stance for Starmer, who sought to rally Liverpudlian anger against The Sun for political clout during his 2020 leadership campaign. At a speech in Liverpool, Starmer’s opinion seemed clear as he told a room of supporters: “This city has been wounded by the media, The Sun. I certainly won’t be giving an interview to The Sun during the course of this campaign.”
A not so clever caveat: “…during the course of this campaign.” And with that campaign complete, Starmer wasted no time in starting his courtship.
As soon as October 2021 he had written an article for the newspaper and in July 2023 attended a midsummer party at Spencer House thrown by Rupert Murdoch, founder and owner of News UK and The Sun.
The Sun, a pro-Conservative tabloid, boasts one of the nation’s largest circulations and consistently courts controversy. The city of Liverpool, however, has held significant animosity towards the newspaper since the tragic events of the Hillsborough Disaster in 1989, where 96 Liverpool football fans tragically lost their lives and 766 were injured due to a human stampede.
The Sun, then, published a front-page article, “The Truth,” accusing Liverpool fans of causing the 96 deaths. Three sub-headlines followed: “some fans picked pockets of victims”, “fans urinated on the brave cops” and “some fans beat up PC giving kiss of life.” The inflammatory front page, published as fans grieved, has not been forgotten.
The feeling is strong even today. In 2017, Liverpool FC prohibited Sun journalists from entering the club’s ground, Anfield, barring them from matches and press events. The feeling is so strong that city rivals Everton FC’s Goodison Park stadium enacted a similar ban shortly thereafter.
As the Labour Party conference kicks off in Liverpool next week, Starmer should not expect that his answer has satisfied anyone.
