Keir Starmer says he understands what ‘anchors' Donald Trump
He said: 'We are different people and we've got different political backgrounds and leanings, but we do have a good relationship and that comes from a numbers of places.
'I think I do understand what anchors the president, what he really cares about.
'For both of us, we really care about family and there's a point of connection there.'
Sir Keir said in the interview to mark a year in office he has a 'good personal relationship' with Mr Trump, and revealed the first time they spoke was after the then-presidential candidate was shot at a campaign rally in July last year.
He said Mr Trump had returned the phone call a few days after the Prime Minister's brother Nick had died on Boxing Day.
Sir Keir said he secretly visited his 60-year-old brother before and after the general election during his cancer treatment.
Sir Keir Starmer being interviewed by Nick Robinson (Jeff Overs/BBC/PA)
He said: 'It's really hard to lose your brother to cancer. I wanted fiercely to protect him.
'And that's why both before the election and after the election, I went secretly to see him at home, secretly to see him in hospital.
'He was in intensive care for a long time.'
Addressing recent political turmoil, Sir Keir said he will always 'carry the can' as leader after coming under fire over a climbdown on welfare reforms and that he would 'always take responsibility' when asked questions.
'When things go well… the leader gets the plaudits, but when things don't go well, it is really important that the leader carries the can – and that's what I will always do.'
Sir Keir also backed Rachel Reeves and said she would be Chancellor 'for a very long time to come', after the politician was visibly tearful in the House of Commons on Wednesday following a U-turn to welfare reform plans that put an almost £5 billion black hole in her plans.
"It was a personal matter."
Sir Keir Starmer has told @bbcnickrobinson that Rachel Reeves' tears at PMQs had "nothing to do with politics".
The prime minister has backed Rachel Reeves to remain as chancellor in an interview on BBC Radio 4's Political Thinking.#R4Today
— BBC Radio 4 Today (@BBCr4today) July 3, 2025
Ms Reeves said it was a 'personal matter' which had upset her ahead of Prime Minister's Questions.
The Government had seen off the threat of a major Commons defeat over the legislation on Tuesday after shelving plans to restrict eligibility for the personal independence payment, the main disability benefit in England.
Sir Keir said he cannot 'pretend… that wasn't a tough day', and stressed the welfare system 'isn't working for the people that matter to me'.
'In the world that isn't politics, it is commonplace for people to look again at a situation and judge it by the circumstances as they now are and make a decision accordingly,' he said of the changes.
'And that is common sense, it's pragmatic, and it's a reflection of who I am.
'It was important that we took our party with us, that we got it right.
'And Labour politicians come into public life because they care deeply about these issues.
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Glasgow Times
43 minutes ago
- Glasgow Times
Judgment due in Palestine Action court bid for temporary block on terror ban
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Scottish Sun
2 hours ago
- Scottish Sun
French cops FINALLY drag small boat packed with migrants back to shore… with BBC crew conveniently on hand to film it
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Western Telegraph
2 hours ago
- Western Telegraph
What is a proscribed organisation?
On Thursday the House of Lords backed proscribing the group under the Terrorism Act 2000 without a vote. But what is proscription and what does it mean for an organisation to be proscribed? – What is a proscribed organisation? According to the Government website, under the Terrorism Act 2000, the Home Secretary may proscribe an organisation if they believe it is concerned in terrorism, and it is proportionate to do so. Yvette Cooper is Home Secretary (Stefan Rousseau/PA) Under the law this means the organisation commits or takes part in acts of terrorism, prepares for terrorism, promotes or encourages terrorism (including the unlawful glorification of terrorism), or is otherwise concerned in terrorism. Once an organisation is proscribed it is illegal to join or show support for it. – What does terrorism mean when talking about proscription? As defined in the Act, terrorism means the use or threat of action which involves serious violence against a person, involves serious damage to property, endangers a person's life (other than that of the person committing the act), creates a serious risk to the health or safety of the public or section of the public or is designed seriously to interfere with or seriously to disrupt an electronic system. The definition also sets out that the use or threat of such action must be designed to influence the government or an international governmental organisation or to intimidate the public or a section of the public. Additionally, it must be undertaken for the purpose of advancing a political, religious, racial or ideological cause. – What factors are taken into consideration when determining whether proscription is proportionate? According to the Government website, the Home Secretary will take into account the nature and scale of an organisation's activities, the specific threat that it poses to the country, and the specific threat that it poses to British nationals overseas. Protesters outside the Royal Courts of Justice amid a hearing over whether the proscribing of Palestine Action should be temporarily blocked (Lucy North/PA) The Home Secretary will also consider the extent of the organisation's presence in the UK, and the need to support other members of the international community in the global fight against terrorism. – Which other groups have been designated as proscribed organisations? There are currently 81 international terrorist groups proscribed under the Terrorism Act 2000 and 14 organisations in Northern Ireland proscribed under previous legislation. The most recent proscription orders concerned Hamas, the Wagner Group, Hizb ut Tahrir and Terrorgram. Other organisations on the list include Islamic State of Iraq and the Levant (Isil), and various aliases, and al Qaida.
