Starmer’s medicine could be hard for Labour to swallow. Tory voters will lap it up

No landmark leader’s speech guarantees election victory. But Keir Starmer passed his audition to present himself as a creditable PM-in-waiting, writes Andrew Grice

Sir Keir Starmer making his keynote speech at the Labour Party Conference in Liverpool (PA Wire)

Keir Starmer’s speech to the Labour Party conference was his audition to be a credible prime minister-in-waiting – and he passed the test.

His target audience was first-time Conservative voters in 2019 and the many “don’t-knows” who have had enough of the Tories but not yet moved into the Labour column. There wasn’t much new policy, and certainly not the “retail offer” on which Labour will fight next year’s general election, which disappointed many Labour figures.

Instead, it was broad brushstrokes. The only surprise came when a heckler invaded the platform at the start, throwing glitter over a shocked Starmer, who quickly turned potential disaster to his advantage by citing Labour’s transition from a party of protest to one of power.