A big win changes the facts. So, what is our new reality? As the Keir Starmer ascendancy boots up its laptops, what style of national leadership is coming? These first days in power have felt, already, distinctively different. There is an atmosphere, a mood, a “something” with a sharp, clear smell that is hard to describe.
The shock of the new is embedded in Starmer’s unflorid warnings of “tough decisions”, “raw honesty” and being “restless for change”. It’s visible in the calm demeanour of an older man comfortable with authority, who speaks unselfconsciously of “my” government pressing ahead with “my missions”. Many around him have noted how much more relaxed he seems now he’s in Downing Street.
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