6 days ago
- Business
- South China Morning Post
Starmer's statesmanship abroad no substitute for vision at home in Britain
Prime Minister Keir Starmer's Britain is a nation in slow drift, outwardly composed but inwardly unravelling. His
resolute backing of Ukraine and vocal
commitment to European security have restored a measure of Britain's standing on the world stage.
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However, this diplomatic poise conceals a glaring domestic void. Behind the polished speeches and choreographed handshakes lies a country buckling under stagnation. Its economic pulse is weakening, its public services are fraying and its faith in Westminster is eroding by the day.
Not long ago, Brexiteers
promised prosperity and
a golden future , but for millions of Britons the reality is rising poverty and shrinking opportunity. More than 14 million people in the UK, including more than 4 million children, were living in poverty in 2022-23 – that is 1 in 5 people in the country.
Britain's economy contracted unexpectedly for a second consecutive month in May, while inflation stood at 3.4 per cent that month – up from 2 per cent a year ago and high enough to keep food prices elevated and energy bills burdensome. Household budgets were already strained by years of austerity and
Brexit-induced economic dislocation , and now they are stretched to the breaking point. The cost of simply getting by has become an impossible luxury for many.
Youth unemployment reveals the crisis in even starker terms. According to the Office for National Statistics, 14.3 per cent of under-25s were out of work and actively seeking employment, more than double Germany's youth unemployment rate of 6.6 per cent. Add rising crime rates and the public's disapproval of the Labour government skyrocketing, and one finds a recipe for democratic disaster.
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