Keir Starmer under pressure to 'show strength' in Middle East as PM attempts to rebrand as 'global statesman' over Iran

George Bunn
Thu, 09 Apr 2026 11:21:57 +0000

Sir Keir Starmer is facing demands to demonstrate strength during his Gulf tour as Labour strategists work to reposition the Prime Minister as a "global statesman" ahead of crucial May elections.

The PM is currently visiting the region following discussions with Saudi Crown Prince Mohammed Bin Salman, seeking to reassure allies and restore confidence in shipping through the Strait of Hormuz.

Shadow Foreign Secretary Dame Priti Patel urged the Prime Minister to take a tougher stance while in the region.

"While he is in the Gulf, Starmer must show some strength and ensure our partners in the UAE do not keep Brits locked up simply for filming their surroundings," she told The Telegraph.

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Labour insiders have indicated they anticipate a leadership challenge should the party suffer significant losses on May 7, when over 5,000 council seats face election alongside the Senedd and Holyrood votes.

Conservative leader Kemi Badenoch launched a scathing attack on the Prime Minister's defence credentials, branding him "all mouth and no trousers" as he toured the Gulf despite having no involvement in the US-Iran ceasefire negotiations.

Mrs Badenoch accused Sir Keir of posturing internationally while failing to rearm Britain, claiming the long-delayed Defence Investment Plan remains unpublished because ministers have "no idea" how to fund their target of spending three per cent of GDP on defence.

"At a time of war in Europe and war in the Middle East, at a time when those conflicts are affecting every family across Britain, at a time when Britain's place in the world is in flux, our Government literally doesn't have a plan," she said.

Foreign Secretary Yvette Cooper expressed serious concern over escalating Israeli military action in Lebanon, describing the strikes as "deeply damaging" and pressing for the country's inclusion in the ceasefire agreement.

"We want it extended to cover Lebanon, because otherwise that will destabilise the whole region, and also it's just the right thing to do," the Foreign Secretary told Times Radio.

Iran's deputy foreign minister Saeed Khatibzadeh characterised the Israeli attacks as an "intentional grave violation of the ceasefire", warning Washington: "You cannot have a cake and eat it at the same time."

The fragile truce appeared under strain after Tehran closed the Strait of Hormuz again on Wednesday night in response to the Israeli strikes on Hezbollah positions.

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Defence Secretary John Healey defended the Government's decision against deploying all British military assets to the Middle East, arguing such a move would not serve the national interest.

"When a crisis erupts noisily and dangerously, as it has done in the Middle East, I understand people questioning why all UK military assets and personnel have not been deployed to deal with it, but that is not in Britain's national interest," Mr Healey said.

He warned that Vladimir Putin remained the primary security threat to both the UK and Nato, suggesting the Russian President "would have wanted us to be distracted" by events in the Gulf.

Mr Healey also revealed that Moscow was likely providing intelligence and drone training to Iranian forces, with Russian tactics in Ukraine now "reflected" in Iran's regional attacks.

Labour backbenchers have rallied behind the Prime Minister's handling of the crisis, with one telling GB News: "Keir's position is getting a lot of support from both the PLP and even more so among party members."

Party strategists plan to draw clear distinctions between Sir Keir's approach and the positions taken by opposition parties during doorstep campaigning.

"There is a contrast there that we will be drawing on, between what we are doing about Iran and what the Greens and Reform would do," one backbencher explained.

Labour has also deployed dozens of social media graphics highlighting the Prime Minister's stance on the conflict, with clips of Sir Keir discussing the war receiving hundreds of thousands of views on Instagram.