Following Labour’s worst defeat since 1935, a leadership election to replace Jeremy Corbyn is expected to take place next month.

Sir Keir Starmer the Shadow Brexit Secretary. He is the former Director of Public Prosecutions and currently MP for Holborn and St Pancras. He is widely suspected to run for leadership of the party. He would be a centrist candidate. It is reported that former Prime Minister Gordon Brown would help with his campaign. Declared candidates include Shadow Foreign Secretary, Emily Thornberry and MP for Norwich South, Clive Lewis. Rebecca Long Bailey is also expected to run for the party’s leadership. She is the favourite of the current leadership.

On Wednesday 13th November 2019, Sir Keir visited the Communication Workers Union building in Wimbledon. He made a speech and held an audience with local constituents.

You can find out what he said here:

https://www.surreycomet.co.uk/youngreporter/18071827.sir-keir-starmer-shadow-brexit-secretary-gives-talk-wimbledon-hussain-zaidi/

Following this, I got the chance to ask Sir Keir some questions.

Sir Keir believes that young people should get involved in politics. He “would say get involved” in politics, and that young people “should get involved really early, whether it’s at council level or even school level”. He believes that young people should “express [their] views and challenge people like [Sir Keir] to listen [to them], and enjoy themselves.''

I also got the chance to ask him his views on Brexit. Sir Keir is the Shadow Brexit Secretary. Many people, including allies of Jeremy Corbyn have blamed the Labour’s indecision on Brexit for their poor performance in the general election. I asked him what Labour could offer to leave voters which no-one else can. He responded by saying that “there are two [reasons] above all else, firstly the chance to vote for a deal [in a second referendum], get it over the line, and leave” and secondly, “The other thing, [which] I think is more profound, is to say we’ve actually heard what you were trying to tell us in 2016, about the state of the nation. He believed that Labour would have “done something about it” if they had got elected. He believes that when people voted leave in 2016, they “said that the political and economic system isn’t working”. He believes that “they were right about that, and [politicians] owe it to the people to make those changes.''

Here is a link to a video of Sir Keir telling Hussain how young people should get involved in politics:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=JD1QnO4X8cI

Here is a full transcript:

What would you say to young people who want to get involved in politics?

“Firstly I would say get involved, [secondly] I would say we should have votes at 16 and 17 and three, I think that people should get involved really early, whether it’s at council level or even school level, like school councils and et cetera, but just get involved and express your views and challenge people like me to listen and enjoy themselves”.

On the single issue of Brexit, what can you offer leave voters which no-one else can?

“What can we offer the leave voters; I think two things above all else, firstly the chance to vote for a deal, get it over the line, and leave. If that's what you want, that’s what will happen, and I think we should the implementing legislation in place before the referendum so if the vote is to leave on the deal, we leave. We don’t then enter further negotiations, we don’t have further procedures in Parliament, we actually leave. So I would see us introduce the legislation for a deal, getting it through Parliament with the only thing missing being the date it comes into force. The other thing, [which]I think is more profound, is to say we’ve actually heard what you were trying to tell us in 2016, about the state of the nation. We are going to do something about it. [This is] because I think when people said that the political and economic system isn’t working, for me’, they were right about that, and we owe it to people to make those changes. I hope that's quite a powerful response to what they have to say.”

This article was originally published on the 31st December 2019 at https://www.thisislocallondon.co.uk/youngreporter/18129465.interview-sir-keir-starmer-hussain-zaidi/