Prime Minister Sir Keir Starmer will deliver a keynote address to the annual conference of his centre-left Labour Party at ~14:00BST (09:00ET, 15:00CET) Livestream here. The speech is seen as an important one for the PM as he is set to remain under intense political pressure in the short and medium term:
- The latest opinion polling from Ipsos shows Starmer with the lowest personal satisfaction rating of any British prime minister since the outlet began conducting surveys in 1977. The PM's net rating for September is -66, with the previous recorded lows coming from Conservative prime ministers, Rishi Sunak (-59, April 2024) and John Major (-59, August 1994).
- The upcoming budget announcement on 26 November is expected to raise the UK's tax burden further from already post-war highs. MNI's Markets team have assessed some of the potential options for the chancellor ahead of the announcement. Higher taxes without demonstrable improvements in public services could spur further shifts in support towards Nigel Farage's right-wing populist Reform UK.
- The next electoral test for the PM and Labour comes in May 2026. Local elections will take place across swathes of England in addition to elections to the Scottish and Welsh parliaments. Poor results in these contests, particularly the loss of first place in Wales and control of cities in the Midlands and northern England to Reform UK could spark a leadership challenge against Starmer.