Sir Keir Starmer has enlisted the help of German Chancellor Friedrich Merz and French President Emmanuel Macron in his battle against Nigel Farage‘s Reform UK.
The Prime Minister revealed the trio of ‘centrist’ politicians recently discussed how to take on ‘populists’ such as Mr Farage.
The leaders of the UK, Germany and France met for dinner in Berlin last month to discuss European security, Ukraine and the Middle East.
But Sir Keir has now said their talks also focused on their shared domestic challenges and battles with both far-Right parties and hard-Left parties.
Mr Merz is continuing to face a challenge from Alternative für Deutschland (AfD), while Mr Macron is fighting against National Rally and France Unbowed.
In an interview with The Economist, Sir Keir said there was ‘a pattern emerging’ across the Continent and ‘we discuss this as European leaders’.
‘If you look at the situation here in the UK, it is undoubtedly true that the next election is likely to be Labour versus Reform rather than Labour versus Conservatives,’ the PM added.
‘So that will be different to the elections we’ve had so far against a right-wing proposition. We’ve not had that in this country before. You can see that in France, in Germany, and in other countries.’
Sir Keir Starmer has enlisted the help of Germany’s Friedrich Merz and France’s Emmanuel Macron (pictured together in Berlin last month) in his battle against Nigel Farage’s Reform UK
The Prime Minister revealed the trio of ‘centrist’ politicians recently discussed how to take on ‘populists’ such as Mr Farage
Sir Keir claimed the ‘centre-Right has sort of fallen away’ and said most people in Britain hadn’t seen an improvement in their living standards since the 2008 financial crash.
‘They’ve seen a deterioration in their public services, and they don’t feel better off,’ he added.
‘And so what’s being tested here in the UK and in France and in Germany is whether mainstream politics, centrist parties can deliver against the challenges of the moment.’
The PM said himself, Mr Merz and Mr Macron were ‘facing the same challenges or versions of the same challenges, and we do talk about it, along with other leaders, but we do talk about it’.
‘I was at dinner with Chancellor Merz and President Macron just two weeks ago in Berlin, a private dinner,’ he continued.
‘There is an absolute consensus that we need to get our economies working and growing, absolute emphasis on the cost of living and why that is so important.
‘This is probably the number one issue in the United Kingdom. Same will be true in France and in Germany.’
In an attack on Reform, Sir Keir claimed Mr Farage’s party would ‘tear our country apart’ if they won the next general election.
The PM also suggested Mr Farage, if he entered Downing Street, would weaken Europe’s support for Ukraine against Russia’s invasion.
‘Obviously there’s a huge amount of coverage in the news on Ukraine and the delicacy of the situation there, with the real danger that Russia has been aggressive for four years now, and if Russia gains from that, it destabilises the whole of Europe,’ Sir Keir said.
‘This is the biggest moment for Europe for decades at least when it comes to conflict.
‘The question then is are you on the side of Ukrainians or on the side of the Russians? And what we’ve got with Reform is a party that is pro-Putin or Putin-neutral.’
The PM added: ‘The UK and France, and now Germany are leading the coalition of the willing.
‘That is about 35 countries that are there drawing up plans to help defend and secure the peace in Ukraine.
‘There is no way on earth that the UKcould be part of that configuration with Nigel Farage as prime minister.’
Reform rejected Sir Keir’s claims and pointed to how Mr Farage recently vowed to shoot down Russian jets if they entered NATO airspace.
The Reform leader has also said he would send British troops to Ukraine as part of a United Nations peacekeeping force, rebuked Donald Trump over his proposed Russia-Ukraine peace deal, and called Vladimir Putin a ‘very bad dude’.
In his interview, Sir Keir highlighted how Nathan Gill, Reform’s former leader in Wales, was sentenced to 10-and-a-half years in prison after admitting taking bribes for pro-Russia interviews and speeches.
The PM branded Reform ‘a pro-Russian party that couldn’t play a meaningful part in NATO’.
He added they ‘couldn’t possibly secure the peace in Ukraine, would not be able to work with European partners because they wouldn’t trust a party that is Putin-positive and has pro-Russian links’.
