Keir Starmer defied the doubters, but his legacy is a Labour Party at risk

Where Northern Ireland was concerned Sir Keir Starmer enjoyed one big advantage denied to his four immediate predecessors.

Australian PM lauds Starmer’s achievements in office

His demise is, of course, a reflection of an unprecedented era, one in which voter loyalties were atomised, a two-party hegemony fractured into five, and for the first time ever Labour faced a coherent threat on its left as well as its right.

Sir Keir Starmer delivered one of the Labour Party’s greatest electoral triumphs, but then led it to a shattering defeat, which left MPs fearing for the future of the country.