Tony Blair has launched a major attack on Keir Starmer, Andy Burnham and Wes Streeting, warning that Labour risks losing the next election if it abandons the political centre. In a long essay published on Tuesday night, the former prime minister argued that Labour’s future depends on a “radical but sensible” shift in policy rather than attempts to force Starmer out of office. He said leadership change alone would not solve the party’s problems unless it was matched by a clear debate about direction.
Blair said Labour has no coherent plan for governing in a fast-changing world and claimed the party won power in 2024 largely because voters were tired of the Conservatives, not because they were convinced by Labour’s own agenda. He said the government is operating from a traditional soft-left position that sits comfortably inside the party’s usual instincts, but that this leaves it badly placed to win a second term.
He urged ministers to cut welfare spending, reform the benefits system and abandon restrictions on oil and gas licensing. Blair also called for the government to remove barriers to AI-led business growth, accelerate planning reform and repair relations with Donald Trump’s White House. He said Labour’s current policies on employment rights, net zero, tax changes and non-dom rules have created obstacles for business rather than support.
The former prime minister also criticised Labour’s approach to foreign policy. He argued that the UK needs to remain a trusted ally of the United States and said cuts to international aid have weakened Britain’s influence abroad. He described attempts to renegotiate relations with Europe as unrealistic while the country remains in a weak position, saying Britain is not currently in a strong enough place to reopen major talks with the EU.
Blair’s intervention is likely to trigger a strong backlash inside Labour, where his legacy remains divisive. A senior Labour source accused him of abandoning social democratic values and suggested that his ideas no longer reflect the concerns of ordinary voters. Blair, however, dismissed internal calls to remove Starmer before settling on a clear policy direction, saying it would be irresponsible to push for a leadership change without first deciding what the party stands for.
He also criticised Burnham’s and Streeting’s political instincts, saying both had embraced ideas on taxation and spending that serious governments have rejected. Blair argued that moving left while losing votes to the right is a persistent illusion, and said such a strategy would be especially dangerous in government.
The former leader concluded that Britain’s international standing has weakened sharply over the past two decades. He said the country is no longer the same major force in Europe, with the United States or in global development that it once was, and warned that restoring that status will require leadership, discipline and a clear national plan.
