Keir Starmer’s popularity is declining in Scotland

Once upon a time, Sir Keir Starmer was Scottish Labour’s greatest asset. In the dark days following the party’s 2019 general election drubbing, the party in Scotland remained an unlikely redoubt of Corbynism, languishing in the polls under the uninspiring leadership of trade unionist Richard Leonard. In such a context, Starmer’s election as Labour leader in March 2020 was a boon to the Scottish party, which many considered was in terminal decline. 

As well as manoeuvring the ineffectual Leonard out of office and replacing him with the modernising Anas Sarwar, Starmer himself also proved an immediate hit with Scottish voters. In October 2020, for instance, Ipsos recorded an approval rating of 16 per cent for Starmer, with almost half of Scots who expressed an opinion saying they were satisfied with his leadership. Among Scottish voters, only the seemingly untouchable Nicola Sturgeon – at the peak of her pandemic pinnacle – was more popular.