In defence of Keir Starmer

Originally published by The Spectator on 24/02/2021.

Now that we've finally heard Boris Johnson's 'roadmap' out of lockdown, a key question remains: when will we see a return to politics as normal? It might not be the most pressing concern for most people, but for Keir Starmer and his supporters, it matters. Only when this happens can Labour start making some serious assaults on the Tories stubborn poll-lead.

As a Labour member of ten or so years I want Starmer to have a chance to shine. After all, it is not like my party has been blessed with great leaders in recent years. Much of my time on the doorstep during the 2010 and 2015 general elections involved shying away from talk about leadership. When I wasn't fending off these comments, I was being battered around the head with questions about selling gold or brotherly back-stabbing. I wasn't alone: Labour friends of mine say this was an experience which only got much worse under Jeremy Corbyn.

So I was very glad when Starmer won the leadership, and happier still when the media heaped praise on him. Not only was he 'forensic' but also 'prime-ministerial'. You can imagine my excitement at the prospect of canvassing under a popular leader. What a novelty! Of course, any door knocking would be contingent on the lifting of lockdown restrictions, but I could wait. Well, I thought I could. It turns out it’s too late now. Keir Starmer just hasn’t got it, or at least that appears to be the verdict from many political commentators.

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Is China’s hidden hand behind the Myanmar coup?

Originally published by The Spectator on 04/02/2021.

Was China involved in the coup in Myanmar? It seems unlikely, but that does not mean Beijing is blameless.

As satisfying as it might be to point the finger at an omnipotent and scheming superpower, the reality is rather more complicated. After all, for all the shenanigans associated with China's wolf-warrior diplomacy, Beijing is not as reckless or revisionist in its ambitions as it was back in the mid-to-late-60s.

Back then, amidst the chaos of the cultural revolution, Mao set about spreading his revolutionary thought abroad. Myanmar was firmly in his sights.

In Southeast Asia, Beijing supplied communist guerrillas with money, weapons and training in an effort to instigate civil wars. In Myanmar, the ethnic-Chinese minority was also mobilised. On the streets of Yangon, they wore with pride badges of the Great Helmsman and brandished copies of the Little Red Book. The result was bloodshed. Not that this bothered Mao; he believed his country was leading a righteous Third World front against American imperialism and Soviet revisionism. Even if it was a rather lonely crusade.

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