UK: Starmer rules out online petition calling for new general election

UK Prime Minister, Keir Starmer has rejected calls for an early general election after a petition demanding a second vote gathered over two million signatures.

The petition, launched over the weekend, argues for a fresh election just four months after Labour’s landslide victory, alleging the party has “gone back on the promises they laid out in the lead-up to the last election.”

By Monday mid-morning, the petition had surged past two million signatures and continued to climb.

Despite the growing support, the prime minister dismissed the idea of another vote.

Speaking to ITV’s Good Morning Britain, Starmer said, “Look, I remind myself that very many people didn’t vote Labour at the last election. I’m not surprised that many of them want a rerun. That isn’t how our system works. There will be plenty of people who didn’t want us in, in the first place. So, what my focus is on is the decisions that I have to make every day.”

According to UK parliamentary rules, petitions with more than 10,000 signatures are considered for debate, and those exceeding 100,000 prompts a formal government response.

However, the possibility of an early election remains slim, as Labour commands a substantial parliamentary majority, and the power to request a dissolution of Parliament rests solely with the prime minister.

The petition has drawn support from political figures critical of Labour, including Conservative MP Andrew Griffith and Reform UK’s deputy leader Richard Tice, who urged their followers to sign it.

Tech billionaire Elon Musk also amplified the petition’s visibility by sharing a post on X (formerly Twitter) and commenting, “Wow.” Musk has previously criticised Starmer, branding him a “two-tier Keir” over alleged inconsistencies in how law enforcement treats communities of different racial backgrounds.

Meanwhile, concerns over the petition’s integrity have arisen as some X users circulated UK postcodes to enable non-British individuals to sign, circumventing the requirement that signatories be UK voters.

The government has faced mounting criticism for policies such as inheritance tax on farms, reductions in winter fuel payments, increases in employers’ national insurance, and the introduction of VAT on private school fees.

Public sentiment toward Labour remains lukewarm. An Ipsos survey revealed that only 28% of respondents view the party favourably, while 49% hold an unfavourable opinion.

Labour’s performance since coming to power was rated at just 4 out of 10, with 56% of Britons believing the country is headed in the wrong direction.

Additionally, two in five respondents reported being financially worse off since Labour’s ascent to power.

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