PM now facing 'anxious' mood in country - Blair

BRITAIN’S standing in the world has diminished over the last decade and Sir Keir Starmer has come to power at a time of “anxiety” for the nation, Sir Tony Blair has said of his Labour successor as prime minister.

The ex-PM’s warning comes after Sir Keir claimed “things will get worse before they get better” in a speech ahead of what he said would be a “painful” Budget statement on October 30.

In a wide-ranging interview with the BBC’s Amol Rajan due to be broadcast on Wednesday night, Sir Tony – the last Labour leader who won a general election – was asked if he thought the new Prime Minister had a “mandate” to govern, or if his majority in this summer’s poll was due more to apathy with the Tories.

“Yeah, I think he’s got a mandate, of course. I mean, I think what you’re saying, not in these words, is that the zeitgeist is different,” Sir Tony replied.