Starmer’s Power Grab Three Ways Britain Is Slipping To Autocracy

One of socialism’s oldest flaws is its instinctive belief that the state knows best — and the public cannot be trusted. But Keir Starmer is now pushing well beyond standard left-wing paternalism and into something darker. Britain is beginning to look less like a mature democracy and more like a banana republic run for the convenience of those in power.

First: cancelling elections.
Last week Starmer announced plans to delay local elections in 63 areas — a move the Electoral Commission itself described as “unprecedented.” That comes on top of four mayoral contests already kicked down the road until May 2028.

As Professor Sir John Curtis bluntly put it, Labour is “in deep electoral trouble.” Starmer knows his party is staring at electoral wipe-out across large parts of the country. Rather than face voters, he’s chosen the classic authoritarian response: cancel the vote.

That is how regimes behave when they fear the people. Any Conservative councillor who colludes in this democratic outrage should immediately lose the whip. Belief in elections is not optional — it is the foundation of democracy.

Second: silencing scrutiny.

Starmer has quietly scrapped the daily Downing Street afternoon briefing for journalists, a last-minute move condemned by the Society of Editors for undermining democratic accountability.

Dictators dislike questions. They dislike challenge. They prefer to control the narrative — which explains the Orwellian claim that abolishing press briefings will somehow “better serve journalists” and “better inform the public.” Utter nonsense.

History is littered with regimes that lied brazenly while reality collapsed around them. Saddam Hussein’s infamous “Comical Ali” springs to mind — insisting victory was at hand while enemy troops advanced in full view.

Third: lying to the public — constantly.

From Angela Rayner on tax, Rachel Reeves on her CV and housing policy, to Starmer’s evasions over what he knew about Peter Mandelson, dishonesty has become routine. The Prime Minister even claims Labour hasn’t broken its promise not to raise taxes on working people — despite the evidence landing in voters’ payslips.

Like all authoritarians, Starmer shows contempt for the public. He assumes voters are either too dim to notice or too powerless to resist.

That mindset explains his assault on jury trials. To socialists, ordinary people cannot be trusted to deliver justice — decisions must be handed to state-approved judges. The excuse? Court backlogs. The reality? Less power for citizens, more for the state.

Starmer boasts about being a lawyer, yet his government increasingly behaves like it is above the law. Mendacity and power preservation now trump principle. One can only imagine what discussions are already taking place behind closed doors about how to delay the next general election — naturally, “for our own good.”

Banana republics always start this way!!