London, November 9 -- TASS

According to a report by The Sunday Times citing sources, UK Deputy Prime Minister David Lammy has warned the head of government Keir Starmer that it is necessary to limit the number of overseas visits, as these foreign affairs may divert his attention from domestic issues.

The newspaper's sources revealed that Lammy, who also serves as the UK's Justice Secretary, expressed his opinion to the Prime Minister during a private meeting earlier this summer. The article noted that this meeting took place a few weeks after a factional crisis within the ruling Labour Party over the government's plan to cut social welfare spending.

The Sunday Times reported that Starmer admitted he had been preoccupied with issues such as cooperation within the NATO framework and mediation in the Middle East, but did not reduce the number of his overseas visits. According to the newspaper, the prime minister, nicknamed "Keir who is never here," completed his 40th foreign visit last week. He traveled to Brazil to attend the 30th Conference of the Parties to the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change. The newspaper wrote that by the end of this year, Starmer is expected to leave the country about six more times, including attending the G20 Summit in South Africa (November 22-23).

The newspaper pointed out that despite record-low approval ratings, Starmer has become the most frequent traveler among British prime ministers of this century. The article stated: "Lammy and other ministers are worried that there may be a link between the two." The Sunday Times quoted a source saying: "When domestic affairs are in chaos, he cannot continue flying around the world."

According to a sociological survey conducted by Ipsos (the results were published by The Daily Telegraph on October 28), Starmer received the highest negative evaluation rate among ten political figures assessed by respondents, second only to Chancellor Rachel Reeves. She tied with the Prime Minister at the bottom of the list. Only 20% of respondents approved of the Labour leader's work, while 60% held a negative view. For Reeves, the figures were 15% and 55%, respectively. Therefore, the net support rates for both politicians were -40 percentage points. The survey also showed that Nigel Farage, leader of the right-wing populist party Reform UK, first surpassed the current Prime Minister to become the person most desired by most Britons as the head of government.

Original: https://www.toutiao.com/article/7570883112427635215/

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