British Prime Minister Keir Starmer praised Muslims as ‘the face of modern Britain’, adding that they are ‘a success story when it comes to diversity’ during a Ramadan iftar ceremony held in Westminster Hall on Tuesday, 3 March.
Addressing hundreds of Muslim MPs, community leaders, activists, and guests, Starmer also commented on the US–Israeli joint military operation against Iran, during which Supreme Leader Ali Khamenei was eliminated. The British prime minister—despite the fact that one of the first targets of the Iranian regime’s retaliatory strikes was a British military base in Cyprus—quickly clarified that London had not been involved in the initial strikes and would not participate in offensive action in the future.
He went on to thank Muslim communities for their ‘immense contribution’ to the country, highlighting what he described as a ‘very difficult time’ for Muslims in the UK due to the ‘pain of the conflict in Gaza’ and the ‘suffering of Palestinians’. Starmer added that he was ‘horrified by the wave of hatred’ directed towards British Muslims, attributing it to ‘far-right rhetoric and misinformation’.
Starmer’s remarks—particularly his cautious comments on Iran and his description of Muslims as the ‘face of modern Britain’—sparked significant backlash on social media, with some users describing the prime minister as an ‘utter disgrace’. One X account, operating under the name Basil the Great and followed by around 300,000 users, accused Starmer of being ‘afraid’ of Muslims and of continuously ‘pandering’ to them. Former aide to Margaret Thatcher, Nile Gardiner also described Starmer as a ‘disgrace’.
Numerous videos circulated on social media showing angry reactions from Britons to the prime minister’s remarks, which many interpreted as an attempt to court Muslim voters. Such concerns have been amplified by recent electoral developments, with the Green Party increasingly attracting Muslim voters who previously supported Labour. This trend was highlighted in the recent by-election in Gorton and Denton, which was won by Green candidate Hannah Spencer, while the Labour candidate finished only third. By comparison, before the last general election, roughly two-thirds of the UK’s approximately four million Muslim citizens indicated that they intended to vote for Labour.
Right-wing political commentator Tommy Robinson delivered particularly harsh criticism of Starmer’s Ramadan remarks. ‘Keir Starmer has demonstrated large amounts of cuckery in his time, but this takes the biscuit,’ Robinson wrote in a post on X, interpreting the prime minister’s statement on Iran as a message to Muslims that ‘Britain didn’t help their allies against Iran.’ ‘Literally bent over for votes,’ he concluded.
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