Britain needed to rediscover its identity, PM Keir Starmer

London: Newly elected UK Prime Minister Keir Starmer on Friday said Britain needed to rediscover its identity and undergo a wider reset, in his first words outside his new office at 10 Downing Street, promising to fight to restore trust in politics and serve all voters.

Greeted in Downing Street by a large crowd of cheering aides and supporters after formally accepting King Charles’s invitation to become prime minister, Starmer’s first address made the case for moderate politics to repair voters’ broken trust.

“It is surely clear to everyone that our country needs a bigger reset, a rediscovery of who we are, because no matter how fierce the storms of history, one of the greatest strengths of this nation has always been our ability to navigate a way to calmer waters,” he said.

“This depends upon politicians, particularly those who stand for stability and moderation, as I do.”

He added: “My government will fight every day until you believe again. From now on, you have a government unburdened by doctrine, guided only by the determination to serve your interest. To defy those quietly those who have written our country off.

“You have given us a clear mandate, And we will use it to deliver change.”

King Charles III earlier officially appointed Starmer as prime minister during an audience at Buckingham Palace.

A photograph released by the palace showed the monarch shaking hands with Starmer, whose party won a landslide election victory. The king earlier accepted the resignation of Conservative leader Rishi Sunak.

“The king received in Audience The Right Honourable Sir Keir Starmer MP today and requested him to form a new administration,” a palace statement read.