Adam Boulton: If Labour wins the election, Sir Keir Starmer faces the biggest job of his life with very little preparation – like every other PM

Published

11 months ago

June 30, 2024

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Becoming prime minister is a shock. Not so much the moment of being elected – any sensible democratic politician knows that opinion polls can be wrong and gets ready for all eventualities.

No incoming prime minister can ever be fully prepared for the demands of the job, placed on them from day one, when – among many other demands – they are taken aside to be briefed about their role in a nuclear war.

The process is particularly challenging in the UK because the change is so quick. There are no weeks of transition as in most other countries. Nobody else does it like us.

As Tony Blair remarked to Alastair Campbell: “Imagine preparing for a new job by working flat out travelling the country for six weeks and then go a few nights without sleep.”

If this general election goes to usual form either Prime Minister Keir Starmer or Prime Minister Rishi Sunak will be installed in 10 Downing Street by lunchtime the day after the vote.

Neither of them will have had any sleep the night before, waiting for the declarations in their own constituencies into the small hours and then dealing with the fallout from the results elsewhere.

If he has stayed in touch with reality, Sunak would certainly be flabbergasted by victory, given the general expectation that he would lose.

Re-election to the job of premier should hold no other surprises beyond trying to step around the elephant traps he has carefully dug for the next prime minister, assuming that it would not be him.

First-timer Starmer would face the challenge of taking on a job and lifestyle which only 56 people have ever experienced before.

Becoming prime minister at an election with a change of governing party is even rarer. There have been 13 general elections in the last 50 years but only three handovers of power between Labour and the Conservatives.

Being a senior minister is not an adequate preparation for Number 10.

Gordon Brown was a hugely powerful chancellor of the exchequer for a decade who regarded himself as a co-prime minister, yet a few months after he took over the top job, a senior Brownite ruefully confessed to me: “We thought it was going to be like the Treasury only bigger. It isn’t. That was handling just one thing. As prime minister everything comes at you from all directions.”

Along with taking tea with Margaret Thatcher, the former finance minister also spent his honeymoon period dealing with terror attacks in London and Glasgow and unexpected summer flooding across England.

Unlike Harold Wilson, James Callaghan, Edward Heath, Thatcher, John Major, Theresa May, Boris Johnson, Liz Truss and Sunak, Starmer has never served in a government as a minister.

He shares this lack of experience with David Cameron and Blair, who had been in parliament for 14 years when he became prime minister and a shadow minister for 10.

Cameron had been an MP for nine years when elected prime minister, as would be the case for Starmer, who only became an MP in 2015.

Cameron already knew his way around government having worked as an aide in Conservative headquarters and for senior ministers.

Starmer likes to boast that he had a successful career as a lawyer before entering parliament. He believes that running the “big organisation” of the Crown Prosecution Service should be good preparation for the premiership.

Starmer also says he knows how to cope with a change of style because he switched from poacher as a defence barrister to gamekeeper as director of public prosecutions.

A prime minister who comes at a general election usually has to switch in a moment from all-out campaigning to managing a party, a government and a country.

Except for Cameron whose preparations benefitted from a hung parliament and five days of negotiations to set up the coalition with the Liberal Democrats.

At least general election-elected prime ministers start with a clean sheet of policies and with plenty of jobs to hand out.

Blair admits “the disadvantage of a new government is lack of experience in governing” but he claims “it is also an advantage… we thought the unthinkable. We did the undoable.” His early gambits included shifting PMQs to one half-hour session a week and granting independence to the Bank of England.

This baptism of fire and new beginning perhaps explains why Thatcher, Blair and Cameron are the significant national leaders of recent years, who won re-election, rather than those who took over power by default of internal party machinations.

Sunak can never be a member but Starmer would have a chance to join this distinguished club, although he is circumscribed by the state of the economy and by the things which Tory campaigning has forced him to rule out.

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Incoming prime ministers depend heavily on the staff around them. Someone has to make preparations for government which could be only days away. A leader is occupied fighting an election campaign and must not be seen to be presumptuous or complacent about victory. Officials and even family members are slapped down if they slip saying “when” not “if” about winning.

Blair is credited with pulling off one of the most successful transitions thanks in large part to his team. His chief of staff Jonathan Powell and advisor David Miliband secretly drew up a plan in advance for the government’s first 100 days. Peter Mandelson and Alastair Campbell practically invented the arts of political spinning and media handling in this country. Anji Hunter and Sally Morgan had the delicate task of reaching out to the party and the outside world and managing the appointment of ministers and government advisors. Mistakes are sometimes made when handing out jobs, names may be mixed up, post-it notes dropped or mobile phones mislaid.

Starmer’s key decision in preparation for government was the controversial hiring of a widely respected senior civil servant as his chief of staff.

He has made it clear that Sue Gray will take over as top dog from campaign director Morgan McSweeney from the moment of victory. Gray knows everyone in Whitehall after decades of working there. She is expected to oversee Olly Robbins replacing Simon Case as cabinet secretary. She will also have a decisive voice over the appointment of advisors and ministers.

In the past, shadow ministers have had more than a year for “access talks” about their plans with officials in relevant government departments. Sunak withheld permission for these to start until early this year and has now called a snap election, meaning Labour has had barely six months to prepare.

Some of those involved in getting MPs ready for government are worried they are not as ready as they should be. Starmer has shown that he can be ruthless and, if he does become prime minister, there are likely to be nasty shocks for some now assuming they will be ministers in government. Labour already have about 20 more “front bench” spokespeople than there are paid ministerial jobs in government.

In Blair’s case, Mandelson says the “real” and “important” reshuffle shake-out took place after a year in office.

The head of government has other unavoidable duties. Blair had to cope with the death of Princess Diana within months of being elected. “Why me?” Truss asked of the death of Queen Elizabeth II just days into her premiership.

Before the state opening of parliament on 17 July, the next prime minister will have to represent the UK at NATO’s 75th anniversary summit in Washington between 9 and 11 July with Ukraine at the top of the agenda. A week later he will host the European Political Community at Blenheim Palace – this organisation came into existence after Brexit to improve relations between 50 European nations.

Prime ministers make what come to be seen as unforced errors – such as Truss’s mini-budget, Cameron’s Brexit referendum and Blair’s invasion of Iraq. They also have to cope with unforeseen events beyond their control, such as the COVID-19 pandemic.

The shocks of the first few weeks as prime minister are likely to be dwarfed by the shocks in the years to come. However hard they have tried to prepare, whether or not they are ready, the job will soon find out a prime minister’s strengths and weaknesses.

Politics

Stablecoin bill passes in Northern Marianas as House overrides veto

Published

3 hours ago

May 16, 2025

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Stablecoin bill passes in Northern Marianas as House overrides veto

The Pacific US territory of the Northern Mariana Islands has passed a bill allowing its small constituent island of Tinian to launch a stablecoin, overriding an earlier veto by the territory’s governor.

The 20-member Northern Mariana Islands House voted 14-2 to undo Governor Arnold Palacios’ April 11 veto of the bill, which allows the Tinian local government to issue licenses to internet casinos and includes a provision for the Tinian treasurer to issue, manage and redeem a “Tinian Stable Token.”

The territory’s nine-member Senate had revived the bill on May 9, voting 7-1 in a two-thirds majority to override the veto, which then needed a two-thirds majority in the House to pass.

Originally, a four-member Tinian delegation to the Marianas legislature had unanimously passed the bill to Governor Palacios on March 12.

It may put the Tinian government in the lead to be the first US public entity to issue a stablecoin, which it must do before July if it’s to beat the state of Wyoming government, which is aiming to issue a stablecoin by then.

Tinian has just over 2,000 residents and a largely tourism-based economy. Its local government, the Municipality of Tinian and Aguiguan, is one of four municipalities in the Commonwealth of the Northern Mariana Islands, a US territory in the Pacific Ocean north of Guam.

Governor Palacios said in a letter that he vetoed the bill as it “presents several legal issues and may be unconstitutional,” would regulate an activity that could not “be clearly restricted” to Tinian and that it lacked needed enforcement measures to counter illegal gambling.

The stablecoin is called the Marianas US Dollar (MUSD) and will be backed by cash and US Treasury bills held in reserve by the Tinian Municipal Treasury, according to statements shared with Cointelegraph in March.

The Tinian government chose local tech services firm Marianas Rai Corporation as the exclusive infrastructure provider for MUSD, which will be launched on the eCash blockchain, a network that rebranded from Bitcoin Cash ABC in 2021 and is a fork of Bitcoin Cash, a blockchain forked from Bitcoin.

A Marianas Rai Corp. spokesperson did not comment beyond telling Cointelegraph the company would announce more on MUSD on May 19.

“Bitter pill to swallow”

Before the vote, House lawmakers heard from the public and discussed overturning Governor Palacios’ veto before they voted it through, with independent House floor leader Marissa Flores airing concerns over the bill.

Marianas Rai Corp. co-founder and technology chief Vin Armani had urged lawmakers to undo the veto, saying the bill would “attract billions of dollars of investment and tax revenue” from the crypto industry without the government having to pitch in.

Clyde Norita, a Marianas Rai Corp. director and local legal cannabis mogul, told the House that the local economy was “dying out” and the bill would allow business in the region “without affecting our culture, without affecting our environment, without affecting our immigration status.”

Representative Flores, who voted against the override, said, “Every time we talk about casinos, there’s always some kind of bitter pill to swallow.”

“It is true, we are in dire need of money, but what I don’t like is when we are desperate, and we are now forced to make a decision because we are desperate once again,” she added. “Every time we’re desperate, it always seems that we come back to casinos.”

“I don’t like to be pushed to a corner to make a decision based on fear,” Flores said.

Others were more supportive of the measure, with Republican Representative Patrick San Nicolas, a Tinian delegation member who initially voted on the bill, saying it would help pull the region out of “a deep economic crisis.”

“We need this legislation to unlock our potential,” he added. “This bill does not depend on tourists or federal subsidies — it builds a digital industry generating revenue from a licensed jurisdiction.”

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Politics

DOJ charges 12 more gamer-turned $263M Bitcoin robbers

Published

3 hours ago

May 16, 2025

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DOJ charges 12 more gamer-turned 3M Bitcoin robbers

Another 12 people have been charged for their involvement in a $263 million crypto crime spree that stole 4,100 Bitcoin from a Genesis creditor last August, along with a string of break-ins and money laundering.

The 12 new names, included in a superseding indictment, add to charges originally brought against the main defendant in the case, Malone Lam, on Sept. 19, 2024, the Department of Justice noted in a May 15 statement.

Jeandiel Serrano was named a defendant in the initial indictment but was not included in the superseding one.

The DOJ said several defendants have been arrested, while two others are believed to be living in Dubai.

Many of the suspects, with aliases like “Goth Ferrrari” and “The Accountant,” come from California, mostly aged between 18 and 22.

The group allegedly began operating in October 2023, evolving from friends while playing online games to what the DOJ describes as participating in a “cyber-enabled racketeering conspiracy.”

Hacking, burglarizing and laundering

The DOJ said group members were tasked with everything from hacking databases, cold calling crypto holders to conduct social engineering attacks to even burglarizing houses to steal crypto hardware wallets.

Others were involved in laundering the stolen proceeds, which the DOJ claimed amounted to $263 million.

Over $230 million resulted from a single instance on Aug. 18, 2024, when Lam fraudulently obtained over 4,100 Bitcoin (BTC) from a victim.

The DOJ said Lam also hacked into another victim’s iCloud account to watch their movements, while defendant Marlon Ferro would break into their house to steal crypto hardware wallets.

Virtual private networks, crypto mixer protocols and exchanges using “peel chains” were used to make it harder to trace the illicit activity, the DOJ said. A peel chain is a money laundering tactic where crypto is transferred through a series of wallets, with small amounts of funds “peeled off” at each step.

They have been charged with RICO (Racketeer Influenced and Corrupt Organizations) as well as offenses involving wire fraud and money laundering.

Gone in 60 seconds

Members of the crypto theft ring allegedly used proceeds to pay for nightclub services — costing up to $500,000 on some nights — 28 exotic cars as expensive as $3.8 million, in addition to luxury handbags, watches, and clothing.

Homes and jets were even rented out with fake identity documents to fund their lavish lifestyles, the DOJ noted.

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Politics

Coinbase drops 7% on customer breach, SEC probe into user numbers

Published

4 hours ago

May 16, 2025

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Coinbase drops 7% on customer breach, SEC probe into user numbers

Coinbase stock dipped after news broke of a cyberattack that exposed customer data and an ongoing Securities and Exchange Commission investigation over misstated user numbers in 2021.

The double whammy of bad news rattled investors as company stock (COIN) slid 7% in a fall to $244 in after-hours trading on May 15, according to Google Finance.

Coinbase has since confirmed the report from The New York Times, which stated the SEC has been investigating whether Coinbase misstated its user numbers in past disclosures, an inquiry that began during the Biden administration and has continued under the Trump administration.

“This is a hold-over investigation from the prior administration about a metric we stopped reporting two and a half years ago, which was fully disclosed to the public,” confirmed Coinbase chief legal officer Paul Grewal to Cointelegraph.

“We also disclosed – and continue to disclose – the more relevant metric of ‘monthly transacting users’ – the number of people who use our platform in a given month,” he said before adding:

“While we strongly believe this investigation should not continue, we remain committed to working with the SEC to bring this matter to a close.”

The regulator took specific umbrage at Coinbase’s claim of “100+ million verified users” that appeared in its marketing and IPO documentation in 2021. However, the exchange stopped reporting this metric in 2022.

The probe has continued despite the SEC dropping its 2023 enforcement lawsuit against Coinbase under the Trump administration.

Coinbase has hired law firm Davis Polk & Wardwell to assist with its response to the SEC.

Coinbase refuses to pay ransom

On May 15, Coinbase reported that it was attacked with a $20 million extortion attempt after cybercriminals recruited overseas support agents to leak user data.

“These insiders abused their access to customer support systems to steal the account data for a small subset of customers,” the firm stated.

Coinbase refused to pay the ransom but said it would reimburse victims of phishing attacks as a result of the data breach, with expected remediation and reimbursement expenses ranging from $180 million to $400 million.

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