UK Prime Minister Keir Starmer was trending today after he caused outrage with some comments made on X at 3:17 PM that went like this, "Settlement in the UK is a privilege that is earned, not a right." This comes after new steps were introduced to make it harder to immigrate, such as needing to have more English skills and waiting 10 years instead of 5 before being able to stay here permanently.
The majority replied quickly online. Reform UK MP Rupert Lowe told Starmer to shut up and get on with it. Valentina Gomez accused Starmer of letting in too many immigrants, claiming that it has ruined the UK. Others, including Scott Lewis, accused Starmer of hypocrisy and previously saying such ideas were "far-right." X user Gracie said they locked people up for doing the same thing and should be let out.
Others compared Starmer's rhetoric to a notorious 1968 speech by Enoch Powell, but Starmer's team says not. Labour is reeling after a series of local election losses, and some think Starmer is attempting to posture to attract voters. The specifics of the new immigration rules will follow shortly, but already they are generating a big controversy.
