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Sir Keir\u00a0Starmer\u00a0has attempted to calm the storm of criticism over his comments about Margaret Thatcher by telling a Scottish audience that she did \u201cterrible things\u201d.<\/p>\n
The Labour leader sought to draw a line under the row after he appeared to praise the former Tory prime minister and her moves to boost Britain\u2019s \u201centrepreneurialism\u201d.<\/p>\n
On a visit to Scotland on Friday, Sir Keir insisted he is no fan of Ms Thatcher and said that he \u201cprofoundly disagrees\u201d with some of her actions.<\/p>\n
He said she did \u201chuge damage\u201d to communities across the UK \u2013 particularly in Scotland \u2013 only days after listing her as among former leaders who delivered \u201cmeaningful change\u201d.<\/p>\n
In an article for the Sunday Telegraph, he said Baroness Thatcher had sought to \u201cdrag Britain out of its stupor by setting loose our natural entrepreneurialism\u201d.<\/p>\n
The attempt to appeal to traditional Tory voters fell flat with some Labour supporters and he was mocked by Conservative MPs as a Thatcher \u201cfan boy\u201d in the Commons.<\/p>\n
But asked whether he was a fan at a Scottish Labour gala dinner in Glasgow on Thursday evening, he said: \u201cNo, absolutely not.\u201d<\/p>\n
The comments, heard on an audio recording, were met with applause by the audience in Scotland, where the former Tory leader\u2019s privatisation agenda hit particularly hard.<\/p>\n
\u201cShe did terrible things, particularly here in Scotland which everybody in this room, myself included, profoundly disagrees with,\u201d Sir Keir said.<\/p>\n
Keir Starmer sought to draw a line under the row in Scotland <\/p>\n
(Getty Images)<\/p>\n
\u201cThe point I was trying to make in a piece that we penned last week was that there are some political leaders who have a mission, a plan, that they implement,\u201d he told the audience.<\/p>\n
The Labour leader went on to said: \u201cAttlee of course, was one of them, the \u2018New Jerusalem\u2019. Thatcher, whether you liked her or you didn\u2019t like her, you couldn\u2019t say she didn\u2019t have a plan, or a mission.<\/p>\n
Sir Keir added: \u201cYou can say someone has a mission and a plan and disagree profoundly with them.\u201d<\/p>\n
Baroness Thatcher won three general elections in her 11-year reign, but remains a divisive figure, including over the agenda of privatisation that saw the decline of industries such as coal and steel.<\/p>\n
Scottish Labour leader Anas Sarwar did not repeat Sir Keir\u2019s supportive comments this week, instead describing Baroness Thatcher as a \u201cdestructive force for our country\u201d.<\/p>\n
Sir Keir was following in the footsteps of his predecessor Sir Tony, who also praised the Iron Lady in the run-up to his 1997 general election landslide.<\/p>\n
But he faced a furious backlash from left-wing MPs, with Beth Winter saying the former Tory PM \u201ccaused poverty and deprivation not seen since the Dickensian era\u201d.<\/p>\n
Some backbenchers urged the leadership to distance itself from any praise for Thatcher. Labour MP Ian Byrne said Ms Thatcher\u2019s legacy was \u201cinequality, hunger, destitution and misery\u201d.<\/p>\n
Earlier this week Labour\u2019s national campaign coordinator Pat McFadden said he would not use the word \u201cadmire\u201d to sum up how he felt about Thatcher, and would instead say she was \u201csuccessful electorally\u201d.<\/p>\n
Meanwhile, two people have been charged in connection with alleged disorder offences following a protest where UK Labour leader Sir Keir\u00a0Starmer\u00a0was confronted by pro-Palestine\u00a0activists.<\/p>\n
On Thursday night, Police Scotland said a man, 33, and a woman, 26, were arrested after Sir Keir was confronted by protesters as he arrived in Glasgow.<\/p>\n
Footage showed Sir Keir arriving at Glasgow Central station, where a group of activists were waiting with Palestinian flags.<\/p>\n
He has faced criticism for refusing to back a ceasefire in Gaza, with the party leadership in favour of calling for humanitarian pauses to allow people to leave Gaza and for aid to enter. <\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"
Sign up for the View from Westminster email for expert analysis straight to your inboxGet our free View from Westminster email Sir Keir\u00a0Starmer\u00a0has attempted to calm the storm of criticism over his comments about Margaret Thatcher by telling a Scottish audience that she did \u201cterrible things\u201d. The Labour leader sought to draw a line under […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":2708,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[173],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-2707","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-news"],"yoast_head":"\n