Nukes and King Charles—but no door key
The first 24 hours for a new British prime minister are odd, and busy
It may well be the world’s least pleasant multiple-choice question. Imagine that London has been destroyed by a nuclear bomb. Millions of Londoners are dead. What Britain’s nuclear submarines do next is your decision. Do you a) retaliate? b) not retaliate? or c) wimp out, and let the submarine’s captain decide? If Labour wins the election on July 4th (this article was published before the results were known), at some point on the following day, in a room in 10 Downing Street, Sir Keir Starmer will have to answer this question. Then, very possibly, he will have to pop upstairs to his new flat to unpack his socks and decide where his sofa should go.
Explore more
This article appeared in the Britain section of the print edition under the headline “The first 24 hours”
Britain July 6th 2024
- Labour’s landslide victory will turn politics on its head
- The inheritance awaiting Britain’s next government
- The woes of Hargreaves Lansdown, Britain’s DIY-investing titan
- Nukes and King Charles—but no door key
- A prime minister, a plotter and others say farewell as British MPs
- A weekend with Gareth Southgate and friends
- What now for Britain’s right-wing parties?
From the July 6th 2024 edition
Discover stories from this section and more in the list of contents
Explore the editionMore from Britain
The race to become leader of Britain’s Conservatives
An exhausted party seems to think that it doesn’t have to change
How deep is Britain’s fiscal “black hole”?
Rachel Reeves sets out her first big decisions as chancellor
Shabana Mahmood, Britain’s new Lord Chancellor
The new justice secretary is both progressive and religious
How King Charles III counts his swans
A ritual that pleases conservationists and annoys the birds
Britain’s army chief fears war may come sooner than anyone thinks
Could the army cope without more money and troops?