Prime Minister Sir Keir Starmer has ruled out calling another general election, but said he is ânot surprisedâ some people want a second poll.
Mainly, those who did not vote for Labour back in the summer.
More than 2 million people have now signed a petition on Parliamentâs website calling for another election.
The petition is titled: âI would like there to be another general election."
âI believe the current Labour Government have gone back on the promises they laid out in the lead-up to the last election.â
đ§”Call a General Election?
â GET A GRIP (@docrussjackson) November 24, 2024
A 2016 petition calling on the Govt to have a threshold on the EU referendum got more than FOUR MILLION signatures. A 2019 petition calling on the Govt to revoke Article 50 & remain in the EU got more than SIX MILLION signatories.
Both were ignored. pic.twitter.com/CG5rMIIdH7
Asked about the petition on ITVâs This Morning programme on Monday, Sir Keir said: âLook, I remind myself that very many people didnât vote Labour at the last election.
âIâm not surprised that many of them want a re-run. That isnât how our system works.
âThere will be plenty of people who didnât want us in in the first place.
âSo, what my focus is on is the decisions that I have to make every day.â
He characterised decisions taken so far by his Government as âtough but fairâ.
Sir Keir and his ministers have faced a particularly strong backlash for limiting winter fuel payments to only the poorest pensioners.
Farmers have also protested over changes to inheritance tax which they claim could affect the future of their businesses.
As he marks five months as Prime Minister, Sir Keir acknowledged the job has been difficult, but added: âI wouldnât swap a single day in opposition for a day in power.
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âItâs much better to be in power to do things, rather than the frustration, as I found it, in opposition for all of those long years where we were just able to say what we would do.â
Although it has garnered media attention and millions of signatures, it is far from the largest petition received through the Parliament website, or the one which has seen the most rapid take-up.
In 2019, some 6.1 million people signed a petition calling for the revocation of Article 50 and for the United Kingdom to remain in the European Union, 4 million of whom did so in 48 hours.
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