Keir Starmer – 2022 Tribute to HM Queen Elizabeth II at Labour Party Conference

The tribute made by Keir Starmer, the Leader of the Opposition, on 25 September 2022.

Conference, the Late Queen Elizabeth II was this great country’s greatest monarch. She created a special, personal relationship with all of us. A relationship based on service and devotion to our country. Even now, after the mourning period has passed it still feels impossible to imagine a Britain without her.

Hardly any of us have ever known anything else. For us, the Late Queen has always been simply the Queen, the only Queen. Above all else, our Queen. And I am proud to lead our party’s tribute to her today.

Because our Queen’s devotion to Britain was underpinned by one crucial understanding – she knew that the country she came to symbolise is bigger than any one individual or institution.

Between the history we cherish and the present we own she was the thread. A reminder that our generational battle against the evil of fascism and the emergence of a new Britain out of the rubble of the Second World War don’t belong only to the past but are the inheritance of each and every one of us.

An example that taught us that whatever challenges we face, the value of service endures. And a reminder that the creativity, the hard work, the enterprise that defines this nation is as abundant now as it ever was.

That the prospect of a better future still burns brightly. That’s why the people came in their droves to pay their respects.

So conference, as we enter a new era, lets commit to honouring the late Queen’s memory. Let’s turn our collar up and face the storm, keep alive the spirit of public service she embodied and let it drive us towards a better future.

For seventy years, Queen Elizabeth II stood as head of our country. But, in spirit, she stood amongst us.

So please join me in paying tribute to the Late Queen.