SIR Keir Starmer has angrily rejected his Two Tier Keir nickname, saying he stands on the side of Britain’s boys in blue.
In an exclusive Never Mind the Ballots interview, the PM dismissed opinion polling that shows him as the least popular premier in modern times just five months into the job.
On a visit to military personnel on board HMS Iron Duke in Tallinn, Estonia, he said he had tough choices to make and needed more time to be judged on his actions.
And when confronted with the idea that some voters felt there were different rules for different people under his government, Sir Keir showed a rare flash of emotion.
Hitting back at monikers such as Starmer the Farmer Harmer after his Budget tractor tax raid and Free Gear Keir, a nod to his love of a freebie, the PM said: “I had a lot worse over the years.”
He branded two-tier justice accusations unfair and absurd, pointing to the Southport attacks last summer as their origin, when some suggested police were treating far-right protesters more harshly than minority groups.
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Having met police officers, ambulance and fire service staff there, he said: “They had been subjected to the most awful scenes.
“They had to deal with parents rushing back to the scene and, within hours of me shaking their hands, they were back on the front line because thugs were throwing things at them.
“The very same officers. And what was being said on the front line, ‘Two tier policing’.”
He added: “I’m going to stand with front line police officers doing their best to keep order on our streets, and I’ll stand with them every single time.”