Starmer donates biography of himself to Downing Street library

A book about the life of Sir Keir Starmer has become the newest addition to the Downing Street library, after being donated by Sir Keir himself.

Keir Starmer: The Biography, written by journalist and former Labour adviser Tom Baldwin, has now joined the collection of more than 400 books, some of which are kept in two bookcases in Downing Street's Cabinet Room.

The library was established in 1931 by the first Labour Prime Minister, Ramsay MacDonald, and since then prime ministers and ministers have been invited to make contributions.

Seven ministers who served in Sir Keir's government have also added books to the shelves.

The new donations include:

• Former Chancellor Rachel Reeves added her own book, Alice in Westminster: The political life of Alice Bacon
• Darren Jones, who served as a senior minister between 2024 and 2026, gave Laudato Si: On Care for our Common Home - a book by Pope Francis which calls for greater protection of the environment
• Culture Secretary Lisa Nandy offered her book All In: How we build a country that works
• Nick Thomas-Symonds, a Cabinet Office minister in the last government, also chose his own book - a biography of former Labour Prime Minister Harold Wilson
• Women and Equalities minister Bridget Phillipson picked Choose Freedom: The Future for Democratic Socialism by former Labour deputy leader Roy Hattersley
• Former Wales Secretary Jo Stevens gave The Fed: a history of the South Wales miners in the twentieth century by Hywel Francis and Davis Smith
• Treasury minister James Murray donated Instruction to Deliver - a book by Sir Michael Barber about his experience being a civil servant in Tony Blair's government

As Labour leader, Sir Keir did not appear to be much of a reader. In one interview in 2024, he struggled to name a favourite novel and when he appeared on Radio 4's Desert Island Discs he picked an atlas as the book he would take with him.

In contrast, his successor Andy Burnham, an English Literature graduate, has spoken of his fondness for poetry, in particular the works of Tony Harrison and Philip Larkin.

He is unlikely to donate a volume to the library at this early stage of his premiership, but if he finds time to peruse the shelves, he will find an eclectic collection.

Unsurprisingly there are weighty tomes about politics, philosophy, history, religion - The Law and Custom of the Constitution (3 Vols), The Rhetoric of Aristotle - A Translation, An Analytical Concordance to The Holy Bible.

Many ministers have donated their own publications – Winston Churchill offered his history book, The World Crisis, 1911-18. Clement Attlee provided Purpose and Policy – a selection of his speeches. Margaret Thatcher gave her memoir The Downing Street Years.

Other prime ministers' choices reflect their own personal passions – Ted Heath donated books about music and sailing. Keen reader Harold Macmillan gave a collection of Rudyard Kipling books.

Desperate prime ministers in need of miracle solutions may be tempted to turn to Magic Symbols of the World written by Pearl Binder, donated by her husband Frederick Elwyn-Jones.

Those looking for a bit of escapism could take a look at The Charm of Birds (donated by Foreign Secretary Edward Grey), Sea Songs (Deputy Prime Minister Michael Heseltine) or The Book of French Wines (Chancellor Geoffrey Howe).

Iain MacLeod, a Conservative minister, provided his own book: Bridge is an Easy Game. According to the Times, he added an inscription: "Perhaps this is the only book in this library which will bring true profit to its readers".

Not all donations make it to the bookcases but instead are kept in storage in the bowels of Downing Street.

Politics Professor Clement Macintyre from Adelaide University, has researched the library extensively.

He says that prior to the 1930s there were not that many books in Downing Street and that one prime minister, Stanley Baldwin, used to send his staff to the nearest library to check facts and quotes.

Prof Macintyre says the lack of books particularly affected Ramsay MacDonald, the first Labour prime minister.

Unlike many of his prime ministerial predecessors MacDonald - the son of a farm labourer and housemaid - was not independently wealthy and had less money than others to furnish the Downing Street flat.

In 1931, he wrote to cabinet ministers, past and present, asking them to donate a book that was "in some way special or politically significant to them".

Enthusiasm for growing the library has waxed and waned over the years. After a few quiet years, Boris Johnson revived the tradition.

He donated his own book: The Churchill Factor: How one man made history.

Sir Mark Spencer choseDiddly Squat, Jeremy Clarkson's book on running a farm.

Former Prime Minister Rishi Sunak was an enthusiastic reader of Jilly Cooper novels but does not appear to have donated any of her bonkbusters to the collection.

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