Downing Street confirmed in a statement that Keir Starmer’s younger brother Nick, 60, died on December 26 following a battle with cancer as the PM paid tribute to a ‘wonderful man’
Keir Starmer has paid tribute to his “wonderful” brother, who died on Boxing Day following a battle with cancer.
Downing Street confirmed in a statement that Nick Starmer, 60, died on December 26. The Prime Minister had been due to go on holiday with his family today but is understood to have postponed his plans following the devastating news of his brother’s passing.
Mr Starmer said: “My brother Nick was a wonderful man. He met all the challenges life threw at him with courage and good humour. We will miss him very much.
“I would like to thank all those who treated and took care of Nick. Their skill and compassion is very much appreciated.”
A spokesman for the Prime Minister added: “It is with great sadness that we announce the passing of Nick Starmer.
“Nick, 60, died peacefully on the afternoon of December 26 after battling cancer. We ask for privacy for Nick’s wider family at this time.”
Mr Starmer is very protective of his family’s privacy, and has rarely spoken about his three siblings Anna, Nick and Katy. But he shared details about his childhood in a recent biography by Tom Baldwin.
The PM is the second of four children, growing up in Oxted, Surrey, with an older sister Anna and younger twin siblings Katy and Nick. “I shared a bunk bed with my brother in a room with an airing cupboard and just enough space for a couple of small desks where we’d do our homework,” he told his biographer.
Mr Starmer spoke of how Nick suffered complications during birth, leaving him with fairly severe learning difficulties. He was told he would never be able to read but defied expectations, taking lessons at a village hall and achieving technical qualifications.
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“We were a family of six, so it didn’t feel lonely and I shared a room with him, but Nick didn’t have many friends and got called ‘thick’ or ‘stupid’ by other kids.’ Even now I try to avoid using words like that to describe anyone.”
He was protective of his brother, saying: “Nick was dealt a very different set of cards to me and he’s had problems all his life — problems I’ve never had to face.” He added: “I admire him, not in spite of the way his life has taken another course to mine, but because of it.”
Nick worked on scrap cars and doing scaffolding, but faced struggles with his relationships. Mr Starmer told Baldwin: “Nick has had a really tough life…There’s this real, deep sadness in me about that for my brother.”
Mr Starmer’s sister Katy was a nurse and now works with adults who have Down’s syndrome, working 14 hour shifts during Covid. His older Anna went to horticultural college.
