UK PM warns the country faces a crucial choice: progress or decline.

UK Prime Minister Keir Starmer warned on T

uesday that Britain is at a critical "fork in the road"—choosing between progress and decline amid growing political splits.

In his speech to the Labour Party conference in Liverpool, he said: "Our country faces a defining choice. We can pick decency over division, renewal over decline."

The address comes as Labour slips in polls, now trailing Nigel Farage's right-wing Reform UK party. Starmer had earlier called it the "fight of our lives" against Reform's anti-immigration stance, which taps into public anger over illegal migration.

This creates a dilemma for left-leaning Labour: It risks alienating voters by not matching tough talk on borders, while avoiding a sharp rightward shift.

Starmer urged party members to unite around a "shared future" for the UK—one proud of its values, not swayed by "grievance politics" that clash with Britain's history.

On the economy, which has been sluggish and may slow more this year, he pushed for reforms to boost wealth and growth by cutting "mindless bureaucracy."

He admitted the road ahead is tough: "It's long, difficult, with hard choices that won't always suit our party." But the payoff? "A new, fairer country—a place of dignity and respect."