Tony Blair says he his meeting Sir Keir Starmer “reasonably frequently” to give him advice as the former Prime Minister claims Starmer has a "good chance" of winning the election.
The former Labour leader has praised Starmer for bringing his party back from “the brink of extinction”.
He has urged Labour to avoid “taxing and spending” its way out of economic turmoil.
Blair explained that Starmer now has to struggle with more challenging situation in comparison to his win in 1997.
Tony Blair has urged Labour to avoid 'taxing and spending' its way out of economic turmoil
PA“If Sir Keir Starmer wins the election, which I think he’s got a good chance of doing, he’ll be the sixth prime minister in eight years," he told The Financial Times.
“That’s a country that’s in a mess. We are not in good shape.”
Blair also condemned criticism of Starmer's policy offering labelled too bland as “nonsense” and that Labour should not equate “being radical with just taxing and spending”.
He added: “The Conservative Party has taxed and spent to the point where we’re in an economic crisis.“
"The radical agenda today is all about understanding, mastering, harnessing the technological revolution - everything else is secondary to that.”
The former Prime Minister, who led the Labour government from 1997 to 2007, said he was “his own person” who had shown “agility and determination” in reshaping the party in the wake of Jeremy Corbyn’s leadership.
Starmer has previously said he has sought out advice from Blair and Gordon Brown on moving into government.
It comes after Starmer was criticised for having "no new ideas" after promoting Blairites to the shadow cabinet in his reshuffle earlier this month.
It comes after Starmer was criticised for having "no new ideas" after promoting Blairites to the shadow cabinet in his reshuffle earlier this month
PAVeteran Labour MP Pat McFadden, who was Tony Blair's Political Secretary and has served in numerous roles under Blair and Brown, was appointed Shadow Chancellor of the Duchy of Lancaster.
After the reshuffle, there are now five former Blair-era Labour special advisers in Keir’s new cabinet; including Ed Miliband, Jonathan Ashworth and Liz Kendall.
Hitting out at the Leader of the Opposition, Conservative Party Chairman Greg Hands said: "This reshuffle shows Sir Keir Starmer offers no new ideas, just more of the same old short-term approach to politics which has failed this country.
"He constantly changes positions to win votes, showing he doesn’t have the strength of character to lead Britain."
