Fabricated image shared as Keir Starmer op-ed about Islam in The Guardian

What's the claim?

In June 2024, a screenshot of an article purportedly from The Guardian's website was widely shared on social media. The article appears to be an opinion piece and is attributed to Keir Starmer, the leader of the U.K. Labour Party. 

The headline in the screenshot reads, "Islam has embraced the LGBTQ+ community. My aim is to get Britain to embrace Islam." Below the headline is a photo of Starmer. The article is marked with a timestamp indicating it was supposedly published on Tuesday, June 18, 2024, at 19:48 GMT.

On X (formerly Twitter), this image was shared with captions such as: "This is getting beyond pathetic now," gaining traction of 167,000 views. Archive links of this post and others can be found here, here, here, and here.

Screenshot of the viral posts on social media. (Source: X/Facebook/Screenshot/Modified by Logically Facts)

Similarly, a Facebook post was shared saying, "Slippery slope. Be afraid, people. This fills me with dread." An archive of the Facebook post can be found here.

However, this article is not genuine. There is no record of Starmer writing or saying this, and the screenshot is fabricated.

What we found

The alleged article in the screenshot was published on June 18, 2024. However, a detailed search of The Guardian's website and social media accounts shows no such piece. Archives of their website and their social media accounts also show no record of such a piece.

Since 2024, Starmer has written four opinion pieces for The Guardian in January, February, and May. One of these was co-authored with Rachel Reeves, the shadow chancellor and Labour MP for Leeds West. 

Screenshot showing the articles authored by Starmer on The Guardian site since January 2024. (Source: The Guardian/Screenshot/Modified by Logically Facts)

In May 2024, Starmer authored two opinion pieces: "It's time to end the U.K.'s divisions: Labour is for everyone," published on May 4, 2024, and "Vote for Sadiq Khan. Don't let toxic Tory rule ruin our capital," published on May 1, 2024.

There is no record of him authoring an article dated June 18, 2024.

What are the discrepancies?

We noted a discrepancy between the viral screenshot and genuine opinion pieces published by The Guardian.

The viral image incorrectly displays categories such as Columnists, Gender, Cartoons, Race, Letters, and Politics within the Opinion section. In contrast, The Guardian's official website shows the categories Columnists, Cartoons, Opinion videos, and Letters.

Comparison between the purported article and the actual The Guardian website. (Source: X/The Guardian/Modified by Logically Facts).

Logically Facts also contacted The Guardian, who confirmed that this article was not a genuine publication. They told us, "The screenshot shared has never been an article or headline published by the Guardian."

This isn't the first instance of fake Guardian headlines spreading on social media. Logically Facts has previously fact-checked fabricated images masquerading as an op-ed by Starmer on comedian and activist Eddie Izzard, claiming to show an opinion piece by British-Nigerian lawyer Shola Mos-Shogbamimu on "supremacist whitesplaining," and a fabricated screenshot purporting to be British columnist Owen Jones' piece about Gaza supposedly hosting a pride parade.

The verdict

The image circulating falsely asserts that Keir Starmer, leader of the U.K. Labour Party, authored an opinion piece titled: "Islam has embraced the LGBTQ+ community. My goal is to encourage Britain to embrace Islam" and does not show a real article written by Starmer and published in the Guardian. Therefore, we have marked this claim as fake.