Keir Starmer siblings: After death of Nick Starmer - how many brothers and sisters does Prime Minister have?

The sad passing of Sir Keir Starmer's brother, Nick Starmer, at the age of just 60 has brought his family into the spotlight - something he has always sought to avoid.

The Prime Minister, 62, is a famously private person, choosing to keep his family in the background as his public profile has risen, both as a politician and previously in his work as the director of public prosecutions.

How many siblings does Sir Keir Starmer have?

Sir Keir was the second of four children born to Josephine and Rodney Starmer, a nurse and a toolmaker, in 1962. Josephine suffered a lifelong illness through most of her life, being diagnosed with Still’s disease - an inflammatory arthritis - at the age of 10.

Despite being told she may never be able to have children, Josephine and Rodney welcomed their first-born, Ana, before Keir and later, twins Katy and Nick. Nick lived with learning difficulties throughout his life, which had a lasting impact on the family - including his big brother.

In a recent book by Tim Baldwin - Keir Starmer: The Biography - the now-Prime Minister said: "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."

And the biography goes on to describe how Sir Keir was reminded by his father how, despite his financial and political success both as a lawyer and an MP, he was no more successful than his younger brother, who had extra barriers to overcome. Sir Keir goes on to say how Nick had battled a "really tough life".

However, while little is known about his brothers and sisters, Sir Keir has talked about Nick's twin, Katy, and her career in care. She is understood to be a former NHS nurse who now works in the care sector in Kent.

During a Parliamentary debate on social care before he became PM, Sir Keir told then-Prime Minister Rishi Sunak how "my sister is a poorly-paid care worker, Prime Minister, so I know this first-hand".