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Early evening summary
Keir Starmer has described speaking at the Labour rally today without wearing a tie, and with his sleeves rolled up, as a sign that he’s “leading from the front”.
During his Q&A, it was suggested that, by ditching a tie, he was copying Tony Blair.
In an interview, Chris Mason, the BBC’s political editor, said that image was important. Referring to Starmer’s appearance this morning, tieless and with sleeves rolled up, and asked: “What’s that about?”
And Starmer replied:
That is about leading from the front. Now I worked in a public service ... I have to lead from the front here. I’m talking about change for our country. And, in a sense, I want to get on with the delivery.
Starmer says some planning restrictions could be lifted immediately after Labour government takes office
Keir Starmer has said that voters would start to notice change from the very start of a Labour government taking office.
In an interview with ITV’s Robert Peston, asked when people might notice the difference from a new government being in place, Starmer said some planning restrictions could be lifted immediately.
Asked when people would feel the difference, Starmer replied:
Day one. There are things that we can do absolutely straightaway. The first step that we set out today was about stabilising the economy and growing our economy.
There are things there like getting rid of some of the planning restrictions, we can do that absolutely straight away.
The command force that we want to set up to deal with the small boats problem, that can be done straight away.
Even the NHS appointments which is obviously more complicated, we’re having the discussions now with NHS staff about how we can implement that as quickly as possible.
Updated
Starmer claims 'vast majority' of pledges he made when running for Labour leader still apply
Keir Starmer has insisted that the “vast majority” of the pledges that he made when he was running for Labour leader are still in place, or have been kept.
Starmer has repeatedly been criticised because he has dropped some of the promises he made in a famous “10 pledges” document he issued when he was running for Labour leader, such as putting up income tax for the top 5% and nationalising energy companies. (See 2.15pm.)
But, in an interview with Beth Rigby from Sky News, when she put it to him that he had “junked pretty much every pledge” he was elected leader on, Starmer did not agree. Referring to the 10 pledges document, he said:
If you’ve got it in front of you Beth, you’ll know that for each of the 10 pledges, there’s about two or three sitting under them. That’s about 30 commitments, of which a few have been adjusted. The vast majority are in place, but I accept that some of them have been adjusted.
Starmer told Rigby that it was sensible to adjust promises when circumstances changed. He told her:
I came into politics late in life. I ran a public service. I operated in the private sector. And outside of politics, when the facts change, the circumstances change, good leaders know you have to adapt and change with it.
Asked if he was trustworthy, he replied: “Yes.” And asked why votes should view him as more trustworthy than Rishi Sunak, he replied:
Because I have delivered over and over again. I worked in Northern Ireland where we changed the Police Service of Northern Ireland for the better. I then was Director of Public Prosecutions for five years, where we brought about great change to improve the rights of victims. I’ve got a track record of leadership, but leadership requires absolute clarity of what you’re trying to achieve.
The Department for Education has now published its draft revised guidance on sex education for pupils in schools in England. The government is consulting on it.
In her foreword to the document, Gillian Keegan, the education secretary, says children must get “the right information at the right time, so that they know about the risks and how to avoid them, but also making sure that they are not exposed to too much too soon, taking away the innocence of childhood”.
Theresa May says Nigel Farage should not be allowed to join Tories
Theresa May, the former prime minister, was the guest at a press gallery lunch this afternoon. There were at least two news lines in what she said.
May said she was opposed to the idea of Nigel Farage, the former Ukip and Brexit party leader who is now honorary president of Reform UK, being allowed to join the Conservative party. Many rightwing Tories, like Liz Truss, have said Farage should be welcome in the party, and Farage himself has said he should be in the same party as people like Jacob Rees-Mogg and Suella Braverman. But May said Farage was not a Conservative. This is from HuffPost UK’s Kevin Schofield.
Theresa May rejects Jacob Rees-Mogg’s call for Nigel Farage to be brought into a Conservative government.
— Kevin Schofield (@KevinASchofield) May 16, 2024
“I disagree with Jacob on that. I don’t think Nigel Farage is a Conservative, I don’t think Richard Tice is a Conservative,” she tells the Press Gallery lunch.
And May said she was opposed to the UK leaving the European convention on human rights. In 2016, before Brexit and before she became PM, May said the UK should leave the ECHR. As prime minister, preoccupied with EU withdrawal, she did not try to implement this. Arguably there is much more support for ECHR withdrawal in the party now than there was eight years ago. But May said the UK should remain in and focus on reforming it instead. This is from the Sun’s Harry Cole.
Theresa May tells me UK must stay in ECHR despite her previous criticisms — because government has unfortunately strayed toward willingness to break international law.
— Harry Cole (@MrHarryCole) May 16, 2024
“It is reformable. It just takes time.”
How housing boss and former Tory donor Rob Boughton explained why he's backing Labour at pledge launch
The first non-politician to speak at the Labour event this morning was Rob Boughton, CEO of Thakeham Housing. His endorsement was significant because in the past Thakeham, which he founded, has been a significant donor to the Conservative party. According to the Electoral Commission, it donated more than £500,000 to the party between 2020 and 2022.
At the event, explaining why he was supporting Labour, Boughton said:
I’m pleased to be here today to support the first step towards the growth mission.
Recently my company welcomed Rachel [Reeves] and Angela [Rayner] to one of the communities we built. I was struck by how they understand the housing crisis and are committed to tackle it as part of the country’s economic growth. I support Rachel’s ambition to grow the economy and I am pleased to see Labour has put so much weight on economic stability which is so crucial, so businesses can plan ahead …
A successful country needs a clear plan, which is why I am encouraged to see Labour’s first steps being set out today. I support Rachel’s ambition to grow the economy, and keep taxes and inflation as low as possible. Key to this is delivering new, sustainable homes paired with the infrastructure needed to allow those communities thrive.
I welcome Labour’s plans to reform planning regulation to support homes and infrastructure fit for the needs of our growing population, at every stage of life – schools for our children, green spaces for families, local shops for our communities, and appropriate homes for those looking to downsize but remain at the heart of their communities. Stability, certainty, economic growth and housebuilding is a priority for Rachel, it’s a priority for me, and a mission we share.
Sunak says he will remain as MP whatever election result, as he laughs off suggestion it's planned for November
Rishi Sunak was on ITV’s Loose Women at lunchtime, where he may have dropped a hint that the election will definitely be in the autumn – although it is not entirely clear.
But he did insist that, whatever the result, he would stay in the House of Commons as MP for Richmond.
Towards the end of the interview Jane Moore, one of the four presenters, asked Sunak if he would remain an MP if he lost the election “in November”.
This prompted Sunak to laugh over-vigorously (his usual response to an awkward question), and while he was doing so another presenter, Judi Love, said: “I’ve got holiday booked then, so you need to let me know.”
Sunak said that “of course” he was staying as an MP. As the programme was ending, Moore tried one final time to ask if the election would be in November, and Sunak turned to Love to say what sounded like “Good for your holiday” as the applause started. Some reporters think he said “book your holiday”.
It sounded like a hint that the election will be in November – which is assumed to be his preferred date anyway. But that is based on the assumption that Sunak was assuming that Love would want her holiday to coincide with the election.
Political journalists don’t want the election to clash with their holidays, and most of us have not booked any time off in November at all.
Momentum, the leftwing Labour group, has dismissed Labour’s six doorstep election pledges (see 10.12am) as too timid. A spokesperson said:
Britain has big problems, and they require big solutions. Sadly, these fixes fall desperately short of the bold policies needed to fix the Tories’ broken Britain, from mass building council housing to renationalising our public services. Worse still, Starmer is failing to break with the Conservatives’ disastrous austerity dogma.
Faced with similarly huge challenges in 1945, the post-war Labour Government brought sweeping change and investment to a country on its knees. Britain needs a real Labour alternative today, too.
And, echoing the attack line used by the Tories and the SNP (see 1.08pm), the spokesperson also said that Starmer could not be trusted to keep his promises. Referring to the 10 pledges Starmer made during the Labour leadership contest four years ago, the spokesperson said:
From raising taxes on the wealthiest to renationalising our public services, Keir’s leadership pledges are more popular and urgently needed than ever. Yet Keir broke his promises and today instead of transforming Britain, he offers minor tweaks to a failed Tory settlement.
We prefer the original 👇 pic.twitter.com/iKocjrd1fR
— Momentum 🌹 (@PeoplesMomentum) May 16, 2024
Sue Gray suggests Stormont executive could benefit from more collective responsibility in evidence to Covid inquiry
One of Sue Gray’s many responsibilities as Keir Starmer’s chief of staff is carrying out leak inquiries. She did one recently into a leak to the Guardian.
This morning she was giving evidence to the UK Covid inquiry in Belfast, in her capacity as the former permanent secretary at Northern Ireland’s Department of Finance during the pandemic and, at least according to the PA Media write-up, quite a lot of her evidence related to leaks.
When Gray was in Northern Ireland, she was asked to investigate leaks from meetings of the Northern Ireland executive. The inquiry has been told that some key executive meetings were in effect live tweeted by journalist, who were being fed information in real time.
Gray told the inquiry she was struck by the difference between the culture in Whitehall, where for most of her career she was a civil servant, and at Stormont. She said:
I’m not going to say that everything is perfect there [at cabinet in London] but, you know, people do respect the process and [at] cabinet – often issues get resolved in cabinet committees, not always at cabinet – but you don’t read about [them], you occasionally read about differences of views, but there tends to be a certain discipline.
Gray said at Stormont, where there is a power-sharing executive, there are no defined rules around collective responsibility, as there are in London.
She said that even when the Tories were in coalition with the Liberal Democrats, collective responsibility was maintainted. She said:
I think they demonstrated great leadership in how they handled those issues, it didn’t break down in trust because actually it was a very honest and open and frank process.
As PA Media reports, Gray accepted the mandatory coalition system in Northern Ireland was different, pointing out that when she was working at Stormont there were five parties in the administration. But said she believed a similar process could be made to work in the region.
Gray was asked to give evidence to the inquiry as the only senior civil servant who had worked for both the devolved administration in Northern Ireland and the UK government during Covid.
What Seb James, Boots CEO and close friend of David Cameron, said as he endorsed Labour at pledge card launch
Here is the full text of what Seb James, the Boots CEO, said at the launch of the Labour election pledges this morning.
Boots has 2,000 stores and pharmacies right across the country, and just over 50,000 team members.
Rachel [Reeves, the shadow chancellor] has asked me to share some of the things I think that are incredibly important to a business like Boots - for me, first and foremost, it’s stability. A stable economy provides the right platform for sustainable economic growth. And it’s that real focus on economic growth that is going to be so important in the next few years. The second thing is government and business really listening to each other and working together to grow our economy.
We need an industrial strategy that helps us plan for the long term, helps us to anticipate changing landscapes, emerging sectors, new skills, new technologies.
Another thing that I think is incredibly important is employment. Having a government that works with business to help get people up and down the country in some of the most deprived areas of our great nation, into work, and keep them in work. That ranges from having apprenticeship schemes properly helping business to re-skilling mature workers.
Now I must mention something close to my heart, Keir came to one of our Boots stores earlier in the year and we talked about the importance of looking after our high streets.
There is a Boots on almost every high street but high streets are not just a place that people come to shop, it’s a place of work - in some small towns, the only place of work. It’s a place to meet, to connect, to get health advice from your pharmacist, it’s the heart of our towns, and a thriving high street helps to build communities. And I think that’s going to be a really important gamechanger in the next few years. We need to invest in it, connect it to our digital worlds and look after it.
And finally, the cost of living - our customers are telling us that the pressures remain. We of course welcome these sensible fiscal measures to help put more money in people’s pockets and grow the economy, and that’s what I hope is going to happen.
As mentioned earlier (see 12.40pm), James is, or at least was, a very close friend of David Cameron. The Independent has written this up as “David Cameron’s Bullingdon Club pal endorses Sir Keir Starmer’s Labour”.
CEO of Boots Seb James endorses Labour and Starmer pic.twitter.com/601eXbedij
— Robert Peston (@Peston) May 16, 2024
Vaughan Gething sacks Welsh government minister over leak of phone message, which she denies
Vaughan Gething, the first minister of Wales has sacked his minister for social partnership following the leak of a phone message to the media, which she insists she was not behind, PA Media reports. PA says:
Gething, who was confirmed as first minister in March, said he had “no alternative” but to ask Hannah Blythyn, MS for Delyn, to leave his government.
But Blythyn insisted she was “clear and have been clear that I did not, nor have I ever leaked anything” and was “deeply shocked” at her dismissal.
Gething’s decision follows a report on the Nation.Cymru news website which featured a message posted to a ministerial group chat in August 2020 by Gething, stating that he was “deleting the messages in this group”.
Gething previously told the UK Covid-19 Inquiry that lost WhatsApp messages were not deleted by him, but by the Welsh parliament’s IT team during a security rebuild.
He told plenary last week that the leaked message was from a section of an iMessage group chat with other Labour ministers and related to internal discussions within the Senedd Labour group.
Gething denied the message contradicted the evidence he had given to the inquiry, adding that the message did not relate to pandemic decision making but “comments that colleagues make to and about each other”.
In a statement issued on today, Gething said: “Having reviewed the evidence available to me regarding the recent disclosure of communication to the media, I have regrettably reached the conclusion I have no alternative but to ask Hannah Blythyn to leave the government.
“I’d like to record my gratitude for the work the member has done to date, including her leadership through the fire and rescue services review, outstanding work leading the LGBTQ+ Action Plan For Wales and invaluable work on the Social Partnership and Public Procurement (Wales) Act.
“It is of vital importance we are able to maintain confidence amongst government colleagues so that we work as one to focus on improving the lives of the people in Wales.
“Given Hannah’s talents and experience, I have been clear there is a route back for her to take up a government position again in future.
“The government has offered ongoing support to the member.”
But Blythyn said: “I am deeply shocked and saddened by what has happened today. I am clear and have been clear that I did not, nor have I ever leaked anything. Integrity is all in politics and I retain mine.
“For a kid from Connah’s Quay, it is an immense privilege to serve the community that shaped me, let alone to have served in my country’s government. I will say no more at present.”
The Tories and the SNP don’t agree on much, but they are both attacking Keir Starmer on the grounds that he can’t be trusted because he has gone back on too many promises. Here is the official SNP response, in a statement from Mhairi Black, the SNP deputy leader at Westminster.
Sir Keir Starmer’s speech was full of broken promises and empty slogans – demonstrating why voting SNP is the only way to stand up for Scotland, protect our NHS, and advance our journey towards independence.
On the biggest issues damaging the UK, from austerity cuts to Brexit, the Labour party is wedded to the same reckless policies as the Tories.
You can’t stabilise the economy if you are trashing it with Brexit, and you can’t deliver strong public services if you are imposing billions of pounds of cuts to our NHS, schools and police.
The problem for Sir Keir is that he has U-turned on nearly every policy he has ever promised – so it’s little wonder the public don’t trust a single promise he now makes.
And with no mention of Scotland throughout his speech, it’s clear that Sir Keir Starmer intends to be prime minister for England only.
Updated
Tory chair Richard Holden says in response to Labour launch Starmer doesn't 'stick to single pledge he has ever made'
In a statement issued by CCHQ responding to the Labour pledge card launch this morning, Richard Holden, the Conservative party chair, said Keir Stamer could not be trusted to keep his promises. He said:
Today’s speech was devoid of any plan for Britain. Sir Keir Starmer is a serial promise breaker who doesn’t have the courage or conviction to stick to a single a pledge he has ever made – just look at his last pledge card, which he abandoned the second he got the chance. His unfunded spending, higher taxes and amnesty for illegal migrants would take Britain back to square one.
Rishi Sunak and the Conservatives are sticking with the plan to build a brighter future for British families, with inflation down from 11.1 per cent to 3.2 per cent, the economy growing and £900 back in hard-working people’s pockets – as well as a fair immigration system with boat crossings down.
Updated
A cross party group of MPs have asked parliament’s justice select committee to investigate why British prosecutors dissuaded Swedish counterparts from abandoning attempts to extradite Julian Assange.
“Numerous questions” need to be answered about the role of the Crown Prosecution Service (CPS) when it came to the legal pursuit of the WikiLeaks founder by Swedish authorities, according to a letter by the MPs, John McDonnell, David Davis, Caroline Lucas and Jeremy Corbyn (pdf).
The intervention comes as a four-year legal saga surrounding US attempts to extradite Assange could enter their final phase next Monday when the court of appeal rules on whether or not to accept US assurances on how he will be treated if sent across the Atlantic.
The MPs point to emails released under the Freedom of Information Act to the Italian investigative journalist, Stefania Maurizi. They indicate that the Swedish authorities were eager to give up the case four years before they formally abandoned proceedings in 2017 and that the CPS dissuaded them from doing so. Other emails which the CPS should have retained were also deleted.
In their letter to Sir Bob Neil, Chair of the justice select committee, the MPs argue that the records released under FoI provide evidence that the Crown Prosecution Service helped create what they desribed as a “legal paralysis and diplomatic quagmire” surrounding Assange. They say:
Given the significance of the case of Julian Assange in relation to journalistic freedoms and the widespread public interest in the case, it is critically important that all the public bodies dealing with the case are seen to be acting in the public interest and acting appropriately.
Updated
Labour's pledge card launch - snap verdict
That could easily have been a formal general election campaign launch, and in so far as it served as a de facto campaign launch, Labour will view it as a success. It is rare for any political event aimed at the media to last more than an hour (they assume, rightly, that journalists have short attention spans), but this one zipped along nicely and after more than 90 minutes it still wasn’t gettting dull. We did not get anything new in terms of policy, and all the detail about the pledges (or “first “steps” as Labour calls them, at the risk of making Starmer sound like a toddler) was released under embargo yesterday. But there were two significant reveals.
First, the endorsements. No one will admit that they are going to change the way they vote just because X said they should, but endorsements can matter a lot because they signal to voters the X is a safe choice. Neil Basu used to be a very senior office in the Metropolitan police, and appears on the media a lot, and yet he has never endorsed Labour so obviously in the past. His appearance today was a surprise. But the more significant endorsement was from Seb James, the Boots CEO. He is not just head of a leading British business. As my colleague Jessica Elgot points out, he is (or at least was?) a very close friend of David Cameron.
This is who just endorsed Keir Starmer at the launch event today. Very close friend of David Cameron. Extraordinary. https://t.co/oak0ZxVcc0
— Jessica Elgot (@jessicaelgot) May 16, 2024
Second, the positioning. Many of the questions from the media were about the pledges not being ambitious or leftwing enough, and Starmer responded quite confidently. His argument was that they were just a start, and that there was more to come. What was striking, though, was that he seems unperturbed by this line of attack, and that is because it reinforces what seems to be the more important message he wants to convey – that Labour is now firmly aligned with mainstream public opinion. (See 11.34am.) That is where he wants to be because that is where he thinks parties win elections.
In his foreward to the 1997 manifesto Tony Blair said “New Labour is the political arm of none other than the British people as a whole.” Starmer has dropped the term “New Labour”, but otherwise his message this morning was much the same (although expressed in less hubristic language).
And the contrast with the Conservative party’s main campaign event this week was striking. Starmer’s speech was more impressive than Rishi Sunak’s on Monday, and it is hard to imagine the Tories unveiling any surprise endorsements during the election campaign likely to impress the media.
The launch went down well with journalists. This is what some of them are saying.
From my colleague Jessica Elgot
This is - by some measure - the most impressive event this Labour leadership has ever assembled. Guests inc CEO of Boots, senior counter terror officer, a terminal cancer patient... each one linked to a key offer to the public.
— Jessica Elgot (@jessicaelgot) May 16, 2024
It's a big contrast to Sunak's speech on Monday..
This is - by some measure - the most impressive event this Labour leadership has ever assembled. Guests inc CEO of Boots, senior counter terror officer, a terminal cancer patient... each one linked to a key offer to the public.
It’s a big contrast to Sunak’s speech on Monday..
Sunak’s speech was at a Westminster thinktank, watched only by journalists and Tory MPs and was overshadowed by a minor minister who was (inexplicably) speaking at the same time about banning lanyards she doesn’t like.
From Beth Rigby from Sky News
Labour’s ’first steps’ campaign event at a GE-style rally. Six pledges. Starmer on stage using each guest that’s spoken at the event to try to hammer home the message of “change”. Change change change on repeat pic.twitter.com/KCzpEqDa67
— Beth Rigby (@BethRigby) May 16, 2024
Labour’s ’first steps’ campaign event at a GE-style rally. Six pledges. Starmer on stage using each guest that’s spoken at the event to try to hammer home the message of “change”. Change change change on repeat
From the Telegraph’s Ben Riley-Smith
This Labour pledge card launch feels like a mini party conference. Key shad cab ministers speaking. Endorsements. Big stage festooned with slogans. Very different feel to Rishi Sunak’s think tank campaign framing speech on Monday.
— Ben Riley-Smith (@benrileysmith) May 16, 2024
This Labour pledge card launch feels like a mini party conference. Key shad cab ministers speaking. Endorsements. Big stage festooned with slogans. Very different feel to Rishi Sunak’s think tank campaign framing speech on Monday.
From James Ball from the New European
The contrast is quite stark – it’s not just that Sunak’s delivery lacked any energy, but the whole framing of the speech was enervating. It was in London, at a think tank, with no guests or anything to mark it. https://t.co/pLNcG2fW89
— James Ball (@jamesrbuk) May 16, 2024
The contrast is quite stark – it’s not just that Sunak’s delivery lacked any energy, but the whole framing of the speech was enervating. It was in London, at a think tank, with no guests or anything to mark it.
From Jack Elsom from the Sun
Aside from the massive land grab on traditional Tory turf, it’s really notable how much Starmer has developed as a public speaker in the past few years. I went to the initial missions launch early last year and it’s just another level.
— Jack Elsom (@JackElsom) May 16, 2024
Aside from the massive land grab on traditional Tory turf, it’s really notable how much Starmer has developed as a public speaker in the past few years. I went to the initial missions launch early last year and it’s just another level.
But Elsom was not impressed by Starmer’s answer to his question about sex education.
Starmer dodges question over whether he would keep or scrap the govt’s new sex education guidance, including the ban on teaching of gender identity.
Says he hasn’t looked at it yet, despite leading news agenda for days…
From Zoë Grünewald from the Lead
Starmer says his initial 2023 missions still apply, but these steps are the 'first downpayments' or 'initial deliverables' on those. I wonder if people will distinguish the difference. Because there is a danger it looks like he's scaling back.
— Zoë Grünewald (@zoe_grunewald) May 16, 2024
Starmer says his initial 2023 missions still apply, but these steps are the ‘first downpayments’ or ‘initial deliverables’ on those. I wonder if people will distinguish the difference. Because there is a danger it looks like he’s scaling back.
Aside from that, I think a decent speech well delivered. But notably missing building, tackling poverty and worker’s rights. A lot of people want to hear about housing. I’ll be on @bbc5live to talk about it shortly.
Updated
Starmer says it is 'unforgivable' Tories have left country in worse state than it was 14 years ago
Q: Why did you not include housing and employment rights in the pledges? And can the public expect to see these policies make a difference to their lives after two terms of a Labour government?
Starmer says the answer to the second question is yes.
And, on the first question, he says these are first steps. They do not detract from the other missions already announced by the party.
It is the final question he is answering, and he concludes with a message.
I’ll just finish with this because I feel it so strongly. And I say this whichever political party anyone supports …
If you take these 14 years, to leave your country in a worse state, after 14 years, than you found it is unforgivable in politics, which ever party you support.
I fundamentally believe that, and I’m not prepared to see a Labour government that doesn’t materially improve our country so that we could genuinely look back in five or 10 years’ time and say, ‘Do you know what? It is better now than it was?’
Starmer says he thinks 'most reasonable, tolerant people' want what Labour wants for Britain
Q: Two weeks ago some of Labour’s traditional voters abandoned the party because of issues like Gaza. How will you win them back?
Starmer says the local elections showed the party can win anywhere.
He says he is offering a decade of national renewal. You don’t have to be “tribally Labour” to want things to improve for your family. He thinks most people want that.
He says he genuinely thinks “most reasonable, tolerant people” in the country wants what Labour wants for Britain.
I genuinely think that most reasonable, tolerant people in this country – and that’s the vast majority – do want to see … their country move forward.
Updated
Q: Tony Blair had five pledges, you have six. He had New Labour, you have Changed Labour. He took this tie off, yours if off too. Are you just a copycat Blair?
Starmer says the most important thing about Blair is that he won three elections.
And he says there are only three leaders who have taken Labour from opposition into power. All of them did so by focusing on the future, he says.
He says he is not copying any of his predecessors. He is focused on the challenges of today.
Q: Will you keep the guidance on sex education in schools pubished by the government today?
Starmer says what has come out today is a draft consultation. He has not looked at it yet. He will want to see whether it is “far removed” from what happens at the moment. He suggests Labour will take a view when the consultation is over.
Q: How important to you is cutting child poverty? And will you get rid of the two-child benefit limit?
Starmer says ending child poverty is central to what he wants to achieve. But he says he is only going to promise policies before the election that he is in a position to implement.
Q: Three of these pledges, on the NHS, the economy and migration, are very similar to Tory policies. Are you really offering change? And are you afraid of being more bold?
Starmer says small boat arrivals are at record levels. That is because the Tory policy is a gimmick, he says and not working.
And NHS waiting lists are are a record level too, he says.
Q: [From ITV’s Robert Peston] Living standards have not improved in 16 years, and Gordon Brown is saying the number of children living in poverty is at a record level. What do you say to people who say these proposals are not ambitious enough?
Starmer says he is worried that the Tories have “beaten the hope out of people … the hope that politics can be a force for good”. It is important to rebuild trust, he says.
He stresses that these are first steps. But he says he does not accept they are “small” measures. For example, he says enabling someone to get an operation will make “a massive difference” to patients.
Starmer rejects claim he has scaled back on his ambitions
Starmer is now taking questions.
Q: [From Sky’s Beth Rigby] Why are you scaling back on your ambitions?
Starmer says he is not doing that.
He says he is following his strategy. First, change the Labour party. Second, expose the government as incompetent, “ably assisted by some of the their prime ministers”.
And next he wants to show people how he will change the country.
These are just first steps, he says. They are a “downpayment” on the missions he has already set out.
The missions are still there, he says.
So this approach is consistent with his strategy.
On antisocial behaviour, Starmer says, as DPP and as a politician, he has often heard people say this is a low-level problem, and not that important. But that is “completely wrong”, he says. People should be able to live in communities where they feel safe.
And, on education, he says Rishi Sunak is fond on lecturing people on the need for pupils to study maths until they are 18.
But there are not enough maths teachers, he says.
He says he was the first person in his family to go to university. And he talks about Somers Town in his constituency. It is one of the most deprived places in the country. But it is very close to the Kings Cross development where companies like Google and the Guardian are based, he says. He says children growing up in Somers Town can see these buildings, but cannot imagine working there. He wants to change that. He wants every child, whatever their background, to think they can succeed.
On small boats, Starmer says his experience as director of public prosecutions taught him that it is possible to deal with the criminal gangs behind people smuggling.
And, on energy, he says the government’s failure to properly invest in renewable energy is a classic example of what he calls “sticking plaster politics” – coming up with policy ideas that do not deal with long-term problems.
Turning to the waiting list pledge, Starmer recalls driving to Manchester at the weekend to watch an Arsenal match, and says that when he stopped at a service station, a woman recognised him and came up to tell him about her health experience. She had already been waiting 18 months for an operation to deal with a painful eye condition, and had recently been told she would have to wait another 12 months. He says people tell him stories like this quite regularly now.
Starmer is now running through the six commitments.
He starts with the economy, and says Labour is focusing on economic stability because it knows that damage done when the government loses control of the economy, as it did under Liz Truss. He says, when that happens, it is working people who pay the price.
He recalls meeting a family whose mortage soared as a result of the Truss mini-budget. As a result, they decided they could not afford to have a second child, he says. That is a decision that will affect them for the rest of their lives, he says.
Starmer recalls visting a hospital in Liverpool where the biggest reason for children being admitted was the need for medical help with rotten teeth. Those children were paying a very heavy price for the neglect they had experienced at the hands of the government.
Starmer says 'first steps' announced today are start of ambition to change Britain
Keir Starmer is speaking now.
He was introduced by Haruna Hamza, a Thurrock resident, who said that he used to vote Conservative but that he is now supporting Labour because the Tories have “let the country down”. He said other people felt the same way, which is why Labour gained the council in the local elections.
Starmer starts by saying how moving the stories presented by the earlier speakers were.
He says they were all talking about change.
He says he is not offering “gimmicks”. There is “no quick fix to the mess that the Tories have made of this country.”, he says.
He says he has ambitions for the country. “And like all ambition that starts with first steps”.
The Labour pledges are called first steps. (See 10.12am.)
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Tito Molukwu, a student at the LSE, is speaking now. She talks about an inspirational teacher at her secondary school who encouraged all her pupils to believe that they could fulfil their career dreams.
Bridget Phillipson, the shadow education secretary, goes next. She says schools have been neglected under the Tories.
Schools that are literally crumbling around the next generation where one in five children are regularly not in class, and where thousands of lessons every week are being taught by teachers not expert in their subject.
Here is the education pledge.
6) Recruit 6,500 new teachers in key subjects to prepare children for life, work and the future, paid for by ending tax breaks for private schools.
There is now a video from Danny Paul, who describes being a victim of crime. Antisocial behaviour is a real problem in his area, he says. He says he often does not go to sleep until the early hours because he has to stay awake checking his family is safe.
Yvette Cooper, the shadow home secretary, says “no one comes and nothing is done” is what most people say about how the police respond to crime.
She says security is the bedrock for everything else. Labour’s crime mission is about making communities feel safe, she says.
And she highlights the pledge.
5) Crack down on antisocial behaviour with more neighbourhood police paid for by ending wasteful contracts, tough new penalties for offenders, and a new network of youth hubs.
The party is now showing a video of people talking about how they are struggling with energy bills and the cost of living.
Ed Miliband, the shadow energy secretary, is up now. He highlights the energy pledge.
4) Set up Great British Energy a publicly-owned clean power company, to cut bills for good and boost energy security, paid for by a windfall tax on oil and gas giants.
The next speaker was Cathy Haenlein, director of organised crime and policing studies at RUSI, the foreign policy thinktank. She said there was a lot more that could be done to tackle the criminal gangs engaged in people smuggling.
The next speaker is Mike Tapp, Labour’s candidate in Dover and Deal. A former solider, he highlights the Labour pledge for a Border Security Command.
3) Launch a new Border Security Command with hundreds of new specialist investigators and use counter-terror powers to smash the criminal boat gangs.
He is followed by Neil Basu, a former assistant commissioner at the Metropolian police. In a video message, he also endorses the Labour plan.
Wes Streeting, the shadow health secretary, goes next. He highlights the health pledge.
2) Cut NHS waiting times with 40,000 more appointments each week, during evenings and weekends, paid for by cracking down on tax avoidance and non-dom loopholes.
And he introduced someone he describes as the most remarkable man he knows, Nathaniel Dye, a cancer patient who has a terminal illness.
Dye says it is almost certain that he will be dead in three to four years.
He says it took more than a 100 days for his treatment to start, when it was supposed to start within 62 days. He says, if he had been treated more quickly, his cancer might have been stopped.
He says he hopes Labour will stop more people being in his situation.
UPDATE: From the FT’s Jim Pickard
this is the inspirational guy who just spoke at Starmer's pledge launch:
— Jim Pickard 🐋 (@PickardJE) May 16, 2024
Nathaniel Dye, who ran the London marathon - while playing the trombone - despite suffering from stage four bowel cancer https://t.co/sblQlNOlpL.
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Boots CEO Seb James backs Labour's approach at pledge card launch
At the Labour event a video is now being shown of Seb James, the Boots CEO, endorsing the party.
James says businesses need a stable economy and a business that listens.
And he says he was particularly impressed by Keir Starmer’s committed to reviving high streets when they met. There is a Boots on almost every high street, he says.
And he says Boots customers are worried about the cost of living.
We of course welcome sensible, fiscal measures to help [put] more money in people’s pockets and grow the economy, and that’s what I hope is going to happen.
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Here are the six Labour pledges in full.
Rachel Reeves, the shadow chancellor, is the second speaker.
She says Labour has changed the party so it might have a chance to change the country.
The first of the six “steps to change Britain” announced today is on the economy.
1) Deliver economic stability with tough spending rules, so we can grow our economy and keep taxes, inflation and mortgages as low as possible.
Reeves says, unlike the Tories, she will never play fast and loose with the public finances.
Labour launches its election pledges
The Labour event in Thurrock, where the party is launching its election pledges, has just started. Angela Rayner, the deputy leader, is opening the proceedings.
We’ve been told the event will go on for 90 minutes, and there are suggestions that every member of the shadow cabinet will get to speak.
Keegan says she does not know how extensive 'inappropriate' sex education is as she publishes guidance to curb it
Gillian Keegan, the education secretary, has been giving interviews this morning about new guidance for schools in England on sex education that says “the contested theory of gender identity” should not be taught. The proposals were briefed to right-leaning papers earlier this week, but the Department for Education has only now issued a press notice. The new version of the guidance does not seem to be available online yet.
In interviews this morning, Keegan claimed the government had to act because pupils were being exposed to “inappropriate” material. She told the Today programme:
I’ve seen some materials where they talk about gender identity being a spectrum, there being many different genders looking at you know, trying to get children [to] do quizzes on you know, what’s a different gender identity and what isn’t.
Ignoring biological sex in the material I saw anyway … and a lot of that material has caused concern.
Asked how widespread the problem was, she admitted she did not know. She replied:
I don’t think it’s widespread, I mean, I don’t know because you know, it’s not something that we’ve gone and done a particular survey of.
Keegan also distanced herself from a comment she made in 2020 saying “trans women are women”. She said that, while she was happy to say she regarded a man who had gone through gender reassignment and surgery as a woman, that was not her view of all trans women.
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Labour will only win election by appealing to Tory voters, says shadow minister ahead of Starmer speech
Good morning. Westminster is still waiting for the formal announcement about the date of the general election, but voters will have noticed that the campaign is already well underway and today we are getting a landmark moment; the formal unveiling of the Labour party’s doorstep, retail offer – the six pledges it will prioritise in the short campaign. Pippa Crerar has the story here.
The Labour promises are very similar to the pledge card used by Tony Blair and New Labour in 1997. At the time this was seen as an innovative, and successful, campaign tactic. Labour is not calling this version a pledge card – as Pippa explains in her story, the party thinks voters are more wary of “pledges” from politicians than they were in the Blair era – but in practice it is the same thing.
One obvious complaint is that there is nothing very leftwing about the offer – nothing about reducing child poverty, or inequality – and almost nothing that Rishi Sunak would not be happy to put his name to. (The Tories are not proposing a new, publicly-owned energy company, but the other five Labour promises all broadly equate to things the Tories already say they want to do or are doing.)
Pat McFadden, Labour’s national campaign coordinator, was doing interviews this morning and, on the Today programme, he defended the party’s decision to reach out to the middle ground.
Prompted by a question about the Natalie Elphicke defection, he said:
What it says about the party is that it’s changed, and that there are perhaps people looking at it today in a different light.
And I have an obvious message for listeners, and for anyone thinking of voting at the next election. We will not win the next election just by appealing to the people who always voted labour.
The only way you’re going to win the next election is by appealing to people who haven’t traditionally voted for you and who have voted Conservative in many cases in recent elections.
That is what the difference between losing and winning is, and there’s nothing to be ashamed of in that.
Here is the agenda for the day.
10am: Keir Starmer launches the Labour party’s election pledge card, described by the party as its “first steps for change” offer, at an event in Thurrock.
10am: Sue Gray, who is now Starmer’s chief of staff, gives evidence to the UK Covid inquiry in Belfast in her capacity as permanent secretary at Northern Ireland’s Department of Finance during the pandemic.
11.30am: Downing Street holds a lobby briefing.
After 11.30am: MPs debate the report from the Parliamentary and Health Service Ombudsman saying up to £10bn should be paid to women who lost out because they did not get proper warning about the state pension age rising.
Noon: John Swinney takes first minister’s questions at Holyrood.
12.15pm: Tom Tugendhat, the security minister, gives a speech on Taiwan at the Policy Exchange thinktank.
1pm: Theresa May, the former PM, speaks at a press gallery lunch.
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