Category Archives: Keir Starmer

Starmer says people smuggling should be seen as ‘global security threat similar to terrorism’ – UK politics live

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PM gave speech at Glasgow’s Interpol general assembly as Kemi Badenoch works on shadow cabinet appointments

Starmer went on to say the government was “going to treat people smugglers like terrorists”. And he explained what that meant.

So we’re taking our approach to counter terrorism, which we know works, and apply it to the gangs with our new Border Security Command.

We’re ending the fragmentation between policing, Border Force and our intelligence agencies, recruiting hundreds of specialist investigators, the best of the best, from our National Crime Agency, Border Force, immigration enforcement and the CPS [Crown Prosecution Service] and our intelligence agencies, all working together.

We have the powers to trace suspects’ movements using information from the intelligence services.

We can shut down their bank accounts, cut off their internet access, and arrest them for making preparations to act before an attack has taken place.

I will work with anyone serious who could offer solutions of this, anyone, because without coordinated global action, it will not go away.

And unless we bring all the powers we have to bear on this in much the same way as we do for terrorism, then we will struggle to bring these criminals to justice.

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Tory leadership election live: Kemi Badenoch elected new Conservative leader

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Badenoch says Tories need ‘a clear plan to change this country by changing the way that government works’

Here are the results from previous Conservative leadership contests, and from the final MPs’ ballot of this contest, that will help put today’s results in context.

2024 contest

The choice is between two people who each played their part in 14 years of Conservative chaos and decline, and who have refused to apologise it.

Whoever wins, they have learnt nothing.

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The budget: Labour returns to tax and spend – Politics Weekly UK

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Rachel Reeves has finally laid out Labour’s spending plans in the party’s first budget in almost 15 years. The Guardian’s John Harris is joined by political editor Pippa Crerar and political correspondent Kiran Stacey to discuss the fallout

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Labour wants to reverse decline – but with a big budget comes a big risk

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The government knows cynical voters will need to see tangible change in public services and to feel better off

At the final political cabinet before Rachel Reeves delivered her first budget this week, ministers were presented with internal party research on what the public was expecting.

In the months since the general election, they had been fed a regular diet of gloomy warnings about the state of the economic inheritance and, more recently, high levels of pre-budget news coverage, so it was firmly on their horizon.

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NHS will not be turned around in one budget, says Wes Streeting – UK politics live

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Health secretary says measures to be announced on Wednesday would ‘arrest the decline’ amid significant NHS reform

Kemi Badenoch, who is the bookies’ favourite to be the next Conservative leader, has told Times Radio that the contest is poised “neck and neck”.

Interviewed by Kate McCann, Badenoch told listeners:

People are tired of the party looking like it is not out working for the people out there. That is what I want to bring: integrity, and a focus on conviction and conservative values.

There is something very significant that is going on, we are picking a leader of the opposition. People have a choice.

This is a sacrifice, because I worry about the direction of the country.

I worry about a lot of decisions we make, and us not being honest with the public about the serious trade-offs that are going to be required, and not saying enough about how the world is becoming a more dangerous place.

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Lindsay Hoyle criticises chancellor Rachel Reeves for early disclosure of budget details – UK politics live

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Speaker of the House of Commons says it is ‘evident’ Reeves made significant policy announcements in the media, rather than parliament

Jeremy Corbyn and the independent alliance of MPs have issued a letter ahead of the budget with five things they are asking Chancellor Rachel Reeves to implement.

Saying “We have the means to end poverty, we just need the political will”, Corbyn listed five priorities:

Scrap the two-child benefits cap

Reverse cuts to winter fuel

Tax wealth

Protect welfare

Invest in a greener future

It is a national scandal that 4.2 million children and 2.1 million pensioners are living in poverty in the sixth richest country in the world.

You have previously told the British public to prepare for “difficult decisions” to repair this nation’s finances.

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‘Cock-up with the comms’: how Labour announced five non-existent freeports

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Erroneous announcement traced back to briefing note prepared by Treasury officals, ahead of PM’s Samoa trip

When Keir Starmer announced a shake-up in his No 10 operation last month he hoped to put an end to the missteps of his first few months in office. But an embarrassing error by Downing Street this weekend demonstrates how many pitfalls there are for a new government still learning the ropes.

In a press release on Friday, Downing Street said five new freeports would be announced in the budget. The Guardian and other outlets covered the news, which was given first to reporters who had travelled with Starmer to Samoa for the Commonwealth summit. Both the prime minister and his aides answered questions on the policy they had unveiled.

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Keir Starmer vows to ‘embrace harsh light of fiscal reality’ ahead of budget

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PM will defend Labour plans in speech and insist working people need better public services more than lower taxes

Keir Starmer will promise to “embrace the harsh light of fiscal reality” on Monday as his chancellor prepares to unveil a budget that includes billions of pounds’ worth of tax rises and spending cuts.

The prime minister will give a speech in the West Midlands defending Labour’s approach to the economy, as Rachel Reeves prepares to announce what she promises will be as momentous a budget as any in the party’s history.

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Keir Starmer appoints former Blair and Brown aide as his political director

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Claire Reynolds, the director of Labour Women’s Network, will take on task of liaison between No 10, party and MPs

Keir Starmer has appointed a former aide to Tony Blair and Gordon Brown as his new political director in Downing Street.

The prime minister has given the senior role to Claire Reynolds, the director of Labour Women’s Network, who was credited with helping get 100 new female MPs elected this summer.

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World leaders call for restraint after Israel’s airstrikes on Iran

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US and European states urge Tehran not to respond, while Middle Eastern countries condemn Israeli operation

World leaders have called for restraint after the first open Israeli airstrikes on Iran, after Tehran reiterated that it was “entitled and obligated to defend itself”.

The Israeli air force struck about 20 military bases across Iran, including missile and drone manufacturing sites and air defence systems, in the early hours of Saturday.

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‘Time has come’: Commonwealth heads agree to reparatory justice dialogue despite reluctant UK

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UK government stresses it does not pay reparations and said before Chogm summit that issue was not on agenda

Commonwealth leaders have resolved that “the time has come” for a conversation on reparatory justice despite the UK’s insistence that the issue was not on their agenda.

The language, agreed at the Commonwealth heads of government meeting (Chogm) on Saturday, is a blow to the UK, which wanted to avoid reparatory justice being mentioned.

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UK to increase military presence in Indo-Pacific to counter China

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Keir Starmer to announce expansion in region that will also include business club to increase economic ties

The UK will increase its military and economic presence in the Indo-Pacific to support regional stability, Keir Starmer will announce on Saturday.

In an effort to counter China’s influence, ministers will expand the Royal Navy’s presence in the region and carry out more joint patrols with Pacific island nations.

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No 10 clarifies ‘working people’ tax pledge amid confusion over definition – UK politics live

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PM hinted at tax rises for those who earn income from shares and property, saying they did not fit his definition of ‘working people’

Downing Street is blocking moves to include a ban on smoking outdoors in the upcoming Tobacco and Vapes bill amid fierce opposition by the hospitality trade.

No 10 officials privately believe that banning people from lighting up in pub gardens is “an unserious” policy and is not backed by good evidence showing that it harms non-smokers.

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King Charles acknowledges ‘painful’ past as calls for slavery reparations grow at Commonwealth summit

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Some leaders had hoped Charles might use his speech at Chogm in Samoa as an opportunity to apologise for Britain’s colonial past

King Charles acknowledged “painful aspects” of Britain’s past while sidestepping calls to directly address reparations for slavery at the summit of Commonwealth leaders, saying “none of us can change the past, but we can commit … to learning its lessons”.

Charles was speaking to leaders representing 56 Commonwealth nations at the Commonwealth heads of government meeting (Chogm) in the Pacific nation of Samoa, his first time attending the summit since taking the throne. In his speech, the king also addressed the climate crisis, development challenges and paid tribute to Queen Elizabeth.

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State-backed loans to go to firms importing critical minerals into UK

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Rachel Reeves to encourage import of raw materials from Commonwealth countries to counter China’s grip on market

Businesses that import critical minerals to the UK will be given access to state-backed loans in a move to counter China’s dominance in the market.

The chancellor, Rachel Reeves, is expected to announce extra government support to encourage the import of critical minerals such as lithium, graphite and cobalt in her budget next week. Companies that bring supplies of critical minerals into the UK will be able to access state-backed loans under the UK export finance mechanism.

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Keir Starmer seeks 2030 host for troubled Commonwealth Games

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Prime minister trying to secure tournament’s future at Commonwealth summit in Samoa

Keir Starmer will try to find a host country for the 2030 Commonwealth Games this week as ministers try to shore up the tournament’s future.

The prime minister’s spokesperson said Starmer wanted to see “a successful Commonwealth Games from 2030” and would spend time at this week “talking to partners about who may be interested in taking that forward”.

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Jeremy Hunt claims Labour changing debt definition will ‘punish families with mortgages’ – as it happened

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Former chancellor says ‘increasing borrowing means interest rates would be higher for longer’ as Reeves says it will ‘make space for investment’

Nigel Farage, the Reform UK leader, has said that “no one knows” who Robert Jenrick, the Tory leadership contender, is.

Of the two candidates left in the contest, Jenrick is the one who is doing most to appeal to Tories who defected to Reform UK, because he is saying Britain should leave the European convention on human rights.

I know the fella. Is he the chap that one day was on the very much on the left of the Conservative party and is now on the right of the Conservative Party?... No one knows who he is.

I’m sure government can agree that support and providing opportunities for young people should be central to the policy of any government. We are glad to see the government working to build closer economic and cultural ties with Europe. We want to forge a new partnership with our European neighbours, built on cooperation, not confrontation and move to a new comprehensive agreement.

We must build rebuild confidence through seeking to agree partnerships or associations helping to restore prosperity and opportunities for British people.

We are not going to give a running commentary on the negotiations. We will obviously look at EU proposals on a range of issues, but we are clear that we will not return to freedom of movement.

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UK ‘open to discussing non-cash forms of reparatory justice’ for former colonies

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Starmer under pressure from Caribbean countries at Commonwealth talks but is refusing payments or apology

Keir Starmer has opened the door to non-financial reparations for the UK’s role in the transatlantic enslavement, as he came under pressure from Commonwealth leaders to engage in a “meaningful, truthful and respectful” conversation about Britain’s past.

While Downing Street insists that the wider issue of reparations is “not on the agenda” of this week’s Commonwealth heads of government (Chogm) gathering in Samoa, No 10 has accepted it is likely to be referenced in the end-of-summit communique.

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Keir Starmer urged to ‘engage’ on reparations at Commonwealth summit

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Call from head of Caribbean reparations body comes as Bahamas foreign minister claims UK PM will change his position

Britain has a legal and moral case to answer over its historical role in slavery, the chair of the Caribbean’s slavery reparation commission has said, as Keir Starmer continues to reject calls to put the issue on the agenda at the Commonwealth summit.

Responding to the British prime minister’s insistence to “look forward” rather than have “very long endless discussions about reparations on the past” when he meets 55 other country leaders on Friday, the distinguished Caribbean historian Sir Hilary Beckles, who chairs the Caribbean governments’ reparations body, articulated the region’s call to the British government and institutions to “engage in a compassionate, intergenerational strategy to support postcolonial reconstruction”.

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Starmer says he wants to ‘look forward’ and not talk about slavery reparations

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UK prime minister would rather work with nations on ‘future-facing challenges’ at Commonwealth summit

Keir Starmer has insisted he wants to “look forward” rather than have “very long endless discussions about reparations on the past” in his first comments on the issue before the Commonwealth summit.

The prime minister is under pressure to discuss reparatory justice with Commonwealth countries, most of which are former UK colonies, in Samoa this week.

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