Keir Starmer makes pitch to Tory voters looking in ‘horror at descent of party’
Sir Keir Starmer has called on Conservative voters looking in “horror at the descent of your party” to join Labour as he vowed to create “a Britain built to last”.
In a keynote speech at the annual party conference in Liverpool, the Labour leader expressed his ambition for two terms in government to heal “13 years of Tory wounds” through a “decade of national renewal”.
In a pitch to blue-wall voters, Sir Keir said the government’s mindset is to “exploit problems not solve them”.
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He added: “So if you are a Conservative voter who despairs of this, if you look in horror at the descent of your party into the murky waters of populism and stability, with no argument for economic change.
“If you feel that our country needs a party that conserves, that fights for our union, our environment, the rule of law, family life, the careful bond between this generation and next.
“Then let me tell you: Britain already has one. And you can join it. It’s called the Labour Party.”
The hour-long speech was not policy-heavy but set out the defining values of a government led by Sir Keir if he wins the next election.
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Protester interrupts Starmer’s speech
With a theme of “getting Britain building again” recurring throughout, Sir Keir repeated promises for 1.5 million new homes, new towns, modernised infrastructure and support for green industries.
The plans, trailed by Labour earlier this morning, involve “bulldozing” planning restrictions and giving state-backed companies powers to acquire land cheaply in order to create new suburbs with amenities such as GPs and transport links “hardwired” into them.
It replicates the policy of Clement Attlee’s post-war government which built 10 new towns during the 1950s, with Sir Keir saying that “sometimes the old Labour ideas are right for new times”.
In a nod to what could be a key battleground issue at the next election, Sir Keir said the plans don’t mean “tearing up the greenbelt” but where that protection was “clearly ridiculous” – like disused car parks – “then this can’t be justified as a reason to hold our future back”.
Repeating the argument made by shadow chancellor Rachel Reeves yesterday, he stressed the need for “iron discipline” with the public finances, but insisted that planning reforms will help grow the economy by creating jobs and attracting investment.
Elsewhere in the speech, the Labour leader set out the importance of helping people with the cost of living squeeze and reforming the NHS from a “sickness service” to one which focused on preventing illness.
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A protester throws glitter on Starmer as he begins his speech
He has previously promised to end non-dom tax status to funnel money into the health service and said Labour would “guarantee” mental health treatment, end the “8am scramble” for a GP appointment and consign “dangerous waits” for cancer treatment to history.
Despite his party enjoying consistent double-digit poll leads over the Tories, Sir Keir has acknowledged there is still work to do to win over voters and has been using the conference, likely the last before the next election, to give people a reason to back him other than being fed up with the current incumbents of Downing Street.
Sir Keir said in his speech he was seeking “to answer the question ‘why Labour?’ with a plan for a Britain built to last”.
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Was Starmer’s speech light on policy?
Speech ‘really sparkled’
The speech was briefly disrupted by a protester who stormed the stage and threw glitter over the Labour leader – but Sir Keir brushed the incident off by insisting it showed why he had changed his party from one of protest to one ready for power – in a dig at former leader Jeremy Corbyn.
Fans of the speech also sought to make light of the issue with Gavin Sibthorpe, a GMB union political officer chairing the next session, who said: “Conference, wasn’t Keir brilliant? He made a speech which really sparkled.”
However, while lots of union figures praised Sir Keir, Sharon Graham, general secretary of Unite, repeated her calls for him to be bolder with “big ticket” policies such as nationalising energy.
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The return on Donald Trump to the G7 was always going to be unpredictable. That it is happening against the backdrop of an escalating conflict in the Middle East makes it even more so.
Expectations had already been low, with the Canadian hosts cautioning against the normal joint communique at the end of the summit, mindful that this group of leaders would struggle to find consensus.
Canadian Prime Minister Mark Carney carefully laid down an agenda that was uncontroversial in a bid to avoid any blow-ups between President Trump and allies, who of late have been divided like never before – be it over tariffs and trade, Russia and Ukraine, or, more recently Israel’s conduct in Gaza.
But discussions around critical minerals and global supply chains will undoubtedly drop down the agenda as leaders convene at a precarious moment. Keir Starmer, on his way over to Canada for a bi-lateral meeting in Ottawa with PM Carney before travelling onto the G7 summit in Kananaskis, underscored the gravity of the situation as he again spoke of de-escalation, while also confirmed that the UK was deploying more British fighter jets to the region amid threats from Tehran that it will attack UK bases if London helps defend Israel against airstrikes.
Canadian PM Mark Carney is greeted by President Donald Trump at the White House in May. Pic: AP
Really this is a G7 agenda scrambled as world leaders scramble to de-escalate the worst fighting between Tel Aviv and Tehran in decades. President Trump has for months been urging Israel not to strike Iran as he worked towards a diplomatic deal to halt uranium enrichment. Further talks had been due on Sunday – but are now not expected to go ahead.
All eyes will be on Trump in the coming days, to see if the US – Israel’s closest ally – will call on Israel to rein in its assault. The US has so far not participated in any joint attacks with Tel Aviv, but is moving warships and other military assets to the Middle East.
Sir Keir, who has managed to strike the first trade deal with Trump, will want to leverage his “good relationship” with the US leader at the G7 to press for de-escalation in the Middle East, while he also hopes to use the summit to further discuss the further the interests of Ukraine with Trump and raise again the prospects of Russian sanctions.
“We’ve got President Zelenskyy coming so that provides a good opportunity for us to discuss again as a group,” the PM told me on the flight over to Canada. “My long-standing view is, we need to get Russia to the table for an unconditional ceasefire. That’s not been really straightforward. But we do need to be clear about what we need to get to the table and that if that doesn’t happen, sanctions will undoubtedly be part of the discussion at the G7.”
Prime Minister Sir Keir Starmer (R) is greeted by Mark Carney as he arrives in Ottawa ahead of the G7
But that the leaders are not planning for a joint communique – a document outlining what the leaders have agreed – tells you a lot. When they last gathered with Trump in Canada for the G7 back in 2018, the US president rather spectacularly fell out with Justin Trudeau when the former Canadian president threatened to retaliate against US tariffs and refused to sign the G7 agreement.
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Since then, Trump has spoken of his desire to turn Canada into the 51st state of the US, a suggestion that helped catapult the Liberal Party beyond their Conservative rivals and back into power in the recent Canadian elections, as Mark Carney stood on a ticket of confronting Trump’s aggression.
With so much disagreement between the US and allies, it is hard to see where progress might be made over the next couple of days. But what these leaders will agree on is the need to take down the temperature in the Middle East and for all the unpredictability around these relationships, what is certain is a sense of urgency around Iran and Israel that could find these increasingly disparate allies on common ground.
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