Starmer to meet with new team of mayors to discuss devolution after local elections boost
Sir Keir Starmer will bring together Labour’s newly expanded team of mayors on Monday to develop a “gold standard” for growing regional economies.
It comes after a string of victories in the local elections, with Labour seizing the West Midlands mayoralty after a knife-edge battle and Sadiq Khan seeing off Tory challenger Susan Hall to win a historic third term in London.
At a meeting in the West Midlands, Sir Keir will tell the mayors that boosting regional growth will be “top of the agenda” in Labour’s devolution plans if it wins the next general election, and that he wants local leaders to be a “core part” of growing their economies.
However, with shadow chancellor Rachel Reeves committing to tough “fiscal rules”, it is not clear if there will be any extra funding for local areas.
Speaking ahead of the first meeting, the Labour leader said: “These local elections showed that the British public is ready to put their trust in this changed Labour Party.
“We will repay that trust by delivering economic growth for everyone, everywhere in partnership with our Labour mayors.
“Our growing team of Labour mayors is already setting the agenda and delivering for local people despite a failing Tory government that is choking off our economy and hoarding power in Westminster.”
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Labour takes Tory ‘crown jewel’ in local elections
Sir Keir has previously pledged to oversee a “fundamental shift” in politics through devolution and its “Take Back Control Act”, which he said would give new powers to regional mayors over transport, skills, energy, and planning – something he branded “full-fat devolution”.
Sky News has previously reported on how Sue Gray, the civil service partygate investigator turned chief of staff, has been key in improving the relationship between the Leader of the Opposition’s Office (LOTO) and the metro mayors, which has sometimes been seen as strained due to disagreements over policy, including the war in Gaza.
In a display of strengthened ties, Sir Keir will tomorrow point to work already being done by Labour’s mayors – such as Andy Burnham’s bus rollout in Greater Manchester – and say this can help set a “gold standard” for future Local Growth Plans.
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But the Conservatives said Labour’s mayors “have spent more time wading in on international issues they have no control over rather than delivering on people’s priorities”.
Tory party chairman Richard Holden added: “We are boosting regional growth and creating thriving communities, investing over £15bn in projects across the UK and backing 75 towns through our Long-Term Plan for Towns. Labour would take us back to square one.”
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Rishi Sunak denies favouring the south with levelling up funding
What seats did Labour win?
Labour’s wins included Richard Parker’s shock victory over Conservative Andy Street in the West Midlands, Claire Ward becoming the East Midlands’s first elected mayor, Kim McGuinness winning the new North East mayoral election, and David Skaith winning the new York & North Yorkshire mayoralty – which includes Mr Sunak’s Richmond constituency.
As well as London, the party retained mayoralties including Greater Manchester, West Yorkshire and the Liverpool City Region.
The Tories held on to the Tees Valley mayoralty but otherwise suffered a mauling from the electorate, also losing nearly 500 council seats and the Blackpool South by-election.
Labour said the Tories had “failed to level up” the country, pointing to its analysis of Office for National Statistics data showing the average gap in gross domestic product per person between London and other combined authorities in England averaged £29,000 in 2022.
Levelling up was at the heart of former prime minister Boris Johnson’s 2019 Conservative manifesto.
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Speaking last month, Sir Keir told Sky News it was the “right policy” but lambasted Mr Johnson’s “failure” to deliver it, while accusing his successor Mr Sunak of “strangling it at birth”.
However, despite criticising the Conservatives for not putting money behind the policy, Sir Keir refused to commit any new funding to local councils, which are straddling an estimated funding gap of £4bn over the next two years.
Politics
Canada joins UK in announcing it will recognise Palestinian state – under certain conditions
Canada is planning to recognise a Palestinian state at the United Nations in September, the country’s prime minister has said.
Mark Carney’s announcement comes a day after the UK said it will recognise Palestine as a state unless Israel meets several conditions.
France became the first G7 country to announce the move last week – while Ireland, Spain and Norway all officially recognised a Palestinian state last year.
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‘The war changed me’
Mr Carney told reporters in Ontario that Canada would do the same on certain conditions – including that the Palestinian Authority commits to fundamentally reforming its governance, and holds general elections in 2026 in which Hamas can play no part.
The Canadian prime minister said he had spoken with Mahmoud Abbas, the president of the Palestinian Authority, earlier in the day.
Following the announcement, the Israeli foreign ministry said in a statement: “The change in the position of the Canadian government at this time is a reward for Hamas and harms the efforts to achieve a ceasefire in Gaza and a framework for the release of the hostages.”
A White House official anonymously told Reuters that US President Donald Trump also believes he would be “rewarding Hamas” if he recognises a Palestinian state and therefore doesn’t plan to do so.
“President Trump’s focus is on getting people fed,” the official added.
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What do Israelis think of UK’s plan to recognise Palestine?
Canada had long stated it would only recognise a Palestinian state at the conclusion of peace talks with Israel.
However, Mr Carney said the reality on the ground – including the starvation of citizens in Gaza – means “the prospect of a Palestinian state is literally receding before our eyes”.
He added: “We are working ourselves, with others, to preserve the possibility of a two-state solution, to not allow the facts on the ground, deaths on the ground, the settlements on the ground, the expropriations on the ground, to get to such an extent that this is not possible.”
The Canadian prime minister also said he “condemns the fact Israel has allowed a catastrophe to unfold in Gaza”.
Read more:
What does recognising a Palestinian state mean?
Children ‘eating out of piles of garbage’ in Gaza
Palestinians carry aid supplies that entered Gaza through Israel, in Beit Lahia in the northern Gaza Strip. Pic: Reuters
Sir Keir Starmer announced the UK could recognise a Palestinian state after he had a meeting with Mr Trump the previous day.
Sir Keir said the conditions Israel would have to meet to avoid such a move included taking substantive steps to end the “appalling situation in Gaza”, and agreeing to a ceasefire.
Some 38 members of the House of Lords, including some of the UK’s most eminent lawyers, have since written to the attorney general to say that recognising a Palestinian state could be a breach of international law, The Times has reported.
They have said the territory may not meet the criteria for statehood under the Montevideo Convention, a treaty signed in 1933.
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Aid dropped into Gaza amid international pressure
Meanwhile, a Downing Street spokesperson confirmed Sir Keir had spoken to Mr Carney over the phone on Tuesday.
The spokesperson said: “They discussed the grave situation in the Middle East and last night’s action by the United States to tackle the severe threat posed by Iran’s nuclear programme.
“Both reiterated their support for a diplomatic solution and agreed that Iran must come back to the negotiating table with the United States as soon as possible.
“They looked forward to continuing their discussions at NATO this week.”
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Gaza’s humanitarian crisis
A global hunger monitor has warned that a worst-case scenario of famine is unfolding in Gaza.
The Hamas-run health ministry reported seven more hunger-related deaths on Wednesday, including a two-year-old girl with an existing health condition.
Meanwhile, at least 48 Palestinians were killed and dozens were wounded while waiting for food at the Zikim Crossing, the main entry point for humanitarian aid to northern Gaza, according to the Shifa Hospital that received the casualties.
It was not immediately clear who opened fire and there was no immediate comment from the Israeli military, which controls the crossing.
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Footage shows young girl in Gaza mourning family
Israeli strikes and gunfire had earlier killed at least 46 Palestinians overnight and into Wednesday, most of them among crowds seeking food, health officials said.
The Israeli military did not immediately comment on any of the strikes. It says it only targets militants and blames civilian deaths on Hamas, because the group’s militants operate in densely populated areas.
US special envoy Steve Witkoff will travel to Israel on Thursday to discuss the next steps to address the situation in Gaza, an American official said.
The report rehashed many of the policy objectives touted by the Trump administration for regulating crypto in the United States.
Proposed filings aim to eliminate the need for individual ETF approvals and come a day after the SEC greenlit in-kind transactions for crypto funds.
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