General election 2024: Starmer to promise to ‘close the door’ on Putin – as Sunak prepares to put forward plan to cut immigration
Sir Keir Starmer will promise to “close the door” on Vladimir Putin with his homegrown energy plan – while Rishi Sunak will propose an annual visa cap to try to reduce immigration as election campaigning continues today.
The prime minister will look to win over voters after what was perhaps his toughest day of the campaign so far on Monday – with some Conservatives fearing Nigel Farage’s decision to lead the Reform party could split the Tory vote.
Mr Farage is also standing to be an MP in Clacton and will launch his campaign in the Essex constituency today.
A difficult day was made worse for Mr Sunak when a YouGov poll suggested Labour could be on course to win a historic landslide – with the party projected to win a 194-seat majority.
General election latest: Follow live updates
On day 14 of the campaign, Labour leader Sir Keir will claim his party’s plan to set up a publicly owned clean energy company, GB Energy, will help to protect the UK from spikes in the price of fuel like those that followed Russia’s invasion of Ukraine.
He will say: “With Great British Energy, my changed Labour Party will close the door on Putin.
“Energy policy is now a matter of national security. It is a key component of our country’s resilience and capacity to weather future shocks.
“We simply cannot afford to remain as vulnerable to price spikes as we have been in the past.
“Keeping the lights on and heating our homes should not mean leaving our front door open to Russia.”
Labour has said GB Energy will be headquartered in Scotland and funded through a windfall tax on big oil and gas firms, with an initial £8.3bn capitalisation over the course of a parliament.
Read more about the general election:
Analysis: Panic will spread through Tory ranks after poll
Who will win the election? Check our poll tracker
Labour has launched its GB Energy policy – do we need it?
What could possibly go wrong? A history of TV debates
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Who loses most from Farage move?
Meanwhile, the Conservatives will propose an annual cap on worker and family visas in their efforts to ensure immigration figures fall year on year if they are still in government after the election.
More than 10,000 migrants have arrived in the UK so far this year after crossing the Channel and immigration has become a key campaign battleground.
The proposed plan would give parliament a direct role in setting levels of migration, with MPs having a vote on the number.
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Grant Shapps calls Sam Coates live on TV
Mr Sunak will say: “We have taken bold action to cut the number of people coming to this country. The plan is working but migration levels are still too high, so we are going further.
“Labour’s migrant amnesty will make the UK a global magnet for illegal immigrants and they have no plan to reduce net migration, while we have a clear plan to stop the boats and put a legal cap on numbers.
“The Conservatives are the only party that is willing take the bold action needed to cut immigration figures.”
The annual cap would be imposed on the number of visas that can be granted to those coming to the UK on work or family routes.
Temporary work routes, such as seasonal agricultural workers, would not fall within the cap.
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Meanwhile, the Liberal Democrats are promising action on an issue described as “deeply personal” for party leader Sir Ed Davey, as they say day-to-day care for adults in need, including the elderly and disabled, would be free.
Provision of care should be based on need rather than ability to pay, the party said, as it promised what it described as free personal care for people either at home or in care homes.
This would cover nursing care, help with mobility, hygiene and medication, it said, adding that people in residential care would still have to contribute towards their accommodation.
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Sir Ed said: “As a carer for my disabled son, and after caring for my ill mother when I was young, care is deeply personal for me.
“That is why I am putting fixing the care crisis at the heart of the Liberal Democrat offer to the country at this election.”
The party said its plan for England – based on the model introduced by the Lib Dems in government in Scotland in 2002 – would cost £2.7bn a year by 2028-29 and would be “fully funded” by reversing tax cuts for the big banks since 2016.
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Politics
£104bn of water industry investment will come from bill payers, environment secretary concedes
Steve Reed has conceded that the bulk of the £104bn of water industry investment which he boasts Labour has attracted since coming to office will come from bill payers.
In an interview with Sky News, the environment secretary sought to blame the previous Tory government for a string of high profile investors walking away from the sector over the last year.
Mr Reed does not accept claims that further threats to jail water bosses and promises to curb price rises have deterred investment.
Instead, he told Sky News that “by bringing in the £104bn of private sector investment that we secured at the end of last year, we can make sure that the investment is going in to support” the industry.
When challenged that the £104bn was total expenditure not total investment, and that bill payers would pay back this expenditure over the coming decades, Mr Reed conceded this was right – and the money ultimately is coming from bill payers.
“The money comes in from investors up front so we can do that spending straight away,” he said.
“Over decades, the investors got a modest return from the bills that customers are paying. That’s how investment works.”
Some investors have warned they do not think it viable to fund the UK water sector because of the hostile political tone of ministers and lack of certainty.
Ministers have said the government does not want to renationalise water as it would mean years of legal wrangling and cost a lot of money.
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Minister rules out nationalising the water
Labour has launched a record 81 criminal investigations into water companies over sewage dumping since winning the election last year.
Water company bosses could be jailed for up to five years and the companies fined hundreds of millions of pounds if they are found guilty.
Mr Reed committed to not interfering with those prosecutions, saying it would be “highly inappropriate” for any minister to do so.
Read more:
Key recommendations from the water report
Labour to eliminate unauthorised sewage spillages in 10 years
He rejected suggestions ministers will be pressured to ensure water bosses do not serve jail time as this will deter investors.
“It’s a judicial process, it would be highly inappropriate for any ministerial interference in the process,” Mr Reed said.
“They will work their way through the court system, as they should do, and ministers will decide on sanctions after.”
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