Sir Keir Starmer says there is ‘no evidence’ private schools will have to close due to Labour’s VAT plans
Sir Keir Starmer has said there is “no evidence” private schools will be forced to close due to Labour’s plans to impose VAT on them.
Speaking to Sky’s Sophy Ridge, the Labour leader defended his party’s education policy to use the money to support state schools.
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“I think they will adapt,” he said. “They’ve had lots of increases in costs over the last 14 years and they’ve accommodated it.
“There’s no evidence to show these schools will close. They don’t have to pass the cost on to parents.”
Labour leader Sir Keir Starmer with Sky’s Sophy Ridge on Thursday
Private schools are currently exempt from VAT – but the Labour Party has pledged to close the current loophole.
Sir Keir was grilled on the policy at the Sky News Leaders’ event in Grimsby.
It’s a difficult choice’
Addressing parents’ concerns, he added: “It’s a difficult choice. But they’re businesses in the end and they’re very successful in the round.
“I want them to thrive. But we need to make this choice, because in the end, if I want the teachers we need in our state secondary schools, I have to answer the question you would put to me, just how are you going to pay for that?
“You’re going to pay for that by getting rid of the tax breaks for private schools, and use it to invest in the teachers we need in our state secondaries.”
Sir Keir was also pressed on the recent backlash to the policy, which Ms Ridge suggested may be related to “many people in Westminster and in the media who either went to private school or send their children there”.
“I think there’s an element of that,” he replied.
Grammer school background
The Labour leader spoke to Sky News following the final TV debate between he and Prime Minister Rishi Sunak before voters go to the polls on 4 July.
A snap Sky News poll suggested the public viewed their performance at the event in Nottingham on Wednesday equally.
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Sunak and Starmer’s final face-off
Ms Ridge also quizzed the Labour leader on his own education. He attended a grammar school in Surrey, which became private while he was there.
Asked how he felt about the change, he said: “I don’t think I even appreciated it.
“If you ask all the people that were at school with me – we started off as state grammar school boys, paid for by the local authority – we ended up as state grammar school boys paid for by the local authority.”
He stressed the funding and support from the council remained the same.
“It’s obviously very different now, but it is very important to me that every child has those opportunities,” he added.
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The Labour leader says his first steps should he be in Downing Street on 5 July are 40,000 extra NHS appointments to reduce waiting lists, recruiting secondary school teachers, and setting up ‘Great British Energy’ to minimise energy bill rises.
NHS fit ‘for the future’
Specifically on the NHS, he said he aims to “change the very model of the NHS” to “make much greater use of AI” and ensure it is more preventative and community-based.
“Creating the NHS is one [moment] we celebrate every year,” he said.
“I want to make sure that in the 50, 60, 70 years people are celebrating the fact that an incoming Labour government in 2024 made sure the NHS was not something to just proudly look back on, but is actually built fit for the future.”
Asked for his general feelings as the election campaign comes to an end, he said: “We’ve been here for four-and-a-half years.
“I woke up with a smile on my face on 1 January, because I knew we’d have an election this year.
“We’re ready for this. We’ve got a positive offer to put to the country. So we’re campaigning with a smile and a spring in our step.”
After his rival Mr Sunak told a previous TV debate he eats too much Haribo during election campaigns, Sir Keir said coffee was his vice to get him through
“Coffee coupled with cheese sandwiches and tuna sandwiches in the back of that Labour bus,” he said.
A 31-year-old man has been arrested on suspicion of murder after an elderly couple died following a fire at their home in St Helens.
Peter Eric Greener, 77, known as Eric, and his partner Sheila Jackson, 83, were caught in the blaze at their home on South John Street in the early hours of Tuesday.
Mr Greener died on Wednesday, while Ms Jackson died on Thursday.
Eric Greener. Pic: Merseyside Police
Sheila Jackson. Pic: Merseyside Police
Merseyside Police said an accelerant was used to start the fire.
On Sunday, the force said the suspect from St Helens had been arrested on suspicion of murder and remains in custody for questioning.
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Detective Superintendent Rachel Wilson said: “Although an arrest has been made, I would like to take this opportunity to remind people to pass on information directly to police or anonymously via Crimestoppers, and not to comment or post in any way which jeopardises this ongoing work.”
DS Wilson said “extensive enquiries” continue.
She added: “And to that end we are still appealing for anyone with information to come forward, particularly if you live in the area of South John Street and recall seeing or hearing anything suspicious at around the time of the incident.
“Please do not assume what you know has already been reported to us, as we can quickly make that assessment.”
UK
How e-bike riders are doing double the speed limit – and many of them work for fast food delivery firms
It’s lunchtime on Birmingham’s New Street.
Close to its many restaurants, food delivery riders are congregating on their bikes.
The area is packed with shoppers and workers.
PC Paige Gartlan is approaching with other officers. She’s on the lookout for illegally modified e-bikes – and she knows she’ll find them here.
“You can physically tell by looking at the bike that it’s generally going to be illegal – the battery pack is taped on to the sides and generally the size of the motor that’s on the back wheel,” she explains.
Sky News has been invited on an operation by West Midlands Police to find these bikes and get them off the streets.
PC Gartlan has been hit by one before. She’s had to tackle a rider to the floor after he drove into her.
Within minutes, she’s spotted a suspicious-looking bike. The rider makes a run for it – followed by plain-clothed officers.
PC Gartlan tests the bike – it’s showing a top speed of 52km/hr on the speedometer – just over 30mph.
PC Paige Gartlan with a seized e-bike
The speed limit for e-bikes in the UK is 15.5mph when using electric power for assistance.
I look up the street and another two riders have been detained. In less than an hour, officers have confiscated four bikes – all were being ridden by fast food delivery drivers.
The commotion is attracting a lot of attention.
“They are dangerous,” Sandra, who has just finished work, tells me.
Demoz had his bike taken by police
She’s stood watching the riders being questioned. She says she’s had near-misses herself and is worried for the safety of the elderly and children.
It’s not just West Midlands police officers here – immigration officials are carrying out checks too. They’re involved in a nationwide operation, which has seen more than 7,000 arrests in the last year – a 50% increase on last year.
Matthew Foster, the immigration enforcement lead officer for the West Midlands, tells me they’ve already found one individual who has entered the UK unlawfully.
“He’s been detained,” he says, “to affect his removal from the UK.”
Further down the street, police are loading illegally modified bikes on to a van – they’re destined to be crushed. One of them had belonged to Demoz.
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An e-bike seized by West Midlands Police
He’s on his way home, carrying a big box with the logo of one of the main fast food delivery firms on it.
He tells me he used to have an illegal bike, but he thought his new one was legal.
“I make a mistake, I have to say sorry, I will do better for the future,” he says.
I get in touch with the big delivery firms; Deliveroo, Uber Eats, and Just Eat.
Their representatives say they constantly remind workers of their safety obligations, and that they’re all working closely with the government to increase security checks on riders.
As he leaves, Demoz, now bike-free, tells me he’s thinking of changing his job.
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