Sir Keir Starmer reveals new ‘milestones’ but bringing down migration fails to make list
Sir Keir Starmer has promised change as he outlined his government’s “milestones” – but bringing migration down failed to make the list.
The prime minister revealed the government’s six milestones he said would be reached by the end of this parliament.
He said they would “drive forward” his party’s missions and allow the public to “hold our feet to the fire”.
Politics latest: Starmer says milestones are ‘really risky’ for Labour
Billed as a “Plan for Change”, which he insisted was not a reset, migration was not on the list of milestones despite Labour previously saying borders and the economy were their two top priorities.
Quizzed on why it was not, Sir Keir told Sky News’ political editor Beth Rigby that migration needs to come down – something he has said before.
Sir Keir said: “It is our duty to do it [bring migration down]. And we will do it.”
He refused to set a target or timeline.
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Where is immigration in PM’s milestones?
The milestones Sir Keir announced are:
• Raising living standards in every part of the UK – aim to deliver highest sustained growth in the G7
• Rebuilding Britain – build 1.5m homes in England and fast track planning decisions on at least 150 major infrastructure projects
• Ending hospital backlogs – 92% of patients will wait no longer than 18 months
• Putting police back on the beat – with 13,000 additional officers and a named police officer for every neighbourhood
• Giving children the best start in life – getting 75% of five-year-olds in England ready to learn when they start school
• Securing home grown energy – putting the UK on track to at least 95% clean power by 2030.
Net Zero Secretary Ed Miliband said the official definition of net zero was 95% clean energy. Pic: PA
Sir Keir admitted Labour’s target to build 1.5 million new homes by 2029 may be “a little too ambitious” but denied he was going to change it.
He said the government faces an “almighty challenge” to hit these milestones by the end of this parliament as he denied the goals are not ambitious, saying they are “really risky” for Labour.
The PM was also questioned by journalists over the government’s net zero target because the Plan for Change document said the milestone of securing home grown energy would put the UK “on track to have at least 95% clean power by 2030”.
He insisted it was not a revision of Labour’s original target to get to 100% net zero by 2030.
Net Zero Secretary Ed Miliband said after the speech the Climate Change Committee’s original definition of “clean power…is 95% low-carbon, zero-carbon energy and that’s the definition we’re using”.
Sir Keir also used his speech to accuse Whitehall of becoming “comfortable with failure” and promised “a profound cultural shift away from a declinist mentality”, as well as honesty about the “trade-offs” required to achieve his aims.
Conservative Alex Burghart said the speech showed Labour had lost their way. File Pic: PA
Senior Conservative Alex Burghart said he thought the speech was “probably the first reset of many” and accused Labour of having “clearly lost their way”.
“It is very difficult to believe anything that this government says,” he said.
“And this is a government that broke its promise to pensioners, broke its promises to businesses, to working people, to farmers. You know, the list goes on.
“So, it’s all very well them coming up with a bunch of pledges today but they’ve got a track record of not doing what they say they are going to do. So why should we listen to them now?”
An amber warning has been issued for snow in a part of the UK, likely to cause travel delays and “stranding some vehicles and passengers”.
The warning, which covers south west England, also warns some rural communities could become cut off and is in place until 2pm this evening.
Pic: Met Office
There is also a yellow weather warning for snow covering the southern counties of England until midnight on Wednesday.
The warning stretches from Kent to Cornwall and up to south London and the Met Office said between 2cm and 5cm of snow could accumulate fairly widely, with as much as 10cm over higher ground.
This week is expected to see the coldest nights of the year, with temperatures potentially reaching -14C on Wednesday night and -16C on Thursday night, both in the North East of England and Scotland, the Met Office said.
Weather warnings issued on Tuesday for snow and ice covering the parts of Wales, the North West of England, west and northern parts of Scotland as well as Northern Ireland will remain in place until midnight tomorrow.
The forecaster said some roads and railways are likely to be affected and there could be icy patches on untreated roads.
Pics: AP
Meanwhile the Environment Agency has said at least 300 properties have flooded across England since New Year’s Eve. It estimates more than 41,000 properties have been protected.
Heavy rainfall over the New Year caused significant river and surface water flooding across the North West of England and Yorkshire and snowmelt has brought further disruption to parts of England, particularly the Midlands, the agency said.
Read more from Sky News:
Terrifying firestorm rips through home of film stars and billionaires
Homes destroyed – how people are coping with floods
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Man says flooding ‘came out of nowhere’
Floods minister Emma Hardy said: “My sympathies go out to the people, businesses and communities impacted by the recent flooding across the country.
“I want to express my heartfelt thanks for the vital work that the Environment Agency and emergency services are doing to keep people safe. People must continue to follow their advice and sign up for flood warnings.”
Flood warnings
Some 100 flood warnings were in force across England on Wednesday, with people urged to remain vigilant over the coming days.
A danger-to-life warning was issued on Tuesday morning for the River Soar near Barrow upon Soar, Leicestershire, but was later removed.
People living in caravan parks in the area were urged by the Environment Agency to act, with a large-scale evacuation needed to save lives.
Firefighters have rescued dozens of people across Leicestershire since Monday, Leicestershire Fire and Rescue Service said.
Hundreds of schools were closed across the UK, with road and rail links blocked, as Manchester, Bristol and Liverpool John Lennon airports suspended flights because of the conditions.
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