Sir Keir Starmer to unveil ‘plan for change’ – what is it and why now?

Published

9 months ago

December 5, 2024

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After five months in power, even the most loyal cabinet members would quietly admit it’s been a rocky run for Sir Keir Starmer and Labour.

The prime minister’s personal polling ratings have tumbled from a +7 in the post-election honeymoon to -29 now.

Many pensioners, business owners, entrepreneurs and farmers are angry, and between the Downing Street power struggles that became front page news, rows over freebies and the first cabinet resignation, it can at times be hard to pinpoint what this government is about and trying to achieve.

Politics latest: Starmer comes under attack over ‘convicted fraudster’ ex-minister

Starmer won big in the summer but is struggling to punch through.

Thursday is a serious attempt to change that. Because this is when Sir Keir will give you, the voter, the nuts and bolts of what to expect in the first half of the ‘decade of renewal’ he has long talked about.

You will be getting a series of “mission milestones” from the prime minister to give you clear markers on which to measure this government and Whitehall – a sharp navigation tool for a government that has been somewhat buffeted by side winds since taking office.

From Thursday onwards the “plan for change” will be, as one person in the top team puts it, the Northern Star of Starmer’s first term in office.

What it looks like will be a checklist of what the government wants to achieve and when it comes to the next election day, you will be able to judge whether Labour have delivered or not.

The pledges will be hung around the missions for government that Sir Keir set out in opposition in February 2023 which then formed the backbone of his manifesto.

In a nutshell, these five missions (a sixth, to tackle small boats was introduced in May 2024) were to turn the UK into the fastest growing economy in the G7, improve the NHS and cut NHS waiting lists, launch a new border security command to drive down small boat crossings, make Britain a clean energy power, safer streets and improve opportunities for all through improvements in childcare, schools and further education.

Turning missions into milestones

On Thursday, those missions will be turned into a set of milestones for this parliament.

The PM hopes it will help voters better understand what he wants to achieve to improve their lives, while giving us all a checklist to hold the government to account.

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Number 10 also wants these “measurable milestones” to galvanise delivery in Whitehall and force reform, be it through the use of artificial intelligence and tech, re-organisation, and efficiency savings.

I’m told there will be two elements to this.

The first part of what the PM will outline is about fixing the foundations – economic stability, secure borders and national security. Within that, the prime minister will make a clear commitment to reduce net migration and reduce small boat crossings.

The second part will be the mission milestones: For the NHS, there will be a pledge to carry out 92% of routine operations and appointments within 18 weeks by March 2029, a target that has not been hit for almost and decade and will require the current 6.7 million waiting list to be halved in the next five years.

Pledge for thousands more police officers

There will be a new promise for 13,000 police officers on the streets with every neighbourhood having a named, contactable police officer in their community, dealing with local issues.

There will be pledges too on early years education and recommitment that all electricity will come from renewables and nuclear by 2030.

On the economy, the prime minister will pledge to improve living standards, as the more abstract mission to have the fastest growing economy in the G7 is made, to quote one government figure, “real for people around the kitchen table”.

Labour know all too well what happened to their US sister party the Democrats when they talked in broad terms about growth rather than telling voters what it really meant for their pocket, so you can expect the ‘growth commitment’ to be turned into some sort of disposable income target.

No migration mission milestone

As I understand it, there will not be a “mission milestone” on migration, which could well raise eyebrows on Thursday given that the prime minister explicitly added tackling small boats to his missions in the run-up to the election.

Five missions became six first steps in the general election campaign as Labour put tackling small boats on the same footing as the other long-term mission with a pledge to set up a new border command to drive down illegal crossings.

At the time, it was seen as an admission from the Labour opposition that they needed to give voters an offer on small boats and illegal migration. To not include it in the “milestones” on which Starmer is prepared to be measured by the public may well raise questions.

For its part, the prime minister’s team has been at pains to stress these new milestones are not an attempt at a reset, but rather a continuation of the mission-led government Sir Keir has been talking about for over 18 months, from opposition into power.

PM unbothered by critics

Insiders say the milestones are the “obvious next step” which Sir Keir and his team were always going to take and follow the processes that have characterised his ascent to the leadership and style of opposition: logical, methodical follow through of ideas he’s been working on.

Those who work with Sir Keir say he tends to be unbothered by the criticism and views it as the rough and tumble of getting on with it as he ploughs ahead with this plan.

But there is an acknowledgement in all of this that to have any hope of holding his fragile and shallow coalition of support together, then Starmer needs to take on, as one government figure put it, “the tsunami of cynicism”.

This cynicism has imbibed our politics in recent years on the back of broken promises around migration, NHS waiting lists, compounded by partygate and the Truss mini-budget that did for the Tories and for any residual trust in politics too, they said.

Tackling Farage and Reform

Sir Keir’s election strategists Pat McFadden, who now runs the cabinet office at the heart of government, and Morgan McSweeney, who now runs Downing Street as the PM’s chief of staff, know that deliverables are their route to being able to answer the populist and insurgency politics driving the rise of Nigel Farage and Reform.

Former cabinet minister Harriet Harman pointed out in our Electoral Dysfunction podcast that if the story of the 2024 election was Reform eating into the Conservative vote, the battle of the next one will also be driven on whether Labour can hold off the party in strongholds such as Wales, Scotland and parts of the Red Wall where Reform came in second in dozens of seats.

If you look at council by-elections since the general election, argues Baroness Harman, Reform have gained 10 points, while Labour have lost 10 points and the Conservative party has stayed put.

Nigel Farage has made no secret of his desire to start taking votes off the new ‘establishment’, the Labour government.

Sir Keir is clearly alive to the threat, as just days after Donald Trump’s victory in the US election the prime minister said the economy and borders were his two top priorities in government.

These are the battlegrounds on which the Tories and Reform will try to fight them, with the former badly damaged on both and the latter now trying to take lumps out of Labour.

Risk in setting milestones

“There’s more at stake than losing the next election,” one senior Labour figure opined to me the other week. “People thinking we cannot fix problems is the real risk for all progressives. If people don’t believe politics can improve things it will only feed more into the politics of division and hate.”

There is also a risk in setting milestones. Too soft and they become meaningless, too ambitious without a concrete plan to deliver them, and you set yourself up to fail. “We have to prioritise and know the route map,’ explained one government figure. “We might not hit it,” they added, acknowledging the jeopardy.

What about Sunak’s targets?

You might remember Rishi Sunak’s five targets – halve inflation, grow the economy, reduce debt, cut waiting lists and stop the boats.

At the time of the general election campaign, we went through these line-by-line in the Sky News Battle for No 10 leadership interviews, and Mr Sunak had to tell a live audience that on NHS waiting lists, stopping small boats and falling debt, he had failed.

He promised the public “no tricks, no ambiguity” and owned those failures before being given the verdict at the ballot box a few weeks later.

When I asked Sir Keir in Rio at the G7 summit what the essence of his leadership was, he said: “I want working people to be better off. I want people to feel the impact of our policies in their pocket so that they can enjoy life in the way they want to, with themselves and their family.

“The basic security is that working people want a decent wage that provides for them in their family. Education allows their children to go as far as their talent will take them, a health service that’s there when they need it. But in a nutshell, it’s about making working people feel better off, and I am determined that that will remain my focus.”

Thursday’s milestones will be built around that central goal to make people better off, in their pockets, and in their lives – be it better schooling for their kids or better access to the local GP or hospital, or cleaner energy.

Tangible pledges on which the prime minister can be measured. It may not be a reset but, if Number 10 gets it right, it has the potential to be a fresh start for a prime minister who has failed to make his mark with the electorate since he won that election.

UK

Police condemn ‘intolerable abuse’ at Palestine Action protest – as more than 425 arrests made

Published

2 hours ago

September 7, 2025

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Police condemn 'intolerable abuse' at Palestine Action protest - as more than 425 arrests made

The Metropolitan Police has condemned the “intolerable” abuse allegedly suffered by officers who were “kicked and spat on” as they arrested more than 400 people at a protest against the banning of Palestine Action as a terror group.

The arrests were made on Saturday at a protest in London against the banning of the proscribed terror group.

Deputy Assistant Commissioner Claire Smart, who led the policing operation, said: “In carrying out their duties today, our officers have been punched, kicked, spat on and had objects thrown at them by protesters.

“It is intolerable that those whose job it is to enforce the law and keep people safe – in this case arresting individuals committing offences under the Terrorism Act – should be subject to this level of abuse.”

The force added some protesters had been both physically and verbally abusive in a “coordinated effort to prevent officers carrying out their duties”, and that more than 25 of the arrests were made for assault.

A spokesperson for Defend Our Juries claimed the rally had been “the picture of peaceful protest” and that the Met Police’s statement about its officers being abused was an “astonishing claim”.

“I’ve been here all day and I haven’t seen any violence or aggression from anyone,” they said. “I’ve only seen aggression and violence from the police.”

It comes as the number of those arrested at the protest rose to more than 425 by around 9pm on Saturday, the Met said, but more arrests were expected.

Officers were seen drawing their batons while demonstrators took action in support of the proscribed terror organisation.

One man was seen with blood streaming down his face behind a barrier after being arrested, while the crowd was heard chanting “shame on you” and “you’re supporting genocide”.

Tense scenes on the western side of Parliament Square saw several protesters fall over in a crush while water was thrown at officers.

Deputy Assistant Commissioner Smart said the majority of protests, including the Palestine Coalition march, attended by around 20,000 people, “passed with very few arrests”.

But “this was not the case at the protest organised by Defend Our Juries in support of the proscribed terrorist organisation Palestine Action”.

“The tactics deployed by supporters of Palestine Action in their attempt to overwhelm the justice system, as well as the level of violence seen in the crowd, required significant resource which took officers out of neighbourhoods to the detriment of the Londoners who rely on them,” she said.

Sky News’ Laura Bundock was at the protest.

She said: “There are hundreds of people here holding their placards proclaiming support for Palestine Action, they know that in itself is a criminal offence and so they are sat around, lying around, waiting to be arrested but with so many people here, it’s taking a long time.”

She added: “Protesters are now appealing to the new home secretary, they don’t see this activism as terrorism and vow they will never back down.”

First arrest after just 12 minutes

The Met announced the first arrests of the day on X just 12 minutes after the protest’s official start time.

The protest’s organiser, Defend Our Juries, said it estimated 1,500 had gathered for the rally, where many of them held signs saying: “I oppose genocide. I support Palestine Action.”

In an update early on Saturday evening, the Met said: “Any assaults against officers will not be tolerated and arrests have already been made. We will identify all those responsible and prosecute to the full extent of the law.”

It had warned before the protest that “expressing support for a proscribed organisation is a criminal offence under the Terrorism Act”.

“Where our officers see offences, we will make arrests,” it said.

Palestine Action has been banned as a terror group since 5 July after MPs voted overwhelmingly in favour of the move proposed by then-home secretary Yvette Cooper, making it illegal to express support for the group.

The ban on the group came shortly after two Voyager aircraft suffered around £7m worth of damage at RAF Brize Norton in Oxfordshire on 20 June.

The Home Office is set to appeal against the High Court ruling allowing Palestine Action’s co-founder, Huda Ammori, to proceed with a legal challenge against the government over the group’s ban.

UK

Cabinet reshuffle: Who’s on Keir Starmer’s new team and who’s out?

Published

2 hours ago

September 7, 2025

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Cabinet reshuffle: Who's on Keir Starmer's new team and who's out?

Sir Keir Starmer has reshuffled his cabinet following Angela Rayner’s resignation after admitting she had not paid enough stamp duty on the purchase of a new home.

The prime minister’s former right-hand woman stepped down as deputy prime minister, housing secretary and deputy leader of the Labour Party after standards adviser Sir Laurie Magnus found she had breached the ministerial code.

Politics latest: Reshuffle after Rayner quits

She paid standard stamp duty on a flat she bought in Hove, East Sussex, in May after taking advice that it counted as her only home due to her disabled son’s trust owning the family home in Ashton-under-Lyne – but it was established she should have paid more.

Her resignation has left a hole around the cabinet table, which Sir Keir is now filling.

It was stressed early on Chancellor Rachel Reeves would remain as chancellor, in an attempt to stop the markets moving.

This is who is moving and where to:

David Lammy – foreign secretary to justice secretary and deputy PM

After flexing his diplomatic muscles with Donald Trump and his deputy JD Vance over the past year, Mr Lammy will now move to the justice brief.

The move is likely to be a blow as the PM had promised, most recently in November, he would be foreign secretary for the whole parliament until 2029.

Although he is no longer holding one of the four great offices of state, he has also been made deputy prime minister, presumably to soften the blow.

Mr Lammy is close to Sir Keir, both as a friend and in his next door constituency, and was seen grinning as he went into Number 10 after being appointed.

Yvette Cooper – home secretary to foreign secretary

The Labour stalwart had made tackling illegal migration a priority, so the move could be seen as a disappointment for her.

However, she remains in one of the four great offices of state – PM, chancellor, foreign and home.

Shabana Mahmood – justice secretary to home secretary

A big promotion, the straight-talking Labour MP will be tasked with tackling the small boats crisis and asylum seeker hotel protests.

She is no stranger to making difficult decisions, deciding to free criminals early to reduce prison overcrowding as justice secretary.

Her move makes it the first time all three great offices of state, after the prime minister, are held by women.

Pat McFadden – chancellor of the Duchy of Lancaster and intergovernmental minister to work and pensions secretary and head of “super ministry”

Often seen as Sir Keir’s “number two”, Mr McFadden will take over a newly formed “super ministry”.

It will include the department for work and pensions and the skills remit of the department for education – taking a large part of Education Secretary Bridget Phillipson’s brief and taking over from Liz Kendall as work and pensions secretary.

While it is not a promotion at first glance, it is a much wider role than he has had as chancellor of the Duchy of Lancaster – the highest-ranking Cabinet Office minister after the PM.

Darren Jones – chancellor of the Duchy of Lancaster

It is the second new job in the space of one week for the new chancellor of the Duchy of Lancaster. The close ally of the prime minister was promoted from chief secretary to the Treasury on Monday to chief secretary to the prime minister. And now he gets another new job.

Steve Reed – environment secretary to housing secretary

A promotion for the man who has consistently defended the government lifting inheritance tax relief on farmers.

He takes over one of the two major vacancies left by Ms Rayner and will have the massive task of building 1.5 million new homes during this parliament, as promised by the government.

Jonathan Reynolds – business and trade secretary to chief whip

A slightly odd move for the MP seen as a steady pair of hands in his business secretary role.

He takes over from Sir Alan Campbell and will now have to hustle Labour MPs to vote with the government – something that has sometimes proved difficult with the current cohort.

Mr Reynolds will also attend cabinet, as is necessary so he can liaise between the party and No 10.

Peter Kyle – science secretary to business and trade secretary

A promotion for Mr Kyle, who is taking over from Jonathan Reynolds.

He is seen as a rising star and impressed Labour MPs when he refused to stand down after suggesting Nigel Farage was on the side of people like Jimmy Savile by opposing the government’s online safety law.

Mr Kyle will be in charge of getting trade deals with other countries over the line.

Emma Reynolds – economic secretary to the Treasury to environment secretary

Probably the biggest promotion of the reshuffle, Ms Reynolds is taking on Mr Reed’s role after serving as a junior minister in the Treasury.

She will have to take on farmers and deal with the water companies – a big undertaking.

Liz Kendall – work and pensions secretary to science, innovation and technology secretary

Pat McFadden has taken her role as work and pensions secretary, while Ms Kendall takes over Peter Kyle’s brief.

He has made AI a major facet of his role so we will wait to see which direction Ms Kendall takes the job in.

Douglas Alexander – trade policy minister to Scotland secretary

A promotion for the Blair/Brown minister who returned to politics last year after being ousted in 2015 by then 20-year-old SNP MP Mhairi Black.

He takes over from Ian Murray, who has been removed from the cabinet.

Sir Alan Campbell – Chief whip to Lord President of the Council and leader of the House of Commons

An MP since 1997 and part of Tony Blair and Gordon Brown’s frontbench, Sir Alan is taking over Lucy Powell’s role.

He will be in charge of organising government business in the Commons – a sizeable job.

Anna Turley MP is now Minister of State in the Cabinet Office (Minister without Portfolio). She will attend Cabinet

The Home Office

Sir Keir has also announced big changes at the Home Office, as the government works to get a grip of illegal migration to the UK.

Dame Angela Eagle, who was border security and asylum minister, has been moved to the environment department.

Dame Diana Johnson, who was policing and crime minister, has been moved to the Department for Work and Pensions.

Dan Jarvis has been given a role in the Cabinet Office, in addition to his post as security minister in the Home Office.

And Sarah Jones, who was industry minister, has been moved to the Home Office.

Ministerial changes

As well as making sweeping changes to the cabinet, Starmer has also been making changes to the ministerial team.

These changes include…

Jason Stockwood as Minister of State (Minister for Investment) jointly in the Department for Business and Trade and HM Treasury;

Dan Jarvis as Minister of State in the Cabinet Office. He will remain Minister of State for the Home Department;

Rt Hon Baroness Smith of Malvern as Minister of State (Minister for Skills) in the Department for Work and Pensions. She will remain Minister of State (Minister for Skills and Minister for Women and Equalities) in the Department for Education.

Lord Vallance KCB as Minister of State in the Department for Energy Security and Net Zero. He will remain Minister of State in the Department for Science, Innovation and Technology.

Michael Shanks as Minister of State jointly in the Department for Business and Trade and Department for Energy Security and Net Zero.

Alison McGovern as Minister of State in the Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government.

Dame Angela Eagle as Minister of State in the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs.

Rt Hon Dame Diana Johnson as Minister of State in the Department for Work and Pensions.

Sarah Jones as Minister of State for the Home Department.

Who is out?

Lucy Powell has been sacked as leader of the House of Commons.

Ian Murray has been sacked as Scotland secretary.

Justin Madders is no longer minister for employment rights.

Not out – but

Bridget Phillipson remains as education secretary but her brief has narrowed as Mr McFadden has taken over the skills part of her job.

UK

Resident of Epping asylum hotel assaulted, say police, after reports of people throwing flares

Published

2 hours ago

September 7, 2025

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Resident of Epping asylum hotel assaulted, say police, after reports of people throwing flares

A resident of a hotel housing asylum seekers has been assaulted, police say, after they responded to reports of people throwing firecrackers and flares outside the property.

Officers were called to the Bell Hotel on Friday evening, where people were throwing smoke bombs.

Essex Police said the antisocial behaviour was not carried out by legitimate protesters and was a “change from the peaceful protect we saw on Thursday and on many occasions before”.

Police also received reports a resident of the hotel was assaulted, and arrested a 49-year-old man from Harlow in connection with this.

He remains in custody.

One man was also issued with a Section 42 Notice yesterday evening, under the Criminal Justice and Police Act 2001. This is a legal power that allows police to direct someone to leave the area if their presence is believed to be causing alarm or distress.

Chief Superintendent Simon Anslow said: “I have seen reports that those living at the hotel were throwing flares – I have watched footage of the events yesterday and can say that this is categorically untrue. This is flagrant disinformation, the likes of which we have seen before, designed to cause trouble.

“In fact, flares were being lit and thrown by those purporting to protest, but there is a stark difference between criminal behaviour and those seeking to genuinely exercise their right to protest.”

He continued: “Flares, firecrackers and smoke bombs are not peaceful. Assaulting those living at the hotel is not peaceful. Surrounding and intimidating people living in the hotel is not peaceful.”

A dispersal order was put in place on Friday evening, which gives officers the power to disperse anyone suspected of anti-social behaviour.