Starmer says ‘it will take some time’ before living standards improve
Sir Keir Starmer has said “it will take some time” before living standards improve in the UK as he faced a grilling from senior MPs.
The prime minister said “we want people to feel better off” but warned his government could not fix everything “by Christmas”.
He was facing the chairs of several parliamentary committees in his first appearance in front of the powerful liaison committee.
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Sir Keir said the increase in the national living wage was a “pay rise for the three million who are the lowest paid” and public sector workers were also feeling the benefit of pay increases.
“In addition to that, the measures that we put in place will improve living standards,” he said.
He added: “It will take some time, of course it will.
“One of the biggest mistakes, I think, in the last 14 years was the idea that everything could be fixed by Christmas. It can’t.”
He said planning how to fix things “will take time”, as will changing regulations to ensure growth can happen.
The prime minister said the October budget, which has been criticised by several sections of society, was about “stabilising the economy”.
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But the prime minister added more needs to be done to grow the economy, with planning reforms a key concern.
The government’s plan to build 1.5 million houses over the next five years will happen, he said.
“I accept it’s difficult, I accept its stretching. But it’s hugely important,” he added.
Sir Keir also defined “blockers” after he pledged to “back the builders, not the blockers”.
Blockers are those who say the UK “shouldn’t have targets” for housebuilding and those who argue “we shouldn’t build here”, he added.
The prime minister gave an example of wind turbines taking 13 years to be installed due to planning objections and delays connecting them to the energy grid.
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Donald Trump and Keir Starmer met earlier this year. Pic:Reuters
Sir Keir was also asked about foreign affairs and defence, including on the possibility of tariffs being introduced by Donald Trump.
He said he is “not a fan” of tariffs but thinks he can make progress on trade with the US, and added he does not accept the UK can only be close to the EU or the US.
On defence, the PM was asked by Labour MP Tan Dhesi, chair of the defence committee, what keeps him up at night.
He said he is not kept awake because he is confident in the UK’s defence and security, adding we have “first class personnel here and across the world”.
However, he said he accepts we are “living in a more volatile world” and his government has doubled down on support for NATO.
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On migration, Sir Keir said the UK will always need overseas skills but the levels are too high.
“Obviously what I don’t want to do is to choke off businesses that are thriving at the moment by cutting their legs off and say ‘you can’t have inward migration’,” he said.
Sir Keir was thanked by the liaison committee chair Dame Meg Hillier for his “commitment to transparency and scrutiny”.
The PM appears in front of the committee roughly twice a year so the next time could be next summer.
The US Office of the Comptroller of the Currency has affirmed that national banks can intermediate cryptocurrency trades as riskless principals without holding the assets on their balance sheets, a move that brings traditional banks a step closer to offering regulated crypto brokerage services.
In an interpretive letter released on Tuesday, the regulator said banks may act as principals in a crypto trade with one customer while simultaneously entering an offsetting trade with another, a structure that mirrors riskless principal activity in traditional markets.
“Several applicants have discussed how conducting riskless principal crypto-asset transactions would benefit their proposed bank’s customers and business, including by offering additional services in a growing market,” notes the document.
According to the OCC, the move would allow customers “to transact crypto-assets through a regulated bank, as compared to non-regulated or less regulated options.”
The letter also reiterates that banks must confirm the legal permissibility of any crypto activity and ensure it aligns with their chartered powers. Institutions are expected to maintain procedures for monitoring operational, compliance and market risks.
“The main risk in riskless principal transactions is counterparty credit risk (in particular, settlement risk),” reads the letter, adding that “managing counterparty credit risk is integral to the business of banking, and banks are experienced in managing this risk.”
The agency’s guidance cites 12 U.S.C. § 24, which permits national banks to conduct riskless principal transactions as part of the “business of banking.” The letter also draws a distinction between crypto assets that qualify as securities, noting that riskless principal transactions involving securities were already clearly permissible under existing law.
The OCC’s interpretive letter — a nonbinding guidance that outlines the agency’s view of which activities national banks may conduct under existing law — was issued a day after the head of the OCC, Jonathan Gould, said crypto firms seeking a federal bank charter should be treated the same as traditional financial institutions.
According to Gould, the banking system has the “capacity to evolve,” and there is “no justification for considering digital assets differently” than traditional banks, which have offered custody services “electronically for decades.”
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From ‘Choke Point 2.0’ to pro-crypto policy
Under the Biden administration, some industry groups and lawmakers accused US regulators of pursuing an “Operation Choke Point 2.0” approach that increased supervisory pressure on banks and firms interacting with crypto.
Since President Trump took office in January after pledging to support the sector, the federal government has moved in the opposite direction, adopting a more permissive posture toward digital asset activity.
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CryptoUK, a UK-based cryptocurrency trade association, has announced that it will join The Digital Chamber, a US crypto policy advocacy group, potentially marking a significant cross-collaboration on digital asset regulation between the two countries.
In a Tuesday notice, CryptoUK said its team would fall under The Digital Chamber’s umbrella as part of a “unified, cross-border advocacy platform.” Both groups have worked in their respective countries to promote policies favoring the cryptocurrency and blockchain industry, starting with The Digital Chamber in 2014 and CryptoUK in 2018.
“CryptoUK has always aspired to ensure we are driven by policy-led issues, member collaboration, and regulatory engagement,” said Su Carpenter, CryptoUK’s executive director.
The partnership between the two advocacy groups comes as US lawmakers move forward on negotiations to pass a digital asset market structure bill, aiming to establish regulatory clarity for the industry. In the UK, policymakers announced plans to collaborate with their counterparts in the US to explore crypto laws and regulations.
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US-based crypto advocacy organizations, such as The Digital Chamber, have garnered support from former regulators and members of Congress as the Trump White House directs policies toward the industry. Among these groups are the Solana Policy Institute, the Blockchain Association, the Crypto Council for Innovation, and the American Innovation Project.
UK central bank moves forward on stablecoins
On Nov. 10, the Bank of England released a consultation paper to propose a framework for “sterling-denominated systemic stablecoins.” The move by the country’s central bank marked a step toward the UK seeming to play catch-up to the US, where the government passed a law regulating payment stablecoins in July.
Bank of England Deputy Governor Sarah Breeden signaled before the publication of the paper that the central bank’s actions were in response to the US advancing stablecoin policies, and it was “really important” to be synchronized on rules.
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Kemi Badenoch has refused to say that the Conservatives are intending to win next May’s local elections, despite being repeatedly pushed on the issue.
Asked twice to define success for her party at the elections, the Tory leader merely said that she is “going to be fighting for every vote”.
Speaking to Sky News, she added: “Success is going to be people seeing the Conservative Party as the only party that is competent and credible enough to do the tough stuff that this country needs.”
The comments come as the Conservatives continue to trail in the polls.
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Watch Kemi Badenoch’s interview with Sky News in full
New data released by YouGov this morning has put the Tories in third place behind Reform and Labour, a space they have largely occupied throughout the year. The pollster’s weekly voting intention analysis put Ms Badenoch’s party on 18%, down one percentage point.
YouGov’s weekly voting intention poll has the Tories down one percent on last week, and just three above the Greens. Pic: YouGov
Ms Badenoch gave a speech on welfare costs in London on Tuesday, where she attacked the government’s plans to tackle child poverty. Afterwards, she sat down with Sky News political correspondent Sam Coates.
Asked about the local elections, she said: “There are going to be local elections all over the country, and there’s a conservative message that I want everyone to hear: Our country’s not working properly.
“There are fundamental things that need to change. We need to create jobs. Otherwise, we’re not going to have money for councils.”
She added: “We’ve seen new parties like Reform come in. They’re making a hash of things at council level. We need to make sure that people can see the benefits of voting Conservative.”
Ms Badenoch also refused to score her party’s performance out of 10. Pic: PA
When it was pointed out that she had not defined success as winning the local elections, Ms Badenoch said: “The country is going to decide. We’re going to put out an offer, and we’re going to fight for every vote.”
May will see local council elections, as well as votes for the Senedd in Wales and the Scottish Parliament. They are seen as a crucial moment for the Tory leader – and also for Prime Minister Sir Keir Starmer.
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Ms Badenoch also refused to score the party’s performance out of 10, as the year draws to a close, and she marks a little over 12 months as leader.
She told Sky News: “When I look at the historic defeats which Conservatives suffered last year, things are definitely better.”
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Challenged on the Tories’ position in the polls, Ms Badenoch said: “Of course, we have a mountain to climb.
“We lost more seats [in 2024] than we’ve ever done in our 200-year history. This was always going to be a long road ahead.”
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