Sir Keir Starmer to pledge end of ‘sticking plaster politics’ in first big speech of 2023
Sir Keir Starmer will promise to end “sticking plaster politics” when he delivers his first speech of the new year.
The Labour leader will claim on Thursday that “a short-term mindset” dominates Westminster under the Conservatives, pointing in particular to its handling of the crisis in the NHS.
He will promise “a completely new way of governing” under his leadership, “driven by clear, measurable objectives” or “national missions”.
Sir Keir will also warn Labour would not be “getting its big government chequebook out again” to solve the problems facing the country.
The Conservatives have said it is “yet another desperate relaunch attempt” by Sir Keir and called on him to “stop playing politics and back our plan for a better future that delivers for all”.
In a preview of Sir Keir’s speech released before his appearance in east London, little concrete policy has been revealed.
Yet a number of promises are set to be made around giving the public “a sense of possibility again” and showing “light at the end of the tunnel” by delivering “a decade of national renewal” and “the economy and the politics Britain deserves”.
The leader will say the pressures on the NHS have been “an iceberg on the horizon” for the government, but it has chosen to stick to short-term fixes rather than long-term change.
“You can’t overstate how much a short-term mindset dominates Westminster,” he will say. “And from there, how it infects all the institutions which try and fail to run Britain from the centre.
“Time and again it’s the same pattern. I call it ‘sticking plaster politics’.
“This year, we’re going to show how real change comes from unlocking the pride and purpose of Britain’s communities.
“No more Westminster hoarding power, no more holding back this country’s economic potential.
“A fairer, greener, more dynamic country is coming and a transformed state and politics will take us there.”
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The numbers behind the pressure on the NHS this winter
Labour cannot ‘spend our way’ out of Tory ‘mess’
In what the party describes as a “stark warning over the need for reform”, Sir Keir will say: “Let me be clear – none of this should be taken as code for Labour getting its big government chequebook out again.
“Of course investment is required – I can see the damage the Tories have done to our public services as plainly as anyone.
“But we won’t be able to spend our way out of their mess – it’s not as easy as that. There is no substitute for a robust private sector, creating wealth in every community.”
In that vein, he will promise a “more strategic” and “new approach to the power of government”, that is “more relaxed about bringing in the expertise of public and private, business and union, town and city [and] using that partnership to drive our country forward”.
“For all the challenges we face, I remain optimistic about our future,” Sir Keir will say. “I believe in our country, I believe in our businesses, I believe in our people, I believe in our spirit, in the ambition they have for themselves and their community.
“So this New Year, let us imagine what we could achieve if we match the ambition of the British people, unlock their pride and their purpose, give them an economy and a politics they deserve.”
More detail on the so-called “missions” will be announced in the coming weeks and form the basis of the party’s next election manifesto, with Sir Keir calling them “the driving force of the next Labour government”.
Starmer ‘changes position every week’
Tory chairman Nadhim Zahawi accused Labour of “failing to set out a positive, detailed, long-term plan to secure the future prosperity of Britain”.
Mr Zahawi added: “Every week [Sir Keir] changes his position depending on what he thinks is popular – from supporting free movement to supporting the unions, he’ll say anything if the politics suits him.
“He should stop giving cliché-laden speeches, and instead finally unveil a plan for people’s priorities. He’s got nothing to say on how to cut crime, get immigration down, and reduce borrowing – that’s what the nation wants to see.”
Sir Keir’s speech will come the day after Rishi Sunak, the prime minister, gave his first speech of the year, outlining five promises to deliver “peace of mind” to the public.
He pledged to halve inflation; to grow the economy; to reduce debt; to cut hospital waiting lists; and to stop migrant crossings.
Labour accused him of focusing on areas where progress is already predicted over the coming months, and “failing to tackle the big pressures” the country is facing.
World
Body of missing rabbi Zvi Kogan found in UAE – as Israeli PM says he was murdered in ‘antisemitic terror incident’
The COP29 climate talks have reached a last ditch deal on cash for developing countries, pulling the summit back from the brink of collapse after a group of countries stormed out of a negotiating room earlier.
The slew of deals finally signed off in the small hours of Sunday morning in Azerbaijan includes one that proved hardest of all – one about money.
Eventually the more than 190 countries in Baku agreed a target for richer polluting countries such as the UK, EU and Japan to drum up $300bn a year by 2035 to help poorer nations both curb and adapt to climate change.
It is a far cry from the $1.3trn experts say is needed, and from the $500bn that vulnerable countries like Uganda had said they would be willing to accept.
But in the end they were forced to, knowing they could not afford to live without it, nor wait until next year to try again, when a Donald Trump presidency would make things even harder.
Bolivia’s lead negotiator Diego Pacheco called it an “insult”, while the Marshall Islands’ Tina Stege said it was “not nearly enough, but it’s a start”.
UN climate chief Simon Stiell said: “This new finance goal is an insurance policy for humanity, amid worsening climate impacts hitting every country.
“No country got everything they wanted, and we leave Baku with a mountain of work still to do. So this is no time for victory laps.”
The funding deal was clinched more than 24 hours into overtime, and against what felt like all the odds.
The talks were rocked from the start by the incoming presidency of climate denier Mr Trump, the moment Argentina’s team were recalled back to Buenos Aires by their right-wing president and a controversial letter that sent shockwaves through the United Nations.
Pic: AP
The fraught two weeks of negotiations pitted the anger of developing countries who are footing the bill for more dangerous weather that they did little to cause, against the tight public finances of rich countries.
A relieved Juan Carlos Monterrey Gomez, climate envoy for Panama, said there is “light at the end of the tunnel”.
Just hours ago, the talks almost fell apart as furious vulnerable nations stormed out of negotiations in frustration over that elusive funding goal.
They were also angry with oil and gas producing countries, who stood accused of trying to dilute aspects of the deal on cutting fossil fuels.
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Climate-vulnerable nations storm out of talks
The UN talks work on consensus, meaning everyone has to agree for a deal to fly.
A row over how to follow up on last year’s pledge to “transition away from fossil fuels” was left unresolved and punted into next year, following objections from Chile and Switzerland for being too weak.
A draft deal simply “reaffirmed” the commitment but did not dial up the pressure in the way the UK, EU, island states and many others here wanted.
Saudi Arabia fought the hardest against any step forward on cutting fossil fuels, the primary cause of climate change that is intensifying floods, drought and fires around the world.
Governments did manage to strike a deal on carbon markets at COP29, which has been 10 years in the making and will allow countries to trade emissions cuts.
‘Not everything we wanted’
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The UK’s energy secretary, Ed Miliband, said the deal is “not everything we or others wanted”, but described it as a “step forward”.
“It’s a deal that will drive forward the clean energy transition, which is essential for jobs and growth in Britain and for protecting us all against the worsening climate crisis,” he added.
“Today’s agreement sends the signal that the clean energy transition is unstoppable.
“It is the biggest economic opportunity of the 21st century and through our championing of it we can help crowd in private investment.”
Protesters at the summit in Baku. Pic: AP
Read more:
Azerbaijan president hails oil and gas as ‘gift from God’
UN climate summits ‘no longer fit for purpose’
The Azerbaijan team leading COP29 said: “Every hour of the day, we have pulled people together. Every inch of the way, we have pushed for the highest common denominator.
“We have faced geopolitical headwinds and made every effort to be an honest broker for all sides.”
At least 20 people have been killed and 66 injured in Israeli strikes on central Beirut, Lebanese authorities have said.
Lebanon‘s health ministry said the death toll could rise as emergency workers dig through the rubble looking for survivors. DNA tests are being used to identify the victims, the ministry added.
The attack destroyed an eight-storey residential building and badly damaged several others around it in the Basta neighbourhood at 4am (2am UK time) on Saturday.
The central Basta neighbourhood in Beirut
The Israeli military did not warn residents to evacuate before the attack and has not commented on the casualties.
At least four bombs were dropped in the attack – the fourth targeting the city centre this week.
A separate drone strike in the southern port city of Tyre this morning killed two people and injured three, according to the state-run National News Agency.
The victims were Palestinian refugees from the nearby al Rashidieh camp who were out fishing, according to Mohammed Bikai, spokesperson for the Fatah Palestinian faction in the Tyre area.
Israel’s military warned residents today in parts of Beirut’s southern suburbs that they were near Hezbollah facilities, which the army would target in the near future. The warning, posted on X, told people to evacuate at least 500 metres away.
The army said that over the past day it had conducted intelligence-based strikes on Hezbollah targets in Dahiyeh, in Beirut’s southern suburbs, where Hezbollah has a strong presence. It said it hit several command centres and weapons storage facilities.
Pic: AP
Israel has killed several Hezbollah leaders in air strikes on the capital’s southern suburbs.
Heavy fighting between Israel and Hezbollah is ongoing in southern Lebanon, as Israeli forces push deeper into the country since launching a major offensive in September.
According to the Lebanese health ministry, at least 3,670 people have been killed in Israeli attacks there, with more than 15,400 wounded.
It has displaced about 1.2 million people – a quarter of Lebanon’s population – while Israel says about 90 soldiers and nearly 50 civilians have been killed in northern Israel.
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‘Dozens’ of Palestinians killed in Israeli airstrike
Meanwhile, six people, including three children and two women, were killed in the southern Gazan city of Khan Younis.
Some 44,176 Palestinians have been killed since the start of Israel’s military campaign in Gaza, according to the Gaza health ministry.
The ministry does not distinguish between civilians and combatants in its count, but it has said that more than half of the fatalities are women and children.
The war began when Hamas-led militants stormed into southern Israel on 7 October 2023, killing some 1,200 people and taking another 250 hostage.
US envoy Amos Hochstein was in the region this week to try to end more than 13 months of fighting between Israel and Hezbollah, ignited last October by the war in Gaza.
Mr Hochstein indicated progress had been made after meetings in Beirut on Tuesday and Wednesday, before going to meet Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and defence minister Israel Katz.
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