Labour leader uses first major speech of the election campaign in Lancing, West Sussex to try and introduce himself to voters
Labour Party leader Sir Keir Starmer speaks to party supporters after making his first keynote speech at Lancing Parish Hall in West Sussex, while on the General Election campaign trail The Leader of the Opposition used the speech in Lancing, West Sussex to try and introduce himself to voters, drawing on his upbringing to argue that he can be trusted to defend the public’s priorities.
The Labour leader described his own childhood in the town of Oxted, not far away, which he said was “about as English as it gets, a mix of Victorian red bricks and pebble-dashed semis, while all around you have rolling pastures and the beautiful chalk hills of the North Downs”.Starmer and Rachel Reeves have pushed a message of fiscal discipline hard, and in his speech the leader spent more time talking about “economic stability” than any one of his other six “first steps” .
Starmer replied: “I think there is a review that’s going through in relation to voter ID – but at the moment, I have to say, my priorities are the economy, the NHS and the first steps that I’ve set out.”He doubled down on one of his most eye-catching policies, the promise to impose VAT on private school fees – but was careful not to risk sounding critical of parents who choose to educate their children privately.
He said he was open to “third-country processing”, where people applying for refugee status in Britain cannot enter the country before their application is reviewed, but insisted that the Government’s Rwanda policy would not work – suggesting that the Prime Minister wanted to hold the election “before it has been tested”.
At his speech in Sussex which has just ended, the Leader of the Opposition insisted: “Whatever the polls say, I know there are countless people who haven’t decided how they’ll vote in this election.”
United States Latest News, United States Headlines
Similar News:You can also read news stories similar to this one that we have collected from other news sources.
F1's newest 'big team in crisis' facing a 'big, big challenge' to returnWilliams can only look across at McLaren with envy, as the Woking-based squad have rejoined the battle at the front of Formula 1...
Read more »
Could the Labour Party blow its big opportunity?By calling an election Rishi Sunak has opened the door to Number 10
Read more »
Starmer says East Mids Mayor win is big moment in Labour historyThe Labour Party leader visited the Forest Town Arena in Mansfield after Claire Ward's victory in the mayoral race
Read more »
Labour holds onto power in Leeds - but smaller parties make big gainsThe Labour Party have come out of the local elections with the exact same number of seats as before, but smaller parties have made gains
Read more »
Chinese spying claims in the UKPlus, the PM’s big move on defence and Labour’s rail renationalisation plans
Read more »
BBC Radio 1's Big Weekend - Radio 1's Big Weekend: The ShowdownAll the action from Radio 1's annual live music event.
Read more »