Keir Starmer

Keir Starmer, the next British prime minister? A cautiously optimistic mood prevails at this year's Labour Party conference in Liverpool.

But at least the faithful will be leaving Liverpool with, to paraphrase a certain local song, hope in their hearts. The promise of 200,000 green jobs seems a suspiciously round figure but Labour is at least offering a vision. That said, only 12% of Conservative voters listed climate change in their top three issues at the last election, compared to 36% of Labour supporters. There remain significant gaps to plug before Labour fully looks a government in waiting – and Starmer still needs Trussonomics to fail. [36% of Conservative supporters](https://yougov.co.uk/topics/politics/articles-reports/2019/11/07/which-issues-will-decide-general-election) placed crime among their top three issues in 2019, second only to Brexit. It’s a green version of Wilson’s winning “white heat of technology” rhetoric of the 1960s. That amounts to a 10% swing to Labour since the election. A minority or tiny majority Labour government might be unstable but there is always the Driven by the ever-eager Ed Miliband, Labour promises to turn the UK into a green superstate, approaching energy self-sufficiency by 2030. Help with your energy bills to the tune of £100 billion? The likeliest outcome at the next election still appears to be a hung parliament. To win an outright majority, a gain of 124 parliamentary seats is needed.

Labour leader to tell party conference in Liverpool that Britain is ready for change after 12 years of Tory misrule and economic chaos.

There’s an atmosphere, there’s a sense that Labour is ready to deliver. [Terms of use,](https://www.independent.co.uk/service/user-policies-a6184151.html) [Cookie policy](https://www.independent.co.uk/service/cookie-policy-a6184186.html) and [Privacy notice.](https://www.independent.co.uk/service/privacy-policy-a6184181.html) [Privacy policy](https://policies.google.com/privacy?hl=en) and [Terms of service](https://policies.google.com/terms?hl=en) apply. By clicking ‘Register’ you confirm that your data has been entered correctly and you have read and agree to our [Boris Johnson](/topic/boris-johnson) government, from Wallpapergate to Partygate to the Chris Pincher affair and the spewing of sewage onto Britain’s beaches. [“clean energy superpower”](https://twitter.com/Keir_Starmer/status/1574014051780366337) by investing in renewables and taxing the outsized profits of utility companies, before Sir Keir commences his address from the main hall at 2pm. [surge to a 17 per cent poll lead ](https://www.independent.co.uk/news/uk/politics/labour-lead-tories-budget-poll-b2175872.html)ahead of the Conservatives in the latest YouGov survey, with the public seemingly favouring Sir Keir and shadow chancellor [Rachel Reeves](/topic/rachel-reeves)’s message of fiscal responsibility over the “reckless gambling” of Ms Truss and Mr Kwarteng, which has been derided by many economists and even their own fellow Tory MPs, some of whom are believed to have already submitted letters of no confidence. [Kwasi Kwarteng](/topic/kwasi-kwarteng)’s tax-slashing, heavy-borrowing “mini-Budget”, delivered to Parliament on Friday, has spooked the global currency markets, leaving the value of the pound sterling in freefall and the [Bank of England](/topic/bank-of-england) forced to consider an emergency intervention to steady the ship by raising interest rates. [Sir Keir Starmer](/topic/sir-keir-starmer) will address his party conference in Liverpool on Tuesday 27 September, taking to the stage at the Arena and Convention Centre at King’s Dock at a dramatic moment in British politics.

The party leader said the move would cut bills, boost economic growth and ensure "energy independence from tyrants like Putin".

“And we will win not just because we have fairness on our side but because we have economic reason on our side too. “And that’s a political choice. “Labour will set up Great British Energy within the first year of a Labour government. Reform planning so speculators can’t stop communities getting shovels in the ground. A Labour set of political choices. The future wealth of this country is in our air, in our seas, in our skies. “The government has lost control of the British economy – and for what? They’ve crashed the pound – and for what? And homes become less affordable for working people. “Not for you. Energy bills in Swansea are paying for schools and hospitals in Stockholm. The Chinese Communist Party has a stake in our nuclear industry.

Great British Energy could grow to rival foreign-owned energy giants like EDF, Labour sources say.

Britain should harness that wealth and share it with all." Where they frittered away the wealth from our national resources." Labour sources say they see no reason why the company could not eventually grow to establish itself as "a significant, credible generator in a competitive market". "Labour will make sure that the public money we spend building-up British industry, spurs on private investment, stimulates growth … "The future wealth of this country is in our air, in our seas, and in our skies. and the British people enjoy the returns," said Sir Keir in his conference speech.

Labour leader pitches for centre ground with pledge for 'hope, aspiration and home-ownership'

As he seeks to regain dozens of seats in the Red Wall in the North and Midlands, where many traditional Labour voters deserted the party in 2019, Sir Keir stressed his aim is “to make Brexit work”. “I come at this not just as leader of the Labour Party, but also as a father. Accusing the Government of planning to slash workers’ rights, lower standards on food, animal welfare or the environment, and cut redistribution after Brexit, he said : “I want to speak directly to the people who left Labour on this issue. So, we will scrap business rates, level the playing-field for start-ups and the high street, give employers new flexibility to invest in the world-class training they need.” Sir Keir, 60, echoed words from Sir Tony Blair as he declared that Labour must be the “political wing of the British people”, seeking to rebuff Tory claims that it is in the pocket of its union funders. He insisted: “We will only borrow to invest when it’s in the long-term national interest.” Labour is the party of home ownership in Britain today.” “As in 1945, 1964, 1997, this is a Labour moment,” he said in his keynote speech to the party’s annual conference in However, in a Blairite message, he also emphasised the need to reform public services rather than just plough more money into them. “So imagine we are looking back at the first term of the next Labour government. He added: “The next Labour government must restore our sense of collective hope. The Labour leader said: "At moments of uncertainty like this we must provide clear leadership.

In his fiercest criticism of the government's handling of EU withdrawal, the Labour leader said it epitomised how ministers “lurch from crisis to crisis” on ...

[Terms of use,](https://www.independent.co.uk/service/user-policies-a6184151.html) [Cookie policy](https://www.independent.co.uk/service/cookie-policy-a6184186.html) and [Privacy notice.](https://www.independent.co.uk/service/privacy-policy-a6184181.html) And so we lurch from crisis to crisis, always reacting, always behind the curve, a sticking plaster, never a cure. [Privacy policy](https://policies.google.com/privacy?hl=en) and [Terms of service](https://policies.google.com/terms?hl=en) apply. I didn’t hear people wanting to lower standards on food, animal welfare or the environment. I didn’t hear them wanting to end redistribution,” Sir Keir said. By clicking ‘Register’ you confirm that your data has been entered correctly and you have read and agree to our Registration is a free and easy way to support our truly independent journalism Great British Energy would “harness the power of Britain’s sun, wind, and waves to cut energy bills and deliver energy independence”, he told the conference. “And if you want the totemic symbol of this, the biggest failure to grasp the nettle, then look no further than Brexit.” But he said: “If you voted to take control of your life and for the next generation to have control of theirs, then I say to you: that is what I will deliver.” [despite party pressure to do so](https://www.independent.co.uk/news/uk/politics/labour-conference-brexit-starmer-creasy-b2173940.html). [Rob Merrick](/author/rob-merrick) Comments [Keir Starmer](/topic/keir-starmer) has branded [Brexit](/topic/brexit) the Conservatives’ “biggest failure” – accusing the party of betraying a public that voted for better public services and stronger communities.

For too long his city has been let down. So, when Labour wins the next election, one of my first acts as Prime Minister will be to put the Hillsborough Law on ...

And so we lurch from crisis to crisis, always reacting, always behind the curve, a sticking plaster, never a cure. We will end the blight of low pay and insecure work with our New Deal for Working People. The future wealth of this country is in our air, in our seas, in our skies. In 1964, we harnessed the white heat of technology to pay our way in a modern economy. And the choice – the political choice – is: who pays? In 1945, out of the rubble of the Second World War, we built a land fit for heroes. We will stand alongside Ukraine and its people fighting on the frontline of freedom. This party is always on the side of working people in times of crisis. And we will do it with a fresh start, a new set of priorities and a new way of governing. A common sense that teachers up and down the country drum into their pupils: “fail to prepare and you prepare to fail”. I said on Sunday that a fitting tribute to The Late Queen would be to turn our collar up and face the storm. And that means it’s our first conference since this city’s call for Justice for the 96 became Justice for the 97.

The Labour leader's annual address to the faithful was part of a strategy to win back what party strategists call "hero voters" - one-time Labour supporters ...

A good party conference speech provides verbal weapons for their troops to deploy on doorsteps in the months ahead. Whether this idea will stay uppermost in voters' minds is yet to be seen. The other was to hammer the differences between himself and Labour's Corbyn era. The Tories the enemy of the speech, but the Corbyn era an almost equal opponent. Again, the repudiation of antisemitism. In its place is Alan Lockey, who worked for Tony Blair's policy chief Matthew Taylor at the Royal Society of Arts.

The Labour leader pledged to scrap business rates, create a publicly owned energy company and “make Brexit work”. LIVERPOOL, ENGLAND - SEPTEMBER 26: Labour ...

[Labour saw a major boost in the polls. “The NHS runs through my family like a stick of rock.” “Labour will make Brexit work. Labour will deliver change. They’ve crashed the pound – and for what? “Not for you.

Lady Starmer grew up in Gospel Oak, North London, where her mother was a community doctor. Like her future husband, Victoria went into a career as a solicitor, ...

Now, she works in occupational health for the NHS. Lady Victoria is Jewish and, together with her husband, is known to be raising her two children according to her faith. Today, although the couple are private about their lives, they are known to have two children together, teenager Toby and a younger daughter.

Leader promises to launch energy firm as part of 'partnership between government, business and communities'

He said Labour would “set a new target – 70% home ownership” with reform of buy-to-let and helping buyers on to the housing ladder with mortgage guarantees. This party is always on the side of working people in times of crisis.” Britain will deal with the cost of living crisis. And the choice – the political choice – is: who pays? “I will never accept that the war is an excuse for how unprepared Britain was to tackle the fallout. The Labour leader began his speech railing against the economic plan announced by Liz Truss and Kwasi Kwarteng last week, which cut taxes, including abolishing the top rate of tax.

The leader of the Labour Party, Sir Keir Starmer, says his government will clamp down on buy to let landlords if his party takes power.

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That was a good speech and – for Keir Starmer – a well-delivered one. Starmer has a new young speechwriter, Alan Lockey, who has replaced (the New ...

Starmer’s positioning – framing Labour as the party of fiscal responsibility, of Nato, of house building and homeowning, of business – is giving many long-frustrated supporters hope that it may be. Dad was a tool-maker, Mum was a nurse, our first car was a Ford Cortina – this was the 1970s”, before turning to a theme mined by every successful politician of the left: “It wasn’t easy. In 2020, he offered little more than this on Brexit: “The grown-up way to deal with Brexit is to negotiate properly and get a deal… His account of his childhood was also more memorable than it has been in the past. And in 2021 he said nothing more notable than: “Scotland is in the unfortunate position of having two bad governments… The debate between Leave and Remain is over.” In 2021, he again touched on the issue only as a brief aside: “A botched Brexit followed by Covid has left a big hole. But rather than moving on from the issue, as he traditionally has, he built on his theme, reframing Brexit as a vote for a more left-wing, socially democratic state: Starmer needs to assuage voters’ concerns on both fronts, and today – for the first time in a conference speech – he addressed both issues directly. He painted a picture, making his youth sound like something out of Life on Mars: “I grew up in a pebble-dashed semi. In 2020, he did not mention the party. Today’s conference address, Starmer’s third as leader, was markedly more confident than the previous two, both in style and substance. The rest of [the core team](https://www.newstatesman.com/politics/labour/2022/09/who-labour-party-shadow-cabinet-keir-starmer-rachel-reeves) remains the same: a trio of other aides – Paul Ovenden, Stuart Ingham and Deborah Mattinson – helped craft both speeches.

The Labour leader proved he has properly listened to the worry pulsing through the country.

In the middle of a grave national crisis, Keir Starmer found that something. Much of the speech, quite rightly, focused on the environment and green growth. All that old dull stuff – policies that are clearly costed, borrowing only to invest for the future, an office for value for money – feels new and interesting because it’s what we need. He painted himself squarely in the tradition of Attlee, Wilson and Blair. It was the speech of someone who has properly listened to the worry pulsing through the country. You might think the most obvious response would be a U-turn, or at least an L-turn, in [Truss](https://www.newstatesman.com/tag/liz-truss)– [Kwarteng](https://www.newstatesman.com/tag/kwasi-kwarteng) strategy. Meanwhile the next part of the strategy – freezing public spending by rejecting a review – opens up what may turn out to be even worse politics. But if the pound continues on its current trajectory, interest rates are jacked up quickly and the promise is only of more tax cuts, then level-headed Conservatives will panic, and rightly. They can’t put the country through yet another leadership contest, surely: how would panicky markets react to Britain having no government at all for another slice of the autumn? Many on the left will have found the discipline suffocating, the lack of radical fire a bit deflating, and all those Union flags and references to the late Queen mildly nauseating. Well, the Labour conference in Liverpool this year is up there in terms of significance. Political conferences rarely alter much in the world beyond their policed nylon barricades and beer-scented fog of ambition.

With the Tories looking like death cult muppets, all the Labour leader needed to do in his big speech was not sound like a complete halfwit.

All he had to do was get the ball over the line and he managed that in some style. Still, maybe she was thinking ahead to the repossessions. She was sharp, witty and in total command of the hall. The Palestinian flag was no longer the only one allowed in the conference hall. Starmer even brought the crowd to their feet when he talked of ridding the party of antisemitism. Something he returned to several times, culminating in relabelling Labour as “the political wing of the British people”. Did we know that he was the son of a tool-worker? Then that was never part of the deal. Luckily there were only two of them, but he fluffed the punchline to both. So all Starmer really needed to do in his speech was to turn up, not fall over and not sound like a complete halfwit. At a time when the country is falling apart, the prime minister has literally nothing to say. It’s been one of those rare occasions when everyone has been sweetness and light, going out of their way not to fall out with each in public and Keir didn’t want to push his luck.

The Labour leader looks like he's on a path to victory, says Guardian columnist Rafael Behr.

To the doctrinaire mind, the absence of doctrine indicates a shortage of belief. They describe fundamentalist attachment to the free-market ideas that were manifest as policy in last week’s disastrous mini-budget, and a habit of dismissing rational caution as spoilsport cowardice. But most people go about their lives carrying values and principles in their heads without feeling the need to codify them as a system and test it for internal consistency. The pledge of a “Great British Energy” company is recognition that, on matters of public ownership at least, the centre is not where it was when New Labour sprawled across it in 1997. They make new words by inserting “ism” after a leader’s name; they ask whether the new word is a creed that can be illuminated as a vision. Starmer is well placed to capitalise on Kwarteng’s mistakes because he and Rachel Reeves, the shadow chancellor, have manoeuvred their party into a position of fiscal sobriety. The Tories’ offer to subsidise the nation’s energy bills through the winter might have closed down a fruitful line of opposition attack. Starmer explicitly and correctly identified the electoral landing zone as the centre ground of British politics. You struggle to get noticed until you make a mistake, when the pillory is merciless. If Starmer could have asked Downing Street for a single favour, he might have requested that the chancellor do exactly what he did last Friday. It is not enough for the Tories to shrug off the mantle of sound money. It takes a truly abysmal prime minister to make the opposition leader’s job look easy.

The Labour leader said Great British Energy will take advantage of opportunities in clean British power.

But this announcement is a huge step in the right direction.” Foreign governments own large parts of our energy system, and reap the wealth that flows from it. “The public will celebrate this amazing news. A Labour spokesman said: “This is not about nationalisation. Cat Hobbs, director of public ownership campaigning group We Own It said, “We’re absolutely delighted about this fantastic announcement. Sir Keir said: “Labour will make sure that the public money we spend building up British industry, spurs on private investment, stimulates growth …

dds have been slashed on Sir Keir Starmer becoming Prime Minister after the next election following his speech at the Labour Party conference.

The war didn’t stall British nuclear energy. “The war didn’t ban onshore wind. The war didn’t scrap home insulation. “Not for you. Not for working people. “Higher interest rates.

Starmer attacked the new Truss government, set out green policies and was unafraid to address Brexit, previously a no-go area.

There was a glowing reference to the achievements under Tony Blair, and the support for Nato. The next, and far bigger, task is to make voters believe this. But, he added, the scale of the damage to public finances and services “means this time the rescue will be harder than ever”. If you ever doubted that the Corbynite left has been crushed, this speech – both the reception and the content – made it clear. Discussing the running down of public services, Starmer said he would “love to stand here and say Labour will fix everything”. In part, it is the sheer passage of time.

Sir Keir Starmer's keynote speech was so different to a year ago, when he was heckled by the Labour left and his supporters were drafted in to try to drown ...

Now Labour has a chance to win those voters back with Sir Keir's brand of patriotism, integrity and seriousness. A quiet acknowledgement, if you like, that Sir Keir still hasn't sealed the deal with the electorate. As Boris Johnson embarked on a tour of his new territory in the West Midlands and Hartlepool, Sir Keir remained holed up in London. These all things Sir Keir would have struggled to say a year ago - now being cheered. ['This is a Labour moment', Starmer declares - latest updates](https://news.sky.com/story/labour-party-conference-live-starmer-embarces-blair-comparisons-as-labour-extends-poll-lead-over-conservatives-politics-latest-12593360) [Labour's Sir Keir Starmer](https://news.sky.com/story/labour-pledges-to-create-publicly-owned-energy-company-to-cut-bills-and-create-jobs-12706291) was a man carrying a calm sense of confidence.

Sir Keir Starmer was buoyed by rising fortunes for Labour as he accused the Tories of losing control of the economy and vowed to get the UK “out of this ...

Sir Keir said he wants Labour to be a party for all as he attempts to reposition it in the centre ground of UK politics. He argued Labour is now the party of “sound money”. In a move to occupy traditional Tory territory, he has branded Labour “the party of home ownership in Britain today”. Not for working people. Not for you. Sir Tony referred to New Labour as the “political wing of the British people” ahead of his landslide 1997 election victory, in a departure from the party being described as the political wing of the union movement.

Sir Keir Starmer has branded comments made by a Labour MP about the Chancellor being "superficially black” as racist.

"She shouldn't have said it. Sir Keir told LBC: "What she said in my view was racist, it was wrong and she's been suspended from the whip in the party and that was done very, very quickly. [Keir Starmer](/topic/keir-starmer) has branded comments made by a [Labour ](/topic/labour) [MP](/topic/mp) about the [Chancellor](/topic/chancellor) being "superficially black” as racist.

Rupa Huq was administratively suspended pending an investigation after she claimed that Kwasi Kwarteng was "superficially" black - comments which Labour ...

The suspension came shortly after Sir Keir finished his conference speech, which he used to argue now is a "Labour moment" for the party to provide the leadership the nation "so desperately needs". "I have today contacted Kwasi Kwarteng to offer my sincere and heartfelt apologies for the comments I made at yesterday's Labour conference fringe meeting," she posted on social media. The Labour leader said it was not his personal decision to suspend her, but "it's a decision I absolutely agree with" and the MP will now face an investigation. Sir Keir told LBC: "What she said in my view was racist, it was wrong and she's been suspended from the whip in the party and that was done very, very quickly." Sir Keir Starmer has condemned a Labour MP for "racist" comments she made about Chancellor Kwasi Kwarteng. Rupa Huq was administratively suspended pending an investigation after she claimed that Kwasi Kwarteng was "superficially" black - comments which Labour have condemned as "stupid and racist".

'She will be dealt with', says Labour leader – but insists any reinstatement would not be up to him.

And that is reflected I think in the polls.” Mr Starmer said it was not his decision to suspend Ms Huq, but welcomed it as one “I absolutely agree with”, saying he would wait for the outcome of the investigation. Mr Starmer also said the party under his leadership was closer to Sir Tony Blair than Jeremy Corbyn. “He went to Eton, I think. He denied being “legalistic” about the disciplinary process ahead for Ms Huq. He went to a very expensive prep school. [Terms of use,](https://www.independent.co.uk/service/user-policies-a6184151.html) [Cookie policy](https://www.independent.co.uk/service/cookie-policy-a6184186.html) and [Privacy notice.](https://www.independent.co.uk/service/privacy-policy-a6184181.html) And you can feel that at this party conference. “Superficially he is a black man,” she told a fringe event. She will be dealt with and I’ll be absolutely clear – it was racist.” The Labour leader said he was offering “centre ground, common sense politics”, adding: “This is a Labour party that can confidently look the electorate in the eye and the electorate are looking back at the Labour party.” “There’s a mood here we haven’t seen for years,” he said.

KEIR Starmer has described remarks made by one of his own MPs as “racist.”

I think the Labour Party has to be very careful”. She told Times Radio: “As somebody who is a person of colour myself, I have been called a ‘coconut’ and a ‘house Muslim’ before. “We’ve now got an independent process that kicks in and the outcome will be for them. In the audio, obtained by the Guido Fawkes website, Ms Huq can be heard telling the audience at a fringe event at Labour conference: “Superficially he [Mr Kwarteng] is a black man. But he said: “You can be black and a Tory, you can be gay and a Tory.” “What she said was wrong.

LABOUR sang from the same hymn sheet at a karaoke party at their Liverpool conference last night. Shadow health secretary Wes Streeting sang Robbie ...

[Naomi Campbell](/topic/naomi-campbell) went to see WizKid with her ex, [Skepta](/topic/skepta), at the Camden Roundhouse last night. In an interview this morning, leader Sir Keir Starmer said that as he is in Liverpool for the conference, he would be giving the city “the nudge” over Glasgow as the two battle it out to host Eurovision. Ex-leader [Ed Miliband](/topic/ed-miliband) told us he would not sing as “it would be bad for the Labour voting intention” if he did. Sir Ian, right, was also in the play, which he says “educated the world” on gay issues — he recalled a sad episode where Alec Guinness once advised him not to campaign for gay charities. When the production of Amsterdam was delayed by lockdown, Robbie started “making a lot of art” of her own. [ABOUR](/topic/labour) sang from the same hymn sheet at a karaoke party at their [Liverpool](/topic/liverpool) conference last night.

Deputy Labour leader's speech met with applause and cheers as she urges delegates to celebrate successes.

A threat to democracy in one country is a threat to the whole world. In August last year, Tsikhanouskaya visited Downing Street, where then-prime minister Boris Johnson said the UK is “on the side” of the pro-democracy Belarusian opposition leader. Tsikhanouskaya also told the conference in Liverpool about a journalist who she said was imprisoned for treason. Without victory in Ukraine a free Belarus is impossible, and without a free Belarus there can be no lasting peace in Europe.'” You can’t even imagine how much support we have received from all over the world.” The new prime minister, after less than a month in office, has plunged the country into chaos and has now disappeared while millions of households are being pushed into hardship. People all over the world look to you for your strength. Before Angela Rayner closed the Labour conference, there was a speech to delegates from the Belarusian opposition leader Sviatlana Tsikhanouskaya. For the sake of the country, Liz Truss must act now. The High Peak MP tweeted: “Considering the Government’s Plan for Growth, there are a number of measures that I welcome. I do not believe that cutting the 45p Top Tax Rate is the right decision when the Government’s fiscal room for manoeuvre is so limited. They abandoned their posts for months whilst the Tory party dealt with replacing the disgraceful Boris Johnson.

The Labour MP has been suspended by the party after calling the Chancellor 'superficially black'

"He went to Eton, I think. He went to a very expensive prep school. My comments were ill-judged, and I wholeheartedly apologise to anyone affected," she said on Tuesday.