Keir Starmer says Nigel Farage is ‘Liz Truss all over again’
Keir Starmer has introduced a chain of assaults on Nigel Farage, telling the general public they can’t agree with the Reform UK chief.
Speaking at an tournament at a trade in north-west England, the top minister mentioned Farage do not have secure jobs in industries topic to price lists from america, and when compared him to former top minister Liz Truss.
Starmer mentioned:
We secure the ones jobs. Would Nigel Farage have finished the similar? Absolutely now not.
And that’s the query to have to invite about Nigel Farage. Can you agree with him? Can you agree with him along with your long term? Can you agree with him along with your jobs? Can you agree with him along with your mortgages, your pensions, your expenses? And he gave the solution on Tuesday. A powerful no.
He set out financial plans which comprises billions upon billions of totally unfunded spending. Precisely this sort of irresponsible splurge that despatched your loan prices, your expenses and the price of dwelling in the course of the roof. It’s Liz Truss everywhere once more.
Key occasions
Conservative celebration has ‘run out of highway’ replies Starmer when requested why he’s specializing in Farage
The Conservative celebration has “run out of road”, the top minister mentioned, as he advised newshounds the selection for electorate was once between Labour and Nigel Farage’s Reform UK.
Asked why he was once focusing such a lot on Farage’s celebration, Keir Starmer mentioned:
I do assume that the Conservative celebration has run out of highway.
Their undertaking is faltering, they’re in decline. They’re sliding into the abyss. And it’s crucial, due to this fact, that we are saying that and establish that, however similarly politics is ready alternatives.
And the selection in this day and age is between the number of a Labour govt that thinks strong funds are on the center of establishing higher lives for operating folks, or Nigel Farage and Reform, who most effective this week mentioned they might spend billions upon billions upon billions, tens of billions of kilos, in an unfunded method, which is an actual repeat of what Liz Truss did.
And it wasn’t Nigel Farage that misplaced, he’s all proper, it’s operating folks around the nation who misplaced out, and I’m really not ready to permit that ever to occur on this nation once more.
Keir Starmer mentioned he’s having a look at “all options” to force down little one poverty when requested if he wish to eliminate the two-child receive advantages cap.
“I’m determined we’re going to drive down child poverty,” the top minister mentioned all the way through a discuss with to a trade within the north-west. Starmer added:
One of the proudest issues that the ultimate Labour govt did was once to force down little one poverty, and that’s why we’ve were given a taskforce operating in this.
I feel there are a variety of parts. There isn’t a unmarried bullet, however I’m completely made up our minds that we will be able to force this down, and that’s why we’ll have a look at all choices, all the time, of using down little one poverty.
Starmer says he does now not want ‘classes’ from Farage on problems that topic maximum to operating folks
Keir Starmer mentioned he does now not want “lessons” from Nigel Farage on what lifestyles is like for operating folks.
The top minister mentioned he sought after to “protect” operating folks from what the Reform UK chief would do.
Chris Hope of GB News requested:
Are you panicking as a result of Reform are so forward within the polls it kind of feels?
… You went to a state faculty, your dad labored in a manufacturing unit, your mum labored within the NHS, so why is a public faculty skilled former town dealer were given extra in commonplace with the ‘red wall’ than you will have?
Starmer answered:
I do know what it method to paintings 10 hours an afternoon in a manufacturing unit 5 days every week, and I do know that as a result of that’s what my dad did each and every unmarried operating day of his lifestyles, and that’s what I grew up with.
So I don’t want classes from Nigel Farage in regards to the problems that topic maximum to operating folks on this nation.
Keir Starmer mentioned he is aware of “what it’s like growing up in a cost-of-living crisis”, and Reform UK chief Nigel Farage would “be exactly the same” as former top minister Liz Truss.
He mentioned:
Apparently [Farage] is in Las Vegas nowadays at a on line casino, and it’s now not a wonder, as a result of he mentioned that the Liz Truss funds in his view was once the most productive since 1986.
That displays his judgment. It displays what he’d do and the outcome could be precisely the similar. I’m now not ready to let that occur.
He added:
Unlike Nigel Farage, I do know what it’s like rising up in a cost-of-living disaster. I do know what it’s like when your circle of relatives can’t pay the expenses, while you concern the postman, the expenses that can be introduced, and I understand how a lot paintings we need to do.
But there isn’t and not will likely be a magic wand that may wave away the wish to arrange the general public funds correctly. That is the root upon which the entirety rests, all the time.
Now we have been elected to switch the rustic, however we have been additionally elected to by no means put operating folks via a disaster like Liz Truss ever once more.
Speaking about Farage, Starmer mentioned:
This is the person who mentioned Jaguar Land Rover deserve – his phrase – to move bust. And he mentioned that as a result of he didn’t like an ad that they made.
This is a corporation on the absolute leading edge of British engineering and he says they deserve to move bust. But in contrast to Nigel Farage, I’ve been to look the employees at JLR a number of occasions over, specifically lately, and I do know what the ones jobs imply for the staff themselves, for his or her households and their communities.
And I noticed first-hand the anxiousness on their faces. I met them simply as I met you this morning. I noticed the anxieties on their faces after they idea their jobs have been in peril. So, after they wanted enhance previous this yr, once we needed to struggle for his or her jobs and make a handle the United States, I secure the ones jobs as a result of I had them in my minds eye.
Starmer then wondered whether or not Farage “would have done the same” in protective jobs at JLR. He mentioned:
Would Nigel Farage have finished the similar? Absolutely now not. And that’s the query it’s important to ask about Nigel Farage: are you able to agree with him?”
Starmer started his cope with by means of talking in regards to the govt’s fresh business offers with India, america and the EU.
Speaking to staff and newshounds at Glass Futures in St Helens, Merseyside, Starmer mentioned:
Only this morning, in fact, you defined to me that the India deal particularly will likely be truly necessary for glass and what you’re doing immediately, and naturally, for companies like whiskey that want glass all the time.
And that comes from my absolute resolution to create jobs, excellent jobs, and to force down the price of dwelling and put more cash on your pocket, which is I feel the article most of the people are maximum all in favour of.
But quickly, he grew to become his consideration to Nigel Farage by means of including:
That’s what drives me, however you’ll’t say the similar about Nigel Farage.
Keir Starmer says Nigel Farage is ‘Liz Truss all over again’
Keir Starmer has introduced a chain of assaults on Nigel Farage, telling the general public they can’t agree with the Reform UK chief.
Speaking at an tournament at a trade in north-west England, the top minister mentioned Farage do not have secure jobs in industries topic to price lists from america, and when compared him to former top minister Liz Truss.
Starmer mentioned:
We secure the ones jobs. Would Nigel Farage have finished the similar? Absolutely now not.
And that’s the query to have to invite about Nigel Farage. Can you agree with him? Can you agree with him along with your long term? Can you agree with him along with your jobs? Can you agree with him along with your mortgages, your pensions, your expenses? And he gave the solution on Tuesday. A powerful no.
He set out financial plans which comprises billions upon billions of totally unfunded spending. Precisely this sort of irresponsible splurge that despatched your loan prices, your expenses and the price of dwelling in the course of the roof. It’s Liz Truss everywhere once more.
Keir Starmer has begun his cope with at a producing trade within the north-west of England. We have a are living video flow on the most sensible of the web page now – you’ll have to refresh the web page to get entry to it.
Severin Carrell
The Hamilton byelection marketing campaign is all of a sudden evolving right into a face to face combat between Anas Sarwar, the Scottish Labour chief, and Nigel Farage – a minimum of within the proxy battle being fought on social media.
Sarwar has posted an increasing number of combative movies difficult the Reform chief to a debate whilst Farage, who’s because of make an overly uncommon look in Scotland subsequent week, has shot again by means of once more suggesting Sarwar is biased towards white folks.
Reform UK was once accused previous this week of “inflaming tensions” by means of Sarwar and John Swinney, the Scottish National celebration (SNP) chief and primary minister, after wrongly accusing Sarwar of prioritising the pursuits of Pakistani Scots according to an outdated speech.
Sarwar has since long gone directly to Instagram, Facebook and X with “a message to Nigel Farage” in a selfie-style clip filmed in Hamilton, accusing Farage of being an elitist outsider.
One mentioned:
This is what Hamilton looks as if. I do know for you, you almost certainly assume Hamilton is only a display within the West End of London. So I recommend you ask your chauffeur to position Hamilton into Google maps. You rise up right here. I will problem you in your perspectives. You can problem me on mine and we will see what the folks of Scotland bring to mind you.
In an Instagram clip from his newest BBC Scotland radio interview, Sarwar says:
He has no concept the place Hamilton is.
Farage amplified his assaults on Sarwar’s politics by means of resurfacing an outdated speech of Sarwar’s in Holyrood the place he criticised the failure of main Scottish establishments to advertise folks of color into management roles.
Reform UK’s submit on X intercut the clip with Farage talking at a Reform rally announcing “we don’t care about skin colour … we don’t care who you are … we care whether you share the values of this country”.
Labour’s method suggests they wish to use Reform’s huge presence on this marketing campaign to their merit, pushing the SNP (which is the transparent favorite to win) into the background, and to enlarge Sarwar’s Scottishness and seize voter antipathy against Reform.
But Scottish Labour might also now be specializing in making sure they beat Reform into 3rd position, to steer clear of the humiliation of being overtaken by means of them; Labour’s candidate, Davy Russell, is broadly observed as a deficient performer who’s suffering with the marketing campaign.
Jobcentres will not pressure folks into ‘any job’ to be had, minister says

Jessica Elgot
Jobcentres will not pressure folks into “any job” to be had, the employment minister has mentioned, promising there will likely be long-term, personalized occupation enhance for the ones dropping out because of welfare cuts.
Alison McGovern mentioned she was once finishing the Conservative coverage below which jobseekers have been obliged to take any low-paid, insecure paintings and that the carrier would now be fascinated by serving to folks to construct rewarding careers.
McGovern, who’s tasked with a significant overhaul to employment enhance on account of important cuts to incapacity advantages, mentioned the dept would use AI to liberate the workloads of process coaches, giving them extra time to offer “human” enhance to these with complicated wishes and long-term unemployment.
The govt is going through open insurrection amongst Labour MPs over the proposed cuts – which some in No 10 concern may imply dropping the vote in parliament.
McGovern mentioned she sought after to recognize there have been many disabled individuals who would really feel “frightened” by means of the cuts to non-public independence bills and disability advantages, with many dropping enhance fully.
“I don’t blame anybody for being scared or worried about it because given what’s happened with changes to disability benefits before, I understand that,” she mentioned.
But she added she was once deeply involved in regards to the numbers of younger folks out of labor – with many wanting specialist lend a hand to even have interaction with process enhance on account of excessive social anxiousness.
McGovern mentioned that folks whose advantages have been reduce below Labour would obtain radically other enhance. Work enhance will likely be introduced by means of GPs and physiotherapists, along with the prolonged enhance in jobcentres.
US company that exams eligibility for UK incapacity advantages can pay £10m in dividends

Lauren Almeida
The British arm of a US contractor that earnings from trying out whether or not some folks in the United Kingdom must obtain incapacity advantages has paid £10m in dividends to its traders.
Maximus, a Virginia-based trade, reported a 23% upward thrust in pre-tax benefit for its UK arm, from £23.6m to £29.1m, in its monetary yr to the tip of September, accounts lodged at Companies House display. Its income rose 2%, from £294m to £300m.
The corporate is the most important supplier of useful overview products and services, or FAS, for the Department for Work and Pensions (DWP). These exams resolve an individual’s degree of serve as and skill to accomplish on a regular basis duties.
The UK arm of the trade paid out £10m in dividends to traders, identical to £10,000 consistent with strange proportion, in step with accounts filed at Companies House. The corporate additionally paid out £10m in dividends to its traders within the 2023 monetary yr.
Maximus secured a five-year contract from the federal government in 2023 to offer useful overview products and services, at an estimated price of £800m over the length, with the way to prolong for an additional two years.
In a inexperienced paper revealed in March, the Department for Work and Pensions mentioned studies of checks for the private independence fee (Pip) have been “not always positive”.
The nationwide incapacity charity Sense mentioned “nobody should be rewarded for treating disabled people with disrespect”.
Tom Marsland, of the charity, mentioned:
Sense’s analysis discovered that part of disabled folks with complicated wishes who’ve been via a advantages overview discovered it humiliating, and virtually part didn’t get the appropriate communique enhance to correctly show why they want enhance.
These statistics are surprising and display a deep-rooted downside with the present overview procedure.

Helena Horton
The govt has ordered the construction of 2 reservoirs, the primary to be in-built England for greater than 30 years.
The loss of reservoir capability, mixed with a emerging inhabitants and drier summers led to by means of local weather breakdown, has put the rustic susceptible to water shortages. The govt warned in fresh weeks of an approaching drought if there was once now not important rainfall quickly, and reservoirs were attaining worryingly low ranges.
The surroundings minister, Steve Reed, has awarded the standing of “nationally significant” to 2 new reservoir initiatives in East Anglia and Lincolnshire and ordered that they move forward. These would be the first to be constructed since 1992.
The govt mentioned this could shore up water sources for greater than 750,000 properties in England’s maximum water-stressed spaces.
Without extra capability, the United Kingdom will likely be susceptible to operating out of water within the medium time period. The Environment Agency has predicted a shortfall of virtually 5bn litres an afternoon by means of 2050.
The water minister, Emma Hardy, mentioned:
Today we’re backing the developers now not the blockers, intervening within the nationwide hobby and slashing pink tape to make the making plans procedure quicker to unblock 9 new reservoirs. This govt will safe our water provide for long term generations and release the construction of 1000’s of houses as a part of the plan for trade.
The construction of 1000’s of houses within the spaces to be served by means of the reservoirs is being held up as there isn’t the water provide to maintain them.
Anglian Water is proposing to construct Lincolnshire reservoir to the south of Sleaford, which must be operating by means of 2040. It has partnered with Cambridge Water to suggest the Fens reservoir, situated between the cities of Chatteris and March, to be finished in 2036.
Government is ‘severe’ about laws water firms should practice, says water minister
The govt is “serious” in regards to the laws which water firms should practice, Emma Hardy has mentioned based on fines imposed on Thames Water of £122.7m, stories the PA information company.
Speaking at a reservoir, the water minister advised Times Radio the penalty was once the “largest fine there ever has been on record” within the sector and added:
This is a central authority this is thinking about enforcement.
For years, water firms were allowed to escape with deficient behaviour, and we’ve mentioned below this govt that isn’t going to occur as a result of now not most effective is that this the most important positive that there ever has been, we’ve additionally presented the Water (Special Measures) Act, so as much as two years’ imprisonment for water bosses.
We’ve banned unfair bonuses and simply ultimate week I used to be out chatting in regards to the 81 prison investigations which are going into water firms. So we’re severe once we say that we’re taking enforcement significantly.
Asked why the federal government had now not thought to be particular management for Thames Water, Hardy mentioned this mechanism was once for firms which move “bankrupt”. She described the company as “stable”, including: “We’ll monitor it closely.”
Second Lib Dem MP withdraws enhance for England and Wales assisted loss of life invoice

Peter Walker
A 2d Liberal Democrat MP has mentioned they’ve modified their thoughts over the assisted loss of life invoice and can vote towards it on the subsequent Commons degree, in some other signal of a much broader, if this is the case a long way slight, ebbing away of enhance for the measure.
In an electronic mail to constituents, Brian Mathew, the Melksham and Devizes MP, mentioned that whilst he had sponsored the invoice at its 2d studying vote, in April, scrutiny of the plans had left “several concerns I feel have been inadequately answered”.
His announcement follows feedback ultimate week by means of Steve Darling, the Torbay MP who may be the Lib Democrat paintings and pensions spokesperson. Darling mentioned that whilst he had sponsored the invoice in April he was once now “marginally against” it, however had now not but made up our minds whether or not he would vote towards it or abstain.
About 8 different MPs who both supported the personal member’s invoice, led by means of Labour MP Kim Leadbeater, at its 2d studying or didn’t vote have mentioned they are going to now oppose it.
However, a minimum of two who abstained in April are actually supporters, whilst the Runcorn and Helsby byelection previous in May led to a Labour MP who antagonistic the plan changed by means of a Reform UK one that backs it.
Given the second one studying of the invoice was once handed with a majority of 55, the numbers so far point out it must additionally get in the course of the 3rd studying, scheduled for 20 June.