UK Politics

Keir Starmer appeared to freeze when called ‘a political robot’Sign up for the View from Westminster email for expert analysis straight to your inboxGet our free View from Westminster emailA snap YouGov poll after Rishi Sunak and Sir Keir Starmer were questioned on live television has found 64 per cent of viewers – nearly two in three – thought the Labour leader came out on top, and only 36 per cent said the prime minister did better. Both party leaders insisted they would not raise taxes for working people, as they were grilled in front of an audience.The prime minister said taxes for working people would “continue to come down” under a Tory government.The Labour leader said: “I am not wanting to raise tax. I think people are taxed too much already. What I want to do, my central mission is to grow the economy.”Sir Keir said he would negotiate with doctors over pay but the country could not afford their 35 per cent claim.Mr Sunak was repeatedly challenged on health service staff shortages by NHS workers.The prime minister pointed to funding provided by the government before noting: “What we have not done, for not just years but for decades, is train enough staff and then be reliant on having to bring people here from abroad.”Show latest update 1718244001Keir Starmer confuses Grimsby with Hull during election debateKeir Starmer confuses Grimsby with Hull during election debateSir Keir Starmer appeared to confuse Grimsby and Hull during Wednesday evening’s general election debate. The Labour leader took questions from Sky News political editor Beth Rigby and members of the audience as he attempted to win over the public ahead of next month’s vote. At one point, Sir Keir noted that he was impressed with apprentices he had met “here in Hull” – despite standing on stage 35 miles away. In another awkward moment, he was described as a “political robot” by someone in the audience.Tom Watling13 June 2024 03:001718240401Audience gasp as post-Brexit migration numbers revealed to Rishi SunakAudience gasp as post-Brexit migration numbers revealed to Rishi SunakPost-Brexit migration numbers shocked the audience at Wednesday’s general election debate. With Rishi Sunak sat on stage, host Beth Rigby noted that the total net migration figure into the UK in the past three years was 1.9 million, compared to 836,000 people in the three years running up to the 2016 referendum. As the Sky News political editor read the numbers, the audience gasped in shock. “Net migration into this country has more than doubled in the last three years, from before we left the European Union,” Ms Rigby concluded. In response, the prime minister called the figure “too high”.Tom Watling13 June 2024 02:001718236801Keir Starmer reveals his wife Victoria did not want him to go into politicsTom Watling13 June 2024 01:001718233201Top Sunak aide Craig Williams probed after placing bet on general election date days before announcementTom Watling13 June 2024 00:001718232300Why Brexit is missing from this election campaignTom Watling12 June 2024 23:451718231400Sunak’s campaign takes another blow as Starmer claims confident victory in YouGov poll after Sky debateTom Watling12 June 2024 23:301718230500Rishi Sunak declares he has not given up after minister warns of Labour ‘supermajority’Tom Watling12 June 2024 23:151718229780Jeers and laughter: Public have their say on Rishi Sunak and Keir StarmerJeers and laughter: Public have their say on Rishi Sunak and Keir StarmerTom Watling12 June 2024 23:031718228700Sunak pleads his case for a return to Downing Street Here we have some pictures from Rishi Sunak’s interview with Sky News as he fielded questions from a fired up audience in Grimsby Rish Sunak pleads his case to a member of the Grimsby audience More

From national insurance to migration: Key takeaways from Conservatives’ general election manifestoSign up for the View from Westminster email for expert analysis straight to your inboxGet our free View from Westminster emailRishi Sunak has insisted he had “absolutely not” lost hope of winning the 4 July general election despite Tory allies warned of the risk of Labour winning a “super-majority”.Defence secretary Grant Shapps claimed the Tories were fighting hard to prevent Labour from securing crashing win bigger than the 1997 landslide. The Tories fear the Blue Wall could be knocked down with chancellor Jeremy Hunt warned he faces a battle to save his Godalming and Ash seat, a key Lib Dem target.It comes as the Conservative party could make a surprising U-turn on its flagship pledge to bring National Service after the defence secretary suggested the scheme would last less than a month. The Tory manifesto confirmed the scheme would be a “year-long full-time placement in the armed forces or cyber defence”. But he today said it would be much shorter.The Green Party has launched its manifesto, which includes a pledge to raise taxes on the “super-rich”, and nationalise water, railways and energy companies, as well as scrapping university tuition fees. Meanwhile, Mr Sunak and Sir Keir Starmer are preparing to face a grilling live interview in front of an audience for Sky News in Grimsby.Show latest update 1718203772Poll: SNP and Labour tied in Scotland Salma Ouaguira12 June 2024 15:491718203224Conservatives mock Labour’s shadow transport minister Salma Ouaguira12 June 2024 15:401718203111Sunak ‘hardened on the battlefield’, Tory minister says A Conservative minister has said that Rishi Sunak has been “hardened on the battlefield” by almost a decade in Westminster. Postal minister Kevin Hollinrake told ITV: “We all kind of entered Parliament in 2015 full of the joys of spring.“And I think we’ve all got a dose of political reality, which I think every politician gets when they enter the fray.“So I think he’s been probably hardened on the battlefield.”Salma Ouaguira12 June 2024 15:381718202207SNP to focus election campaign on Brexit ‘damage’ and austerity The Scottish National Party wants to focus their election campaign on point out at the “damage” caused by Brexit and the “prolongued austerity” under the Conservative government. Scottish first minister John Swinney has promised voters that only his party will “protect Scotland’s values” after “14 years of cuts” from Westminster.Mr Swinney also said his party should have been invited to the Sky News leaders’ special event in Grimsby as the third largest party in the Commons. He said: “We should be represented on that panel, in that discussion, because we’ve got lots to say in this election.”First Minister John Swinney on an election campaign visit to an Asda supermarket More