UK Politics

Sign up for the View from Westminster email for expert analysis straight to your inboxGet our free View from Westminster emailNigel Farage has hit back at Keir Starmer’s jibe that Clacton is a “pantomime” by demanding he takes action against Labour’s candidate there for an anti-white comment.During his manifesto launch, Sir Keir addressed the fact that he was not revealing any “rabbits out of the hat” with no new policies revealed.He said: “If you want politics as pantomime, I hear Clacton is nice this time of year.”Farage answered questions on LBC this morning More

Sign up for the View from Westminster email for expert analysis straight to your inboxGet our free View from Westminster emailA Reform UK parliamentary candidate who said the UK “should have accepted Hitler’s offer of neutrality” was only making “ordinary” pub talk, Nigel Farage has claimed.Ian Gribbin, standing for Reform in Bexhill and Battle, also wrote online that women were the “sponging gender” and should be “deprived of health care” in comments reportedly made on the UnHerd website. Mr Farage, Reform’s leader, blamed Rishi Sunak’s decision to call a snap election for 4 July for not being able to properly vet candidates.The Reform leader said he was not able to deselect Mr Gribbin because the legal deadline had passed for putting prospective MPs on the ballot paper, before declining to say whether he still backed the candidate.“I can’t, they are legally on the ballot paper,” he told LBC Radio on Thursday. “I can disown them, I might well do that… its ordinary folk down the pub speak.”Nigel Farage in the LBC studio as he addressed the backlash to his candidate More

Sign up for the View from Westminster email for expert analysis straight to your inboxGet our free View from Westminster emailSir Keir Starmer arrived at his manifesto launch with his jacket off and sleeves rolled up as he launched his vision to “turbo charge” Britain but revealed that he intends to raise £8.6billion in new taxes.The increase in revenues will by the manifesto’s own admission give the UK its highest ever tax burden, even though Sir Keir claimed he did not want to increase taxes.The Labour leader emphasised the change in his own party and the need for change from “Tory chaos” as he unveiled a programme for government which appeared to deliberately ape traditional Tory policies.This was emphasised when he was confronted by a heckler early in his speech: “We gave up being a party of protest five years ago, we want to be a party of power.”Sir Keir Starmer launches Labour manifesto More

Sign up for the View from Westminster email for expert analysis straight to your inboxGet our free View from Westminster emailWatch as Sir Keir Starmer launched the Labour Party’s general election manifesto on Thursday, 13 June.The party has said it will put “wealth creation” at the heart of its promises, with Sir Keir proclaiming economic growth as his their “core business”.Thursday’s launch came after polling showed Sir Keir came out on top in the latest election broadcast event opposite Rishi Sunak – The Battle For No 10 leaders debate on Sky News on Wednesday night.YouGov figures said around 64 per cent of 1,864 respondents said Sir Keir was the better performer, compared to 36 per cent who said Mr Sunak.Both Sir Keir and Mr Sunak faced jeers and tough questions from audience members; the PM was booed after claiming the junior doctors’ strike had an impact on NHS waiting lists, while Sir Keir was branded a “political robot”.Sir Keir has insisted his manifesto will not include any “tax surprises” for the public.Mr Sunak has repeatedly claimed that Labour will increase taxes for the average household by more than £2,000 a year, but he has been accused of “misleading” the public.The £2,094 figure was originally raised in the first televised clash of the general election campaign, when Mr Sunak repeatedly pointed to analysis by Treasury civil servants he said showed a £38.5bn black hole in Sir Keir’s spending plans.Treasury permanent secretary James Bowler told MPs the Treasury should not be cited as the author of the costing analysis. More

Moment Keir Starmer heckled by climate protester as he sets out Labour manifestoSign up for the View from Westminster email for expert analysis straight to your inboxGet our free View from Westminster emailSir Keir Starmer has unveiled the long-awaited Labour manifesto outlining the key policies for his plan to deliver “create more wealth”, including raising £8.6 billion in new taxes.With his jacket off and sleeves rolled up, he pledged to make wealth creation the “number one priority”, with a leadership that is “pro-business and pro-worker” in an effort to win over disaffected Tory voters angry at a flatlined economy under prime minister Rishi Sunak. Sir Keir warned voters that “challenges don’t disappear overnight if Labour wins” as he claimed the manifesto he was presenting today was not a quick fix but a “long-term plan” for change.Labour’s pledges include keeping tax inflation low, curbing NHS waiting lists, implementing a border security command, creating Great British Energy and cracking down on antisocial behaviour.But the Tories have slammed the manifesto labelling the fiscal policies a “tax trap”, with the Mr Sunak branding it the “highest taxes in history”. Show latest update 1718280992Labour manifesto at a glanceNHS and healthcare: Cut waiting lists, 40,000 more NHS appointments each week, ban branded vapes, double cancer scanners numbers, 8,500 additional mental health staff, bring back the “family doctor”, create new “Dentistry Rescue Plan”.Economy: £1.8bn to upgrade ports and build supply chains, £1.5bn to new gigafactories, £2.5bn to rebuild the steel industry, reduce energy, food and house prices. Foreign policy and defence: Keep Nato committment, recognise Palestinian state, rebuild UK-EU relationship, mantain current support to Ukriane. Energy, environment and climate: Set up a new Great British Energy to “cut bills for good”, £1bn to accelerate the deployment of carbon capture, £500m to support the manufacturing of green hydrogen, £6.6bn investment to energy efficiency in homes.Tax, pay pensions and benefits: No increase to National Insurance, income tax or VAT. Raise £8.6bn in tax revenue by closing non-dom loophole, status will be abolished. Corporation tax capped at the current level of 25 per cent.Housing: To build 1.5m new homes over the next five years. Deliver the “biggest increase in social and affordable housebuilding in a generation”Immigration: Create new Border Security Command to crackdown on small boats and people smugglers. Labour also vowed to “reduce net migration”.Crime: Introduce a new Neighbourhood Policing Guarantee to restore patrols in local communities.Education: Recruit 6,500 new expert teachers in key subjects. Free breakfast clubs. High-quality apprenticeships and specialist technical colleges.The Labour manifesto during the launch event at Co-op HQ in Manchester More

Sign up for the View from Westminster email for expert analysis straight to your inboxGet our free View from Westminster emailLabour and the Conservatives have now unveiled their plans for government and both have put home building at the heart of their plans to tackle the housing crisis. While Sir Keir Starmer has emphasised the need for more affordable social homes and ending homelessness, Rishi Sunak has pledged a new Help to Buy scheme and new criteria for who gets to live in council housing. Here is a run-down of what the main parties are offering voters: Follow here for more coverage of the general election Housebuilding Labour have pledged to deliver the biggest increase in social and affordable housebuilding in a generation. This means a promise of 1.5 million new homes built over the next parliament. This is slightly down on the 1.6 million homes the Conservatives have pledged in the next five years. However, Labour are convinced they will be the ones to deliver the target by reforming the planning sector to kick start building. They will introduce mandatory housing targets for councils and recruit hundreds of new planners to tackle backlogs, shadow chancellor Rachel Reeves has said. Housing charity Shelter have welcomed the pledge calling it “bold and desperately needed”. They estimated 90,000 genuinely affordable social homes are needed a year to solve the housing crisis. Labour have said they will try to “better protect” the existing stock of social rented homes by reviewing the increased Right to Buy discounts that were introduced in 2012. Like the Conservatives, they want to build on more brownfield land and preserve the green belt. Keir Starmer’s Labour party have pledged to increase the social housing stock More