UK Politics

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

Sign up for the View from Westminster email for expert analysis straight to your inboxGet our free View from Westminster emailRishi Sunak’s closest aide has said he made a “huge error of judgement” on a general election bet he made that is being investigated by the Gambling Commission.Craig Williams, the prime minister’s private secretary, apologised after admitting that he placed a bet on what date the election would be held days before the prime minister announced it on 22 May.It is understood the Gambling Commission (GC), which has launched an inquiry into the incident, informed Downing Street officials of the bet last week.Mr Williams, the Conservative parliamentary candidate for Montgomeryshire, said he would not comment further while the GC carried out its work.“I clearly made a huge error of judgment, that’s for sure, and I apologise,” he told the BBC earlier on Thursday. “I will not be expanding on my statement because it’s an independent process.”Using confidential information to gain an unfair advantage when betting may constitute a criminal offence.Additionally, the MPs’ code of conduct bars members from “causing significant damage to the reputation and integrity of the house”. The bet was allegedly placed while parliament was still in session.The bet was flagged automatically by Ladbrokes, the betting company with which Mr Williams placed the wager.Mr Williams placed a £100 bet with 5-1 odds, meaning he would have won £500, but his name was raised as potentially a “politically exposed person”, so the wager was not registered.The bookmaker is believed to be particularly cautious over “novelty” betting markets such as the general election.Craig Williams MP is pictured alongise Rishi Sunak More

Sign up for the View from Westminster email for expert analysis straight to your inboxGet our free View from Westminster emailFrom wealth creation to a new state-owned energy company, Labour has unveiled their policy pledges for government. Here we look at some of the main points: ‘President’ StarmerThe manifesto put Keir Starmer front and central in a continuation of the presidential style campaign he has been running since May. The document was entitled “My plan for change” not “Labour’s plan for change”, making it very personal to Starmer himself. Added to that there were 34 pictures of the Labour leader throughout the manifesto.ChangeThe word change is emblazoned across the manifesto. Labour says its policy platform is a plan to change the UK. And that includes from its leadership down. The manifesto also includes a picture of Keir Starmer at last week’s D-Day commemorations. Yes, the same event Rishi Sunak faced an outpouring of criticism over, after it emerged that he had left early.Wealth creation Labour says this is a policy plan for wealth creation. The party will cap corporation tax at its current rate of 25% to give businesses long-term certainty and create a national wealth fund designed to boost economic growth. It has also ruled out raising the rates of income tax, national insurance and VAT. But it will raise around £7bn more from higher taxes on non-doms, cracking down on tax avoidance and charging private schools VAT. Labour leader Keir Starmer at the launch of his party’s manifesto More

Sign up for the View from Westminster email for expert analysis straight to your inboxGet our free View from Westminster emailLabour has said it will introduce “binding regulation” on the biggest artificial intelligence firms to ensure the “safe development” of AI if it wins the General Election.In its manifesto, the party said it would target the regulation at the “handful of companies developing the most powerful AI models”.Labour said it would also ban the creation of sexually explicit deepfakes, and pledged to create a new Regulatory Innovation Office which it said would help regulators across sectors keep up with rapidly evolving new technologies.It said regulators were currently “ill-equipped” to deal with such advances, which often “cut across traditional industries and sectors”.The new office would help regulators “update regulation, speed up approval timelines and co-ordinate issues that span existing boundaries”, Labour said.This is in contrast to the Government’s approach during the last parliament, which chose to use existing regulators to take on the role of monitoring AI use within their own sectors rather than creating a new, central regulator dedicated to the emerging technology, which it said was a more agile and pro-innovation approach.As part of that approach, in February, the Government pledged to spend £100 million on AI regulation, including on upskilling regulators across different sectors on how handle the rise of AI.And speaking in November last year, Prime Minister Rishi Sunak said that while “binding requirements” would likely be needed one day to regulate AI, it was currently the time to move quickly without laws.Last month, a number of world-leading AI scientists called for stronger action from world leaders on the risks associated with AI, and said governments were moving too slowly to regulate the rapidly evolving technology.In an expert consensus paper published in the Journal Science, 25 leading scientist said more funding was needed for AI oversight institutions, as well as more rigorous risk assessment regimes. More

Sign up for the View from Westminster email for expert analysis straight to your inboxGet our free View from Westminster emailFormer Neighbours star Holly Valance has helped Nigel Farage’s Reform UK raise £1.5m within days of his return as leader, according to reports. The news will add to Rishi Sunak’s woes after one poll put the Tories just a single point ahead of Reform. Big donors are understood to be reluctant to fund the Conservative campaign, while Tory MPs complain a snap election did not allow them enough time to build up their warchests. Meanwhile, Reform’s numbers has been boosted by thousands of new members and pledges from large donors. Holly Valance at a Reform UK press conference at The Glaziers Hall in London More