Starmer: Govt Has Lost Control Of British Economy

UK Opposition Leader Kier Starmer, speaking at the Labour Party conference in Liverpool, has said that the government of Liz Truss has “lost control of the British economy.”

• Starmer says the situation of recent days is “without precedent.”
• Starmer: “They’ve crashed the pound – and for what? Higher interest rates, higher borrowing – and for what? Not for you, not for working people. For tax cuts for the richest 1 percent in our society.”
• Starmer: “In their budget last week- they sent out a new message…it says your struggles, your hopes, your ambitions don’t matter to us [...] We’re here for those at the top and the rest of you can shove off.”
• Starmer also criticised Tory energy policy: “The [Ukraine] war didn’t ban onshore wind, the war didn’t scrap home insulation, the war didn’t stall nuclear energy. The Tories did that.”
• Starmer followed those comment by saying that Labour stands with Ukraine against Russian aggression, heading off potential criticism that a Labour govt might be soft on Russia.
• Comes as yesterday, YouGov published a survey showing Labour with a 17 point lead over the Conservative party - the largest margin since 2001.