Latest news with #KeirStamer
Telegraph
4 days ago
- Politics
- Telegraph
Don't call rural voters Nimbys, Labour MPs tell Starmer
Sir Keir Stamer has been told to stop calling rural voters 'Nimbys' by Labour MPs representing rural seats. The Rural Research Group, which represents seats the party won for the first time at last year's election, branded the term 'toxic' and said may alienate voters in the countryside. Sir Keir and risked a further drop in the 'goodwill' shown by rural voters that handed Labour a historic election win last year. Labour has already been accused of betraying those voters by limiting inheritance tax relief for family farms in last year's Budget. The Prime Minister has regularly used the phrase, which means 'not in my back yard', to describe those he believes are blocking new housing and infrastructure which Labour sees as crucial to boosting economic growth. He said previously: 'For too long, blockers have had the upper hand in legal challenges - using our court processes to frustrate growth. 'We're putting an end to this challenge culture by taking on the Nimbys and a broken system that has slowed down our progress as a nation.' Jenny Riddell-Carpenter, the Labour MP who chairs the Labour Rural Research Group, said many people 'despise' the term. Ms Riddell-Carpenter told The Mirror: 'The term Nimby isn't just toxic, it's politically pointless. We win nothing by labelling people 'anti development' or 'anti growth'.' The Rural Research Group - set up to champion rural issues - published their first report on Wednesday on the attitudes of their countryside constituents. Their survey of 1,412 people found 56 per cent 'firmly do not see themselves as Nimbys'. More than 60 per cent also agreed developments in their areas should go ahead 'as long as it is delivered thoughtfully, and with consideration for local needs and identity'. The group's intervention will be seen as evidence of growing concern amongst rural MPs about Labour's poll ratings. Research group caucuses are becoming more popular in parliament, reflecting how Conservative factions sought to wield power under previous administrations. The Prime Minister has been told to show more recognition for rural identity, which Rural Research Group said had 'for too long been misunderstood and overlooked by policymakers'. A Rural Research Group poll showed that 65 per cent of voters have little trust in politicians. The MPs said: 'This should serve as a clear warning sign to all parties: disillusionment in rural Britain runs deep, and restoring trust will require more than promises - it must be backed by visible, long-term local action rooted in authenticity.'
The National
03-06-2025
- Politics
- The National
No independence referendum while I am PM, says Keir Starmer
"It's not a priority," Keir Stamer told Good Morning Scotland while in Glasgow on Monday, with the interview released on Tuesday. Starmer stressed the need for Scotland to remain part of the United Kingdom in order to remain safe as he released his defence review. READ MORE: Labour insist Keir Starmer to remain in control of nukes as concerns raised First Minister John Swinney has established his strategy as building "demonstrable support" for independence through Government. Starmer said "nobody's raising that with me as their first priority", adding: "certainly in the discussions I'm having with the first minister. "We're talking about jobs, energy, security and dealing with the cost of living crisis." He added: "I think it's really important to focus on the priorities that matter most. "We got a big election win last year on the basis that we would stabilise the economy and ensure that on that foundation we built a stronger Scotland in a stronger United Kingdom and that's what I intend to do." When asked whether SNP winning a majority in Holyrood would change his mind, he said: "No, it's not a priority". The SNP leader recently said taking Scotland out of the UK was the reason he got involved in politics more than four decades ago, before adding that it will 'remain a significant issue' under his leadership. Asked last month whether independence had been put on the back burner since he became First Minister, he told the PA news agency that he had to focus 'directly' on Scots' priorities. READ MORE: 'Right to choose independence' should be focus of Holyrood 2026, former MP says He said: 'I think anyone listening to the speech that I set out last week would see that I'm setting out an agenda about how, on a number of different fronts, whether it's on migration, whether it's about the economy, whether it's about Brexit, that Scotland needs the powers of independence to enable us to prosper as a country, and that's the argument I'll make in the forthcoming period. 'What I've recognised is that the SNP had to make sure that we could address very directly the priorities of the people of Scotland. 'We've done that, and we're doing that, but as we focus on the choices that lie ahead, Scotland's got to have the option of independence, and they'll have that under my leadership.'
