Latest news with #KeirStarmer
BBC News
2 hours ago
- Business
- BBC News
Kemi Badenoch accuses Starmer and Farage of 'fantasy economics'
Conservative Party leader Kemi Badenoch has accused Prime Minister Sir Keir Starmer and Reform UK leader Nigel Farage of indulging in "fantasy economics" over their approaches to welfare in the Daily Mail, Badenoch says both leaders believe in getting struggling taxpayers to "fund unlimited child support for others".Her commentary comes after the Labour government indicated that it was looking at the possibility of scrapping the two-child benefit said earlier this week that his party would also get rid of the policy and back more generous tax breaks for married people. Badenoch added the country could not "afford their fantasy economics" and that Britain deserved leaders who did not "treat economics like a branch of showbiz"."This week we have seen Labour and Reform in a race to the bottom to scrap the two-child benefit cap," she wrote."Starmer and Farage now believe in getting taxpayers - many of whom are struggling to raise their own children or choosing not to have them in the first place - to fund unlimited child support for others."The Conservatives have said the policy - which they introduced - of limiting means-tested benefits to just two children in most families should not be UK have pledged to remove the cap if they win power, but have not detailed how they would fund the billions it, and all their other pledges, would cost. In a speech this week, Farage said he wanted to lift the cap "not because we support a benefits culture" but because it would ease the burden on lower-paid Secretary Bridget Phillipson has said the government is looking at scrapping the two-child benefit cap but warned it would "cost a lot of money".Speaking on the BBC's Sunday with Laura Kuenssberg show last week, Deputy Prime Minister Angela Rayner refused to confirm whether the government would remove the has also grown from Labour backbenchers over the issue since the party's poor performance at the local elections earlier this attack comes after Farage said this week the Conservatives had become an "irrelevance".For his part, Sir Keir said the Conservatives had "run out of road", were in "decline" and "sliding into the abyss". Badenoch argued her party was now "the only major political party to take a serious look at the welfare state".
Daily Mail
5 hours ago
- Business
- Daily Mail
KEMI BADENOCH: This country deserves a leader who doesn't treat economics like showbiz
Labour promised voters 'change' – but still don't know how they'll pay for it. Now Nigel Farage is trying the same trick. In their first ten months, Keir Starmer and Rachel Reeves have hiked taxes on jobs, farms and family businesses, and snatched winter fuel support from vulnerable pensioners. All this despite promising not to raise taxes on working people. And guess what? It's not working. Every Labour government has left unemployment higher than when it took office. Sure enough, unemployment is up 10 per cent since last July and inflation is steadily rising. Starmer made big promises that he couldn't deliver, now we're all paying the price. This week, Reform's leader is pledging tax breaks and welfare giveaways like it's Christmas, but his sums aren't adding up. Jeremy Corbyn 's 'magic money tree' is back, and this time it has a Reform UK sticker on it. It's easy in opposition to promise voters everything they want, and provide only vague ideas as to how to pay for it. Keir Starmer did it and is getting found out. Now Nigel Farage is doing it. I won't. I won't make empty promises to chase popularity. Our most successful leader – Lady Thatcher – once said: 'The problem with socialism is that you eventually run out of other people's money.' After years of economic shocks – Covid, war, inflation – Britain can't afford the fantasy economics of Starmer and Farage. We need a proper plan for economic growth, underpinned by our principles. A plan built around robust private enterprise – because Conservatives understand that it's not government that creates growth, it's business. Conservatives believe in lower taxes – not just as a slogan, but as a moral choice. We get that your money belongs to you, and every penny the Government takes should be justified. We believe that a smaller, smarter state allows individuals and communities to flourish. Working families have been hit hard by the cost of living. We risk making the current environment of low-pay and precarious work permanent, unless we find a sustainable way to allow private enterprise and jobs to flourish. People who have put in the hard graft to support their families should be able to enjoy the fruits of their labour. Working from January to June just to pay the Government is not an acceptable situation. Conservatives reject the mindset that taking money from a population and giving it back to them is generous, while letting them keep it in the first place is selfish. With an ageing population, the tax burden is just going to keep increasing. Only by taking some difficult decisions, while making the case for why lower taxes and less spending are necessary, can we hope to live in a Britain where society is bigger, and government smaller. I saw how previous Conservative governments lost sight of these principles and learned a hard lesson about trying to have our cake and eat it. It's why I am also clear that under my leadership, if the Conservatives are to keep taxes low, we must cut waste and end the inherent unfairness where some work ever harder for smaller rewards – to pay for others' benefits. We're now the only major political party prepared to take a serious look at the welfare state. Conservatives believe in personal responsibility, and welfare as a safety net rather than as a way of life. This week we have seen Labour and Reform in a race to the bottom to scrap the two-child benefit cap. Apparently, Starmer and Farage now believe in getting taxpayers – many of whom are struggling to raise their own children or choosing not to have them in the first place – to fund unlimited child support for others. That's not fair, it's not sustainable and it's not even compassionate. Welfare traps people, builds dependency and it drives up costs for everyone. While Labour and Reform are content to make promises they can't keep, I won't. The Conservatives are going to be the party of sound money and fiscal responsibility once again. Keir Starmer can't tell you what he stands for. Nigel Farage can't tell you how he'll pay for anything. I can tell you this: I believe in lower taxes, personal responsibility – and a leaner, better-run state. Britain deserves party leaders who don't treat economics like a branch of showbiz, an announcement for a nice headline and forget about the deficit. The Conservatives are now the only party of sound money. It's not an easy position to hold in the age of instant gratification, but it's the right one if we want our children to inherit anything except our debts.
Bloomberg
5 hours ago
- Business
- Bloomberg
UK Business Confidence Hits 9-Month High in Boost for Starmer
A gauge of UK business confidence rose to a nine-month high, climbing back to a level not seen since soon after Prime Minister Keir Starmer first took power, as markets rebounded and trade tensions eased with the US. The Lloyds Business Barometer sentiment gauge rose to 50 in May, the highest since August, according to a survey released Friday. The 11-point jump erased the drop seen in April, when US President Donald Trump's tariff hikes sowed turmoil in financial markets and darkened the economic outlook.
Daily Mail
5 hours ago
- General
- Daily Mail
Keir Starmer's top legal adviser claims calls to quit the ECHR are similar to those made by the Nazis
Keir Starmer 's top legal adviser was under fire on Thursday evening after apparently comparing those who support leaving the likes of the European Convention on Human Rights to Nazis. Lord Hermer, the Attorney General, hit out at MPs and the media for being behind a 'siren song' pushing for Britain to drop international law. In a lecture at the Royal United Services Institute, a defence and security think-tank, he said the Labour Government had a 'policy of progressive realism' that means it will never leave international conventions such as the ECHR. Numerous senior politicians on the Right have called for Britain to leave the convention after it stopped Rwanda deportation flights. Lord Hermer said such 'songs' had been heard before, citing Nazi ideologist Carl Schmitt, who supported Hitler's policies such as the Night of the Long Knives assassinations. The Attorney General said: 'Our approach is a rejection of the siren song that can sadly now be heard in the Palace of Westminster and in some spectrums of the media, that Britain abandons the constraints of international law in favour of raw power. 'This is not a new song. The claim that international law is fine as far as it goes, but can be put aside when conditions change, is a claim that was made in the early 1930s by "realist" jurists in Germany, most notably Carl Schmitt, whose central thesis was in essence the claim that state power is all that counts, not law. 'Because of the experience of what followed in 1933, far-sighted individuals rebuilt and transformed the institutions of international law, as well as internal constitutional law.' He conceded that 'international law cannot stand still and rest on its laurels', that it must be 'critiqued and where necessary reformed and improved' and that 'we must be ready to reform where necessary'. But critics point out that the ECHR is unlikely to bow to calls for reform amid accusations it has overstepped its remit in a string of cases. Tory justice spokesman Robert Jenrick, an advocate of ending Britain's 72-year membership, said: 'The idea you can reform the ECHR is fanciful as it requires unanimity from all 46 signatories. 'It is appalling Hermer would insinuate those who think we should leave the ECHR are like the Nazis. '[Foreign Secretary] David Lammy tried that disgusting smeer with Brexiteers and it didn't work for him. It won't work for Hermer either. 'It seems Labour haven't learned a thing.' The row comes after complaints about Lord Hermer, who is a close friend of the Prime Minister, both having been human rights lawyers. His suitability has also been questioned after it emerged that, before taking up the role last year, he repeatedly brought cases against the Government on behalf of terrorists, including 9/11 plotter Mustafa al-Hawsawi and jihadi bride Shamima Begum. He also acted for former Sinn Fein leader Gerry Adams, who has always denied being a member of the IRA. The Attorney General's office was contacted for comment.
Daily Mail
5 hours ago
- Business
- Daily Mail
EXCLUSIVE Kemi Badenoch takes aim at Nigel Farage and Keir Starmer for 'race to the bottom' over welfare handouts as Tory leader accuses rivals of asking taxpayers to 'fund unlimited child support for others'
Kemi Badenoch has blasted Nigel Farage and Keir Starmer for being in a 'race to the bottom' over welfare handouts. In a feisty attack on the Reform and Labour leaders, Mrs Badenoch said the pair believed in getting taxpayers to fund 'unlimited child support for others' by scrapping the two-child benefit cap. Writing in the Mail, the Tory leader branded the benefit unfair and unsustainable, because welfare 'traps people' and 'drives up costs for everyone'. Instead, she said the Conservatives were now the 'only serious party of sound money' and warned that Britain 'can't afford the fantasy economics of Starmer and Farage', who 'treat economics like a branch of showbiz'. Mrs Badenoch's intervention came after Mr Farage this week pledged a spending splurge of up to £85 billion – including generous benefit increases. The Reform leader said his party would scrap the two-child benefit cap because 'it's the right thing to do', and would fully reverse the winter fuel payment cut. And yesterday, following months of pressure from his own MPs, the Prime Minister gave a hint that he too could scrap the two-child cap after previously ruling it out. Mrs Badenoch said the country was facing a choice between 'sound money and soothing delusions', because 'Keir Starmer can't tell you what he stands for, Nigel Farage can't tell you how he'll pay for anything'. To keep taxes low, the Tory leader added, 'we must cut waste and end the inherent unfairness where some work ever harder for smaller rewards – to pay for others' benefits'. 'We're now the only major political party prepared to take a serious look at the welfare state,' she wrote. Mrs Badenoch said her party believed in 'personal responsibility', and welfare as a 'safety net' rather than a 'way of life'. She wrote: 'This week we have seen Labour and Reform in a race to the bottom to scrap the two-child benefit cap. 'Apparently, Starmer and Farage now believe in getting taxpayers – many of whom are struggling to raise their own children or choosing not to have them in the first place – to fund unlimited child support for others. 'That's not fair, it's not sustainable and it's not even compassionate. Welfare traps people, builds dependency and it drives up costs for everyone. 'While Labour and Reform are content to make promises they can't keep, I won't. The Conservatives are going to be the party of sound money and fiscal responsibility once again.' In his speech on Tuesday, Mr Farage insisted that while he does not support a 'benefits culture', scrapping the two-child benefit cap would make having children 'just a little bit easier' for lower-paid workers. 'It's not a silver bullet, it doesn't solve all of those problems. But it helps them,' he said. But his spending plans have come under fire this week, with critics saying they have been based on 'implausible' calculations. Alongside his pledges on the two-child benefit cap and winter fuel allowance, Mr Farage also vowed to raise the threshold for the basic rate of income tax to £20,000. But the sums he said the party had identified as potential savings to pay for the handouts were soon debunked, as economists warned that the proposals were on a par with Liz Truss's mini-budget 'and likely much larger'. Mrs Badenoch warned that 'Jeremy Corbyn's 'magic money tree' is back but this time it has a Reform UK sticker on it'. Mr Farage faced further questions yesterday after it emerged that he was in Las Vegas last night to speak at a conference promoting Bitcoin. Yesterday, a rattled Sir Keir used a seven-minute speech to attack the Reform leader's policies, warning his plans would cost 'billions upon billions upon billions'. Behind in the polls, the Prime Minister said of Mr Farage: 'Can you trust him? Can you trust him with your future? Can you trust him with your jobs? Can you trust him with your mortgages, your pensions, your bills? 'He gave the answer on Tuesday. A resounding no.' Mr Farage had pitched Reform UK as 'the party of working people' rather than Labour, and accused Sir Keir of having no connection to the working class. But the PM hit back, saying: 'I don't need lessons from Nigel Farage about the issues that matter most to working people in this country.' Asked why he was focusing so much on Reform UK, the Prime Minister claimed the Tories had 'run out of road'. He said the choice for voters was now between Labour and Reform UK, but Reform's chairman Zia Yusuf said Sir Keir's speech in the North-West showed it was 'panic stations at Labour'. Labour is also looking at lifting the two-child cap, with an announcement expected this autumn. Sir Keir initially dodged questions about the policy yesterday, saying he was looking at 'all options' to drive down child poverty. 'There isn't a single bullet, but I'm absolutely determined that we will drive this down, and that's why we'll look at all options, always, of driving down child poverty,' he told reporters at a glass factory in Merseyside. The cap prevents parents from claiming universal credit or child tax credit for a third or additional child born after April 2017, but axing it would cost around £3.5 billion. Mr Farage hit back at Sir Keir, accusing him of stoking 'Project Fear 2.0' – the name Brexiteers gave to Remain scaremongers during the Brexit campaign. 'In the last 24 hours I have been subjected to political attacks by everybody from Keir Starmer to (Scottish First Minister) John Swinney because Reform UK are winning,' he told The Sun. 'The Prime Minister is now resorting to dirty tricks borrowed from the 2016 referendum campaign. This is Project Fear 2.0.'
