In his first major interview in Downing Street, the Prime Minister told Laura Kuenssberg that his government had to do ‘difficult things now’ in order to bring about change. Starmer’s plan to take away winter fuel allowances from most pensioners has drawn criticism, and he faces a potential rebellion in parliament next week over the decision. Starmer claimed the Tories had ‘run away from difficult decisions’, and said he was ‘determined’ to deliver change. The Prime Minister admitted he was ‘worried’ about the rise of the far right, and said ‘delivery in government’ was the only way to tackle the ‘snake oil of the easy answer’.
Starmer: The US ‘understands the decision we’ve taken’
Asked about his upcoming visit to the White House, Keir Starmer said Kuenssberg was ‘wrong’ to suggest that the UK’s decision to suspend some arms exports to Israel has not ‘gone down well’ with US officials. He said the US understands that the UK has a different legal system, and said the purpose of his visit was to have a more strategic discussion about the next few months in relation to Ukraine and the Middle East, hinting that the UK may further increase support for Ukraine.
Victoria Atkins: ‘I don’t think this is a matter of left or right’
Shadow Health Secretary Victoria Atkins told Trevor Phillips on Sky News that she had decided to back Robert Jenrick in the Tory leadership race. With the second round of voting taking place next week, Atkins claimed it was Jenrick’s ability to connect with younger people that made him the best candidate. When Trevor Phillips asked about rumours that Jenrick’s camp are using ‘dirty tricks’ to eliminate rivals, Atkins pivoted to criticising Labour over their winter fuel payments decision, and the ‘cronyism scandal’ she claimed has ‘engulfed’ the Department of Health, after former health secretary Alan Milburn was given access to department documents.
Tom Tugendhat: ‘Not just shouting at foreigners from the white cliffs’
Laura Kuenssberg asked Conservative leadership candidate Tom Tugendhat about his ideas for the party. Tugendhat said the Conservatives needed to actually deliver ‘a higher wage, lower migration economy’, not just ‘pretending you can fix migration by withdrawing from a single treaty or changing a single bill’. Tugendhat said he wanted to leave parts of the European Convention on Human Rights and reform it, and we should be ‘prepared to leave’ if reforms couldn’t be achieved.
Wes Streeting: current rate of NHS waiting list improvement is ‘not tolerable’
Trevor Phillips pointed out to Health Secretary Wes Streeting that at the current rate of decline, NHS waiting lists wouldn’t return to pre-pandemic levels until 2039. He asked whether Labour would commit to reaching pre-pandemic levels by the end of this parliamentary term. Streeting said he would ‘certainly like to see them come down faster’, and that he had committed to returning to some ‘constitutional standards’ such as being seen within four hours in A&E. The Health Secretary said the agreement reached with junior doctors was a crucial part of bringing waiting lists down.
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