There really is no hope for Rishi Sunak

Bad news for Rishi Sunak at PMQs. Caught out by Sir Keir Starmer, he handed Labour a wonderful soundbite for the next election: Rishi, the crimewave king. 

Sir Keir opened by calling Rishi a ‘jumped-up milk-monitor.’ He mocked his ‘seventh relaunch in 18 months’ and called it a war against ‘that gravest of threats, colourful lanyards.’ 

Sir Keir mentioned a cost-cutting scheme to liberate criminals before their sentences are complete.

‘What criminals? Where are they?’ he asked. He sought an assurance that none were ‘high risk.’ 

Rishi, on the defensive, referred to the scheme’s ‘strict eligibility criteria,’ as it were the membership rules for a polo club. He was desperate to talk about defence and his government’s ‘fully funded’ pledge to re-arm Britain.

‘Fully funded,’ scoffed Sir Keir. ‘Just like his £46 billion,’ he said, referring to Tory plans to scrap National Insurance. He went back to his key point about freeing convicts.