Keir Starmer MP: speeches

Speeches

• 21 May 2025 · Engagements · Hansard source

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  I thank my hon. Friend; we are united by a shared focus on creating better life chances for our children, and I am delighted to hear that her constituents are already benefiting from our changes. Thanks to our plan for change, we will deliver free breakfast clubs in every primary school in England. I am determined to support parents to give every child the best start in life. That is why we are rolling out free childcare, expanding the first 300 school-based nurseries, and delivering more family hubs.

• 21 May 2025 · Engagements · Hansard source

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  The evidence is certainly coming in: the highest growth in the G7; four interest rate cuts in a row; and trade deals with countries across the world that want to do deals with this country because they can see the stability that this Government have brought about. Instability with the Conservatives; stability and growth with this Labour Government.

• 21 May 2025 · Engagements · Hansard source

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  The right hon. Lady has not learned or changed. The Conservatives lost the election because of their appalling record on the NHS, on health, on prisons—you name it. Now she accuses everyone of whining about the impact that had on the country. It had a huge impact on working people across the country and they are absolutely right to complain about it. She wants to talk about the Deputy Prime Minister. The Deputy Prime Minister, working with the Chancellor, is building 1.5 million new homes, reforming our planning system, putting £7 billion into our economy, and bringing forward an Employment Rights Bill, which will be the single biggest upgrade to workers’ rights in a generation.

• 21 May 2025 · Engagements · Hansard source

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  I thank the right hon. Member for raising this case not just today, but on the many occasions that he has. It is incredibly important that we do everything we can in this case. I have met Laila and given her my commitment to do everything I possibly can. I have had a number of contacts myself, but I will not stop doing everything within my power to secure that release.

• 21 May 2025 · Engagements · Hansard source

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  Our plan for change will see the railways reformed to deliver more reliable and better value services for passengers right across the country. My hon. Friend has been a champion for better railways and easier journeys for her constituents. Open access operators have huge potential to offer passengers more choice. I will be delighted to ensure that she and other interested MPs meet the Rail Minister to put their case forward.

• 21 May 2025 · Engagements · Hansard source

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  I thank my hon. Friend and celebrate Lisa and all those who have saved this important source of local support. The Conservatives left local councils on the brink, unable to provide these vital services, letting down patients across the country. We are committed to improving dementia care through our plan for change, which is why we provided a £69 billion boost for local government, invested £26 billion in the NHS and made £3.7 billion available for social care, including an £880 million increase in the social care grant.

• 21 May 2025 · Engagements · Hansard source

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  It is only because of the measures that we have taken that the economy is improving, with growth at the highest rate in the G7, four interest rate cuts, and three trade deals, because countries want to trade with us. Those things are because of the decisions that we have made, and all those decisions were opposed by Conservative Members. They have learned absolutely nothing and they are going absolutely nowhere.

• 21 May 2025 · Engagements · Hansard source

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  I thank my hon. Friend for reading that victim impact statement. I know from talking to Cheryl how hard it was for her to make that victim impact statement in the first place; it took a huge amount of courage, and grief. She wanted to read that statement to the perpetrator, as she should have been able to do. I know from the meetings that I have had with her how visceral the pain is to her of not having been able to do so. I therefore thank my hon. Friend for reading that impact statement out in the Chamber, allowing it to be heard by the whole world. Cowards who commit these heinous crimes should face the consequences of their actions, which have a huge impact on victims’ lives. That is why we will force offenders to attend their sentencing hearings, with longer sentences, unlimited fines and prison sanctions for those who seek to avoid facing justice. I pay tribute again to Cheryl, who I will meet later this afternoon, for having the incredible courage to push for that change, notwithstanding the incredibly painful impact it has had on her and her family.

• 21 May 2025 · Engagements · Hansard source

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  I thank the right hon. Member for his comments about the Bicester tragedy; it is important that in a moment like this the House comes together. We are taking measures to help with the cost of living crisis. The EU deal yesterday was so important because of the impact it will have on prices, particularly in supermarkets. That will directly benefit those who are affected by the cost of living crisis. What I said before was that the economy is beginning to improve, but people are still feeling the pressure. That is why we are taking the measures we are taking and striking the trade deals we are striking. As it improves, I want people to feel the benefit of the measures we are taking. That is why I want to ensure that more pensioners are eligible for the winter fuel allowance. It is important, as Members would expect, that we are clear that we can afford the decision we are making. That is why this will now be looked at in a fiscal event.

• 21 May 2025 · Engagements · Hansard source

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  The right hon. Gentleman knows the very limited impact of the inheritance tax, only on farmers at a very high level. He will also know the record amount of money in the Budget that we put into farming and the measures taken yesterday with the EU deal, which will massively help farmers who sell their product into the EU market.

• 20 May 2025 · UK-EU Summit · Hansard source

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  I agree. I would remind the House that we have agreements in place with a number of other countries, some of which were actually negotiated by the Conservatives. I find it hard to believe that anybody in this House genuinely wants to make it harder for our young people to work, study and travel in Europe.

• 20 May 2025 · UK-EU Summit · Hansard source

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  I have set out the position in relation to how the rules will be applied. We are already aligned, but we do not get the benefit. This deal allows us to get the benefit, which is why businesses are so in favour of it. Every trade deal requires agreement on both sides as to the way forward, and this agreement is no different.

• 20 May 2025 · UK-EU Summit · Hansard source

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  Our approach has been on the question of bringing our bills down, which is why the SPS agreement is so important, and of protecting and driving up jobs, which is why the EU, India and US agreements are all so important. That is particularly the case for car manufacturing, but equally so for pharmaceuticals, which are protected under our agreement. However, there is a bigger picture: these are three individual trade deals, but taken together they show that other countries want to do deals with the UK now in a way that they did not before.

• 20 May 2025 · UK-EU Summit · Hansard source

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  I want young people in this country to have the opportunity under the scheme to work, to travel, and to involve themselves in volunteering and other activities in Europe.

• 20 May 2025 · UK-EU Summit · Hansard source

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  Let me answer the hon. Member directly. The first thing was to get through the first gateway. As this is a fund that is being set up at the moment, the second gateway is to negotiate our way into the scheme. That was always the two-stage process. The scheme itself has not been in existence for very long and is being developed, and so, along with our European partners, we will move that on at pace.

• 20 May 2025 · UK-EU Summit · Hansard source

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  We have taken a pragmatic, common-sense approach, with an absolute focus on reducing bills—that is hugely important to people, particularly in a cost of living crisis—and driving up jobs in our economy. Those are the principles that have driven this. I recognise that those at the extremes, on whichever side people want to say that they are on, will never be satisfied, but the country is fed up with nine years-worth of continued discussion, debate and toxic divide. It is time to move on from that and to look forward, not backward, and this deal will help us do that.

• 20 May 2025 · UK-EU Summit · Hansard source

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  Let me rest on my hon. Friend’s first example, which was of cars. The India deal, which massively slashed the tariff on cars, is good for car manufacturing and good for car exports, and the deal with the US saves thousands upon thousands of jobs in the car industry, which is why it should be welcomed.

• 20 May 2025 · UK-EU Summit · Hansard source

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  We set out yesterday the areas where we had reached agreement. We will now have annual summits, but we will approach that matter on a value-for-money basis.

• 20 May 2025 · UK-EU Summit · Hansard source

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  This is not the full list, but the new partnership has been backed by the Federation of Small Businesses, the CBI, the British Retail Consortium, Asda, Morrisons, Salmon Scotland, the Food & Drink Federation, the British Chamber of Commerce, Ryanair, Vodafone and producers of meat, milk and poultry—the list goes on and on. I wonder whether that long list of businesses coming out in support of the deal will temper the reaction of the Leader of the Opposition—but then again, for weeks now, she has been dismissive of the benefits of any trade deal, in defiance, frankly, of her party’s history. It is not just the Conservatives that I am talking about; the hon. Member for Clacton (Nigel Farage), who is not here, and the right hon. Member for Kingston and Surbiton (Ed Davey) have both shown, in their own way, that their parties simply do not get it; if your whole approach to our allies is about striking a pose, you do not get to strike a deal. What that means in a world like ours, where deals are ever more the currency of security and justice, is that you do not get to make a difference, and you do not get to deliver for Britain. That is what this partnership means. For years, we were told that this could not be done. What the Conservatives meant was that they could not do it. We were told that a deal with the US or India was impossible; what they meant was that it was impossible for them. We were told that a choice must be made between the US and EU; what they meant was that they could not do a deal with both. This Government can and will, because we stay in the room, we fight for the national interest, and we put the British people first. These deals represent a signal that we are back on the world stage—a global champion of free trade, playing our historic role on European security—but above all, they are deals that put money in the pockets of working people, because that is what independent, sovereign nations do. I commend this statement to the House.

• 20 May 2025 · UK-EU Summit · Hansard source

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  It will certainly not take years. The whole point of the fund is to be part of the collective response to the challenge in Ukraine. The fund was one of the initiatives that came out of the work that we were doing with the coalition of the willing. Everybody involved wants to move at speed, and that is the basis on which we have approached this matter. What yesterday does is knock out one of the gateway issues that we were otherwise facing, so that we can work with others to access the fund, but we will work as quickly as we can, because the situation in Ukraine is extremely serious and will need to be addressed as soon as possible.

• 20 May 2025 · UK-EU Summit · Hansard source

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  It will massively reduce bureaucracy and red tape, making it easier for businesses to do business. It will also open up opportunities on defence and security. That is why it has been so welcomed by the business community.

• 20 May 2025 · UK-EU Summit · Hansard source

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  I do not think we should pause the implementation of deals that we have already got, but I do agree with the underlying sentiment that we should be doing everything we can through this deal and in further steps to ensure that trade between Great Britain and Northern Ireland is the same as across the rest of the United Kingdom.

• 20 May 2025 · UK-EU Summit · Hansard source

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  The e-gates will make a huge difference and will probably be the first impact that many people see. Hopefully, we will get those in train just as quickly as we can. We are also looking at other measures.

• 20 May 2025 · UK-EU Summit · Hansard source

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  I thank my hon. Friend for her important question. We will work as quickly as we can on that issue, because, whichever way people voted, they did not vote to stop creatives and sportspeople crossing national boundaries to showcase their talent—in whatever way that may be—so we do need to resolve it.

• 20 May 2025 · UK-EU Summit · Hansard source

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  My hon. Friend raises a really important point. The Federation of Small Businesses has come out strongly in favour of this deal because it knows the impact it will have on small and medium-sized businesses.