Keir Starmer calls for ‘big build’ King’s Speech to ‘relight the fire of renewal,’ kickstart growth in every region, and put an end to 13 years of Tory decline
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Addressing the North East Chamber of Commerce’s President’s lunch,
Labour Leader Keir Starmer will warn that Rishi Sunak’s weakness in
taking on the blockers in his party means Tuesday’s King’s Speech
will be a ‘manifesto for stagnation.’ The Labour leader will
set out Labour’s alternative vision for a dynamic, mission-driven
Government that will get Britain building, and ‘relight the fire of
renewal’ in every community. Starmer will...Request free trial
Addressing the North East Chamber of Commerce’s President’s lunch, Labour Leader Keir Starmer will warn that Rishi Sunak’s weakness in taking on the blockers in his party means Tuesday’s King’s Speech will be a ‘manifesto for stagnation.’ The Labour leader will set out Labour’s alternative vision for a dynamic, mission-driven Government that will get Britain building, and ‘relight the fire of renewal’ in every community. Starmer will contrast his Party’s plan for growth with what he will call ‘the Tories’ path of decline’, that’s ‘holding a veto over British aspiration.’ Keir Starmer will outline three planks of how his Labour government will turbocharge the economy in partnership with business, across the whole of the UK. He will tell the prestigious business audience that his government ‘will serve the country, while you drive it forward.’
Calling out Prime Minister Rishi Sunak’s inability to deliver change, Starmer is expected to say: “Britain needs this King’s Speech to kick off a big build. “We have to provide the businesses, communities and people of this nation, with the conditions to succeed. A fundamental deal, that we serve the country, while you drive it forward. “The Tories can’t do this. Rishi Sunak is too weak to stand up to the blockers on his backbenchers. Too haunted by ghosts of Conservative imagination to see the country’s problems as you see them.” He will say that politics is about choices, and reiterate his approach to governing: “I have no time for Tory excuses - politics is about choices. Do you face up to tough decisions? Or you duck them? That has always been the test. Wherever Labour finds barriers to British success – we will bulldoze through them. The Labour leader will highlight his party’s strong record on building and growth in government, citing the delivery of High Speed One rail line “on time and under budget,” creating the foundations of the UK’s motorway system and key parts of the national grid in “less time than it takes some entrepreneurs to get a grid connection, today.” Starmer will commit to “get the North East building again” to jumpstart UK economic growth: “We will take on the blockers that hold a veto over British aspiration. “Will build one and a half million homes right across our Britain. With opportunities for first time buyers here in the North East. “New infrastructure to support businesses, families and communities to grow. Roads, warehouses, grid connections, labs – all built quicker and cheaper. “And with all that – a prize for your business. A path to a stronger skills base, a happier workforce, more dynamism, more demand, more growth.” Highlighting Labour’s renewed relationship with business, and his commitment to working in partnership to deliver growth, Starmer will outline the ‘roll up our sleeves’ ethos at the heart of Labour’s industrial strategy, involving gigafactories, carbon-capture and offshore wind: “You need a government that gets involved. That rolls up its sleeves. That offers the hand of partnership in pursuit of the national interest. With clear fiscal rules - sound and followed rigorously. “A British jobs bonus that will attract new investment to our industrial heartlands. Relight the fire of renewal in communities like this. And a new national wealth fund that will stand with business. “Working together to invest in the critical infrastructure the North East desperately needs. The battery gigafactories that will protect electric car-manufacturing in Sunderland. The hydrogen and carbon capture technology that can provide an industrial future for Teesside. “And the ports that can finally handle large industrial parts. So the East Coast can lead the world in off shore wind.” Keir Starmer will say his promise to deliver ‘a new direction for skills’ is personal, stemming from the pride he saw in his dad’s work as a toolmaker. He is expected to say: “A future must be trained as well as built. “The generation of young people that sacrificed so much during the pandemic – their potential must be backed, and the cost of inaction on this cannot be overstated. £120bn worth of economic output could be lost by 2030 if the needs of businesses aren’t met. “So, we will transform our further education system - with Technical Excellence Colleges – with stronger links to their local economies, universities, businesses, rooms like this. “You’ll be around the table and setting the direction. In doing so, grounding our education system more firmly, not just in young peoples’ aspiration, but also in the pride, the pull on the badge of the shirt, the ambition you feel, when building a lasting legacy for your community.” Keir Starmer will say the King’s speech should be about ‘a national mission to get Britain building again.’ He will say: “Britain needs a business model, to grow our country from the grassroots. A plan to expand the country’s productive capabilities, but at the same time, to change who benefits. A Britain where growth comes from regions and serves regions. With infrastructure built more quickly, young people’s potential backed, the jobs of the future in your town. A Britain with its future back.” Ends Notes to editors:
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