Gloating Keir Starmer twists the knife on Truss in speech to union barons as he boasts Labour will fix the ‘distribution of wealth’ in Britain
- Keir Starmer has twisted the knife on Liz Truss in speech to the TUC in Brighton
- Labour leader demanded an immediate general election amid Tory turmoil
- Boasted that Labour will fix the ‘distribution of wealth’ unlike the Conservatives
Keir Starmer twisted the knife on embattled Liz Truss today as he gave a speech to union barons.
Addressing the TUC conference in Brighton, the Labour leader repeated his demand for an immediate general election – with the Tories up to 36 points behind in the polls.
Accusing the government of ‘pathetic squabbles, he insisted the political choice was ‘stark’.
And in a clear signal of intent to unions Sir Keir identified ‘the distribution of wealth’ as a dividing line with the PM.
‘The Prime Minister is completely out of touch with the reality of the British economy,’ Sir Keir said.
‘She doesn’t care about the distribution of wealth in Britain, She hasn’t U-turned on that’.
Addressing the TUC conference in Brighton, the Labour leader repeated his demand for an immediate general election – with the Tories up to 36 points behind in the polls
Liz Truss (pictured) is engaged in an increasingly desperate battle for survival today after 24 hours of carnage that saw the Home Secretary quit, confusion over whether the Chief Whip had followed her out of the door, and MPs wrestling in Commons voting lobbies
He went on to say: ‘Congress, forget about lines on a graph. If you leave this many people behind, a nation will not grow fairly.
‘You can’t do it with low wages, you can’t do it with insecure jobs and bad work, and you can’t do it without a modern industrial strategy.
‘This isn’t a debate. The evidence is in.’
Sir Keir said: ‘Britain deserves better, Britain cannot afford the chaos of the Conservatives any more, we need a general election now…
‘Never again can Britain take seriously their claim to be a party of aspiration or sound money.
‘Last night in Parliament, even by their standards, a new chaotic low.’
Ms Truss is engaged in an increasingly desperate battle for survival today after 24 hours of carnage that saw the Home Secretary quit, confusion over whether the Chief Whip had followed her out of the door, and MPs wrestling in Commons voting lobbies.
The PM has been warned she only has 12 hours to save herself, with a series of previously-loyal MPs joining calls for her to go. Even supportive Cabinet ministers had been conceding the situation is ‘terminal’.
Transport Secretary Anne-Marie Trevelyan was sent out to prop up the PM this morning, but would only say that ‘at the moment’ she believes Ms Truss will lead the Tories into the next election.
The growing clamour came as 1922 committee chief Graham Brady is expected to meet other officers to consider Ms Truss’s future.
Yet another bout of madness at Westminster yesterday culminated in stories of tears and tantrums in Parliament, with Ms Truss allegedly engaging in a shouting match with her own enforcers.
Deputy PM Therese Coffey was accused of ‘manhandling’ Tory MPs to vote against a Labour motion that could have killed the government’s plans to resume fracking – something she denies.
The premier tried to force the issue by declaring that it was a matter of confidence, meaning a defeat the would have collapsed the government. But at the end of the debate a minister declared that it was not in fact a confidence vote – triggering fury from Chief Whip Wendy Morton and her deputy Craig Whittaker.
Other whips told MPs they had resigned, but after three hours of silence and frantic wrangling behind the scenes Downing Street announced they were still in post. A 1.33am statement then made clear that it had been a confidence vote, warning that around 30 MPs who abstained will be disciplined.
However, in another twist this morning, Ms Trevelyan said that it had not been a confidence vote.
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