Category: Speeches

  • Keir Starmer – 2026 Keynote Speech after Local Elections

    Keir Starmer – 2026 Keynote Speech after Local Elections

    The speech made by Keir Starmer, the Prime Minister, in London on 11 May 2026.

    Thank you very much and thank you Jade. They were such powerful words, thank you for that introduction.

    The election results last week were tough, very tough. We lost some brilliant Labour representatives. That hurts and it should hurt. I get it, I feel it, and I take responsibility.

    But it’s not just about taking responsibility for the results. It’s about taking responsibility to explain how as a political and electoral force, we will be better and do better in the months and years ahead.

    Because we are not just facing dangerous times but dangerous opponents. Very dangerous opponents.

    This hurts – not just because Labour has done badly. But because if we don’t get this right. Our country will go down a very dark path.

    So just as I take responsibility for the results. I also take responsibility for delivering the change we promised. For a stronger and fairer Britain that we must build. I take responsibility for navigating us through a world that is more dangerous than at any time in my life. And I take responsibility for not walking away. Not plunging our country into chaos, as the Tories did time and again. Chaos that did lasting damage to this country. A Labour government would never be forgiven for inflicting that on our country again.

    I know that people are frustrated by the state of Britain. Frustrated by politics. And some people – frustrated with me. I know I have my doubters. And I know I need to prove them wrong. And I will.

    So let me start on a personal note. Like every prime minister I’ve learned a lot in the first two years in the job. In terms of the policy challenges that our country faces – incremental change won’t cut it. On growth, defence, Europe, energy, we need a bigger response than we anticipated in 2024.

    Because these are not ordinary times. And this is a political challenge just as much as it’s a policy challenge.

    Delivery is of course essential. But it’s not sufficient on its own to address the frustration that voters feel.

    We’re battling Reform and the Greens. But at a deeper level we are battling the despair on which they prey. Despair that they exploit and amplify.

    And so analysis matters but argument matters more. Evidence matters but so too does emotion. Stories beat spreadsheets. People need hope.

    So we will face up to the big challenges. And we will make the big arguments – the Labour case. That only Labour values and Labour policies can ensure our country not only weathers these storms, but emerges stronger and fairer.

    And the Labour case that neither Nigel Farage nor Zack Polanski offers our country the serious progressive leadership these times demand.

    Of course, like every government we’ve made mistakes. But we got the big political choices right.

    I mean – if we had listened to the advice of other parties, right now – we would be stuck in a stand-off with Iran. Having been dragged into a war that is not in our interest. And I will never do that.

    We invested in our public services, in people, in the pride of Britain’s communities.

    Difficult decisions funded that.

    But now – NHS waiting times are coming down, child poverty is coming down, immigration is coming down, and we are rebuilding from the ground up. They were the right calls.

    And most of all – we stabilised the economy. The fundamentals are sound – and that matters. Because it puts us in a much better place to come out of the conflict in Iran, stronger and fairer. And for living standards to improve after two decades of stagnation.

    But that’s not enough. Clearly.

    No, for the British people, tired – of a status quo that has failed them, change cannot come quickly enough. And truth be told, I’m not sure that they believe that we care. I’m not sure they believe that we see their lives. And that’s tough to say.

    When you come from a working-class background, like me – it’s hard to hear that. Because I do know what it’s like to struggle and to strive.

    But what I take from it is that I have spent too much time talking about what I am doing for working people and not enough time talking about why or who I stand for.

    Because I can see how hard life has been during these decades of crisis. I can see that very clearly.

    My late brother, Nick spent all his adult life going from one job to the next. The status quo did not work for him.

    My sister is a carer working long hours on low pay. Year after year after year. She didn’t even get sick pay in the pandemic. The status quo did not work for her.

    For too long we’ve ignored people like that. And there are millions of people in that boat. Millions of people who don’t get the dignity. The respect. The chance that they deserve, to go as far as their talent and effort should take them. Millions of people held back because the status quo in this country does not work for them.

    I am fighting for them. We are fighting for them. I am their Prime Minister and this is their Government.

    Because I know whose side I am on. I’m on the side of working people, just like my sister. People who work harder and harder but who worry about the cost of living. They’re not asking for the world, they just want to do the best for their kids. They want their town centres, the places they care about – to thrive. Their public services to work.

    And people in power to see their problems.

    And right now they’re worried sick. They turn on the TV – they see bombs falling. Go to the petrol station – see prices rising. And they think – how is happening to us again?

    They say how can I be paying the price for a war thousands of miles away that I don’t support, that Britain isn’t involved in.

    And it’s not a new feeling – is it? For two decades our country’s been buffeted by crisis after crisis. The 2008 financial crash, the Tory austerity that followed it, Brexit, Covid, the Ukraine War. On and on it goes.

    And the response – is always the same… A desperate attempt to get back to the status quo… A status quo that failed working people, time and again.

    Our response this time must be different – a complete break. We must make this country stronger. Take control of our economic security, our energy security, our defence security.

    And we must make this country fairer. Strength through fairness, that is my compass in this world. It is a core Labour argument.

    And in the coming days, you will see those values writ large in the King’s Speech.

    And you will see hope, urgency, and exactly whose side we are on reflected in everything we say and everything we do.

    Let me give you three examples today…

    Starting with British Steel.

    Because what we did in Scunthorpe last year, is one of the proudest things we have done in Government. That plant was hours away from closure, and that is thousands of jobs – gone. An entire region – decimated. Britain’s security – exposed. And so we acted.

    Parliament was in recess but it didn’t matter. As a united Labour Party, we passed emergency legislation. And we took control. We must bring that same urgency to everything now. Starting, appropriately enough, with Scunthorpe.

    Because steel is the ultimate sovereign capability. Strong nations, in a world like this, need to make steel. That’s why we’re backing steel in Port Talbot and across the UK.

    But in Scunthorpe, we’ve been negotiating with the current owner. A commercial sale has not been possible. And a public interest test could now be met. So I can announce that legislation will be brought forward this week to give the Government powers – subject to that public interest test. To take full national ownership of British Steel, public ownership in the public interest. Urgent Government on the side of working people. Making Britain Stronger with the hope of industrial renewal.

    That is a Labour choice.

    Second example – Europe.

    And I’m sorry – but I need to take a bit of a detour on this. Because I want to remind you what Nigel Farage said about Brexit. He said it would make us richer. Wrong – it made us poorer. He said it would reduce migration. Wrong – migration went through the roof. He said it would make us more secure. Wrong again – it made us weaker. He took Britain for a ride – and unlike the Tories, actually who at least had to face up to it he just fled the scene.

    And now, he’ll talk about almost anything other than the consequences of the one policy he actually delivered. Because he’s not just a grifter, he is a chancer.

    So – at the next EU summit I will set a new direction for Britain. The last government was defined by breaking our relationship with Europe. This Labour Government will be defined by rebuilding our relationship with Europe. By putting Britain at the heart of Europe. Because standing shoulder to shoulder, with the countries that most share our interests, our values and our enemies, that is the right choice for Britain.

    That is the Labour choice.

    And for our young people also something more. Because Brexit snatched away their ability to work, to study, and to live easily in Europe. That’s why I am proud we restored the Erasmus scheme. But I want to go further. I want to make a better offer for our young people restore that hope and that freedom, that sense of possibility.

    And so I want an ambitious Youth Experience scheme to be at the heart of our new arrangement with the EU. So that our young people can work, study and live in Europe.

    A symbol of a stronger relationship and a fairer future with our closest allies.

    That is the Labour choice.

    And third – the greatest hope…

    The hope every parent has of a better future for their children, I want parents to feel that this is shared by their Government.

    Now – my parents… Don’t worry – I’m not going there! But, they didn’t have a lot of money. And my Mum was seriously ill for most of her life. But when they were in their later years reflecting on what gave their life meaning, I could see that, as well as their hope in us, their kids, what comforted them was the idea that they had contributed to a Britain that was getting better for young people. That kids now had better opportunities than they did.

    And so I have always been driven by the idea that every child should go as far as their talent or effort takes them. It’s a beautiful idea shared – widely across this country.

    We tell ourselves stories about it – don’t we? Stories not unlike mine about the working-class kids who do make it. And I don’t blame people for telling those stories. It’s important to tell those stories. But it’s not everyone – is it?

    So when I say every child should have the opportunity to go as far as their talent or effort takes them, I mean every child. I mean the kids who are growing up in poverty. The kids who have special educational needs. The kids who can’t get a job, and the kids who are ignored, frankly.

    Because society often only puts those who go to university on a pedestal. We don’t see anything else as success. And that’s wrong – deeply wrong.

    So we will go much further on our investment in apprenticeships, in technical excellence colleges, in special educational needs.

    We will make sure every young person struggling to find work will get a guaranteed offer of a job, training or a work placement. And we will go much further with our pride in place programme, back the millions of people who give their time and effort to young people in their community. We will back them, not just with money, but with power.

    And we will make sure that kids whose talent lies with their hands, kids who go to college, kids ignored by the status quo because politicians’ kids don’t go there… They will finally get the respect they deserve in a stronger, fairer Britain.

    That is the Labour choice.

    These are just a few examples. But they show the urgency and hope in our direction. They show the Labour values we will be guided by. And they show, frankly the lessons that we will learn.

    Now – other parties will draw different lessons. In fact – they already are. They want more grievance politics. More division. More pointing at Britain’s problems. Looking, not for solutions, but for someone to blame.

    Now that’s fine if it’s me, if it’s politicians – that’s the job. But increasingly – it’s not. It’s other people in this country. And I don’t think that’s British. That is not the decency and respect we are known for. But it’s here that politics is with us now…

    And you’ll see it again on Saturday at a march designed to confront and intimidate this diverse city and this diverse country. That is why this Government will block far right agitators from travelling into Britain for that event. Because we will not allow people to come to the UK, threaten our communities, and spread hate on our streets.

    This is nothing less than a battle for the soul of our nation. And I want to be crystal clear about how we win it. Because we cannot win as a weaker version of Reform or the Greens. We can only win as a stronger version of Labour. A mainstream party of power, not protest.

    But I also want to be crystal clear on this, because I will never stop fighting for the decent, respectful, and diverse country that I love. And I will never give up on the hope we can unlock in this country…

    The hope of renters for security in their home, of workers for fairness at work, of public services – freed from austerity. The hope of European solidarity, of community pride, of the people who paint over the graffiti that is racist.

    A country taking control of its future. Our spirit – unchanged. Our resolve – unbroken.

    The hope of a country that can and will become a stronger, fairer Britain.

    That is the hope I am fighting for, that is the hope we are fighting for, that is the Labour choice.

    Thank you.

  • Kemi Badenoch – 2026 Statement Following Local Elections

    Kemi Badenoch – 2026 Statement Following Local Elections

    The statement made by Kemi Badenoch, the Leader of the Opposition, on 11 May 2026.

    It’s rare for political parties to say something nice about their opponents. I doubt the favour will be returned, but I can say that Reform had a good set of local election results, although not as good as they had hoped. They threw the kitchen sink at it, yet went backwards while we went forwards from last year’s locals.

    Conservatives had some good successes. No one had expected us to win back Westminster, or hold on in places like Bexley, Broxbourne and Fareham. So, there is everything to play for, but we are rebuilding from a low base and there is a long road ahead.

    The alleged attempted murders in Golders Green cast a shadow over this election. People can see the fragmentation, not just in our politics as voters retreat into tribes, but in the importation of foreign conflicts, grievances and values into British public life.

    It is because we are sticking to our values – on integration, on the economy, on our national security – that the green shoots of Conservative recovery are starting to be seen.

    Essex, Norfolk and Suffolk, East and West Sussex, however, were painful losses. Voters who were still sceptical about us and loathe Labour had a free hit voting Reform, knowing the county councils will be abolished next year. Trust, easily lost, is harder to regain, and former Conservative voters in those places were entitled to send us a message.

    In the areas where voters wanted to register anger, Reform was often the vehicle. But where they wanted something protected, fixed or delivered, they looked again at the Conservatives.

    Just look at Harlow. Reform expected to take all 11 seats. They got zero. In Bromley, Conservative defectors who had gone to Reform even lost their seats. Why? Because these Conservative councils have visibly delivered, investing in the town centre and keeping council tax low.

    This was the same message I heard everywhere I went across the country, from Aberdeen to the Solent. Where voters wanted practical solutions and delivery, not just angry protest, where local Conservatives had clear plans and a record of work, Reform looked like wreckers rather than people who could run things, and voters chose the serious governing option.

    This is now our way ahead: be a proper Conservative Party. Do not talk Right while governing Left. Be competent and show delivery and we will earn back your trust.

    Reform boasted that May 7 would be the day they killed off the Conservative Party and we’d cease to be a national party. Hubris.

    The figures tell the real story. Last local elections, Reform was on 32 per cent support nationally and the Conservatives on just 18 per cent. This year, we rose to 20 per cent and second place nationally, while Reform fell back to 27 per cent. It is still a difficult position for us, but while Reform may be ahead, they are going backwards and we are marching forwards.

    Reform said at the start of the year that they intended to empty their bank accounts, and it certainly looks as if they did. A blizzard of expensive letters and leaflets, postcode lottery giveaways to Reform party members and other gimmicks have likely burned through £7m-£8m on these elections.

    That’s about ten times what most parties would have spent. If they need to spray that much money at local elections and still fall back, why would anyone trust them to be careful with taxpayers’ money?

    Conservatives have been careful with our members’ money and our donors’ money, because we know every pound matters.

    The next election will not be decided by who can sound angriest. Reform has the same diagnosis on issues like immigration as the Conservatives. But on the economy, welfare, defence, education and health, they still haven’t quite worked out what they think or what to do. Britain does not need a louder opposition. It needs a serious government.

    That is why those on the Right tempted by Reform should be clear-eyed. Reform is not a conservative party in the usual sense. It is not offering coherent centre-Right government, rooted in fiscal responsibility, strong institutions, personal freedom and clear plans.

    Reform promises different things to different voters. This election, they have won more Left-wing votes from Labour than Right-wing votes from the Conservatives. We should all ask which voters they will choose if they get into government?

    The Conservative Party is in the business of providing solutions. We know where we went wrong and we are not just demanding trust back as if the last 14 years did not happen.

    But anger alone will not secure the borders, grow the economy, reduce bills, protect green spaces, fix welfare, back business or rebuild trust in government. That takes serious people, serious plans and the discipline to deliver them.
    It’s why, despite the setbacks, I am encouraged by our results this week. The Conservative Party is rebuilding steadily, seriously and with purpose. We are not asking people to forget the past but to judge us by what we do next.

  • Catherine West – 2026 Comments on Keir Starmer’s Leadership

    Catherine West – 2026 Comments on Keir Starmer’s Leadership

    The comments made by Catherine West, the Labour MP for Hornsey and Friern Barnet, on 11 May 2026.

    I have listened to the Prime Minister’s speech this morning. I welcome the renewed energy and ideas. However, I have reluctantly concluded that this morning’s speech was too little too late.

    The results last Thursday show that the PM has failed to inspire hope. What is best for the party and country now is for an orderly transition.

    I am hereby giving notice to No10 that I am collecting names of Labour MPs to call on the Prime Minister to set a timetable for the election of a new leader in September.

    I want to thank everyone who has been in contact over the weekend to offer good wishes. We need our best top team in place to fight the next election. We owe working people up and down the country nothing less.

  • Angela Rayner – 2026 Comments on Labour’s Performance at Local Elections

    Angela Rayner – 2026 Comments on Labour’s Performance at Local Elections

    The comments made by Angela Rayner, the former Deputy Leader of the Labour Party, on 10 May 2026.

    Our party has suffered a historic defeat.

    Many good Labour colleagues have lost their seats despite working hard for those they represented. We have lost good Labour administrations and lost the chance for more.

    What we are doing isn’t working, and it needs to change. This may be our last chance.

    The Labour Party must now live up to our name: we must be the party of working people.

    We’ve heard the same on the doorstep as we’ve seen in the polls – the cost of living is the top issue for voters of all parties. People have turned to populists and nationalists because we have not done enough to fix it.

    Living standards are barely higher than they were a decade and a half ago. People feel hopeless – that the cost of living crisis will never end, and now they see oil and gas companies use global instability to post record profits.

    Once again, ordinary people are paying the price for decisions they didn’t make. It’s no wonder that across the UK, working people feel the system is rigged against them.

    Things can be so much better than this. Countries including Spain and Canada have shown that economies can grow and people can thrive when governments stay true to labour and social democratic values and put people first. We need to learn from that.

    In London, we lost young people who fear they will never afford a home. In my patch and across the north, we lost working people whose wages are too low and costs too high. In Scotland and Wales, people do not currently see Labour as the answer.

    We are in danger of becoming a party of the well-off, not working people.

    The Peter Mandelson scandal showed a toxic culture of cronyism.

    Decisions like cutting winter fuel allowance just weren’t what people expected from a Labour government.

    For too long, successive governments have allowed wealth and power to concentrate at the top without a plan to ensure the benefits of economic growth are shared fairly. The result is an economy that does not work for the majority, with wealth concentrated in too few hands. This level of inequality, alongside squeezed living standards, is the outcome of a model built on deregulation, privatisation, and trickle-down economics.

    But we have the chance to fix this.

    We need immediate action to cut costs for households and put money back into the everyday economy. This can be done within the current fiscal rules, by ensuring those who benefit from the crisis contribute more so that everyone can thrive.

    Our Employment Rights Act was just the first step in our plan to Make Work Pay. Now is the time to take the next steps, starting with a Fair Pay Agreement in social care – but not ending there. A rising minimum wage must go alongside our programme to get young people into work.

    The investment we secured in social and affordable housing should now unleash a building boom that benefits British business and workers. We must double down on renters’ reform and show leaseholders our action on tackling ground rents and charges was just a first step to ending freehold for good.

    Our devolution revolution has begun, but is nowhere near done.

    Giving mayors powers to transform planning and licensing can boost local business and good growth, in the interests of local people. They must go alongside economic powers and public services.

    Boosting community ownership and stopping the sell-off of local assets from pubs to playgrounds will put power back in local hands, helping restore the pride they feel in the places they live.

    We must go further on planning reforms, to build the schools, hospitals, roads and infrastructure the country needs to grow.

    We should be unafraid to promote new forms of public, community and cooperative ownership across the board. Buses and trains being brought back into public hands can now operate for the public good, at prices passengers can afford.

    Thames Water is an iconic failure of privatisation, which resonates for the same reasons. People are rightly sick of bonuses for bosses who deliver nothing but higher bills. We must face down demands that the public pay the price of private failure.

    We must create good jobs that pay decent wages by ensuring defence investment includes a secure manufacturing base. Use our house building programme to boost construction, invest in the green economy, backing SMEs by reforming business rates and increasing support to revive our high streets and local economies, raise the minimum wage and get young people into work.

    And then there is politics itself, putting power back into people’s hands so that they are shaping the decisions that impact them. We must tackle the inflow of dodgy money in our politics – something that Nigel Farage, who took 5 million pounds in a secret personal gift from an offshore crypto baron, will never do. We must make politics work for ordinary people.

    We can only prove we mean it by putting the common interest ahead of factionalism.

    This is bigger than personalities, but it is time to acknowledge that blocking Andy Burnham was a mistake. We must show we understand the scale of change the moment calls for – that means bringing our best players into Parliament – and embracing the type of agenda that has been successful at a local level, rather than reaching back to an agenda and politics that has failed people.

    These are the fights we need to have, and the change in direction we need to see. Policy tweaks will not fix the fundamental challenges facing our country. This government needs, at pace, to put measures in place that make people’s lives tangibly better, while fixing the foundations of a system rigged against them.

    The Prime Minister must now meet the moment and set out the change our country needs.

    Change our economic agenda to prioritise making people better off, change how we run our party so that all voices are listened to, and change how we do politics.

    Labour exists to make working people better off. That is not happening fast enough, and it needs to change — now.

  • Alex Davies-Jones – 2026 Speech at the United for Justice Conference in Kyiv

    Alex Davies-Jones – 2026 Speech at the United for Justice Conference in Kyiv

    The speech made by Alex Davies-Jones, the Minister for Victims and Violence Against Women and Girls, in Kyiv on 7 May 2026.

    Friends…

    I am so honoured to be here with you all today…

    On behalf of the British Government, and the British public –

    Which stands, now, and always…

    With the people of Ukraine.

    We are four years into this brutal war.

    Four long years of unspeakable atrocities, and hardship.

    Four years in which Ukraine’s children have grown up subjected to terror from the skies…

    And the constant sound of sirens.

    For some of them, it is all they have ever known. 

    Four years of families being torn apart, and homes reduced to rubble.

    Lives shattered in ways that that most people cannot – and will never have to – comprehend.

    And yet, despite everything – Ukraine endures.

    Despite the bombs, you stand.

    Despite the brutality, you resist.

    Despite the pain, you continue to fight.

    And all of us here stand with you.

    Because the Ukrainian spirit – your courage, your resilience…

    Your belief in a better future – has not been broken.

    It is that hope we all share:

    That together, we can secure a lasting peace…

    And rebuild this remarkable country, even stronger than before.

    And through the 100 Year Partnership between our two countries, the UK is clear:

    We will stand with Ukraine not just in this moment of war…

    But in the long work of recovery, and rebuilding for generations to come.

    But we cannot speak of peace…

    We cannot speak of rebuilding…

    Without speaking of justice.

    There can be no lasting peace without accountability.

    And the UK is unwavering in its commitment to that accountability.

    We are supporting Ukraine politically, financially, and practically –

    Including £16.5 million for domestic war crimes investigations…

    Ensuring Ukraine has the skills and expertise it needs to drive these forward…

    With ongoing support for the International Criminal Court…

    And we continue to back efforts to establish a Special Tribunal for the crime of aggression…

    So those responsible for Russia’s war are held to account.

    And justice for victims remains at the heart of this.

    Justice for the people of Bucha, and Irpin…

    For all Ukrainians whose lives, rights, and dignity have been violated.

    And for the children.

    Ripped from their homes and the people they love…

    As their families weep for their return.

    More than 20,000 of them…

    Forcibly deported, and denied the chance to come home…

    Many subjected to indoctrination camps…

    Which seek to erase their very identity as Ukrainians…

    To wipe out their proud culture…

    And destroy Ukraine’s future…

    Something the UN Independent inquiry has described as a crime against humanity.

    The international community must not turn a blind eye…

    And we will not look away.

    We will keep calling Russia out for these crimes.

    We demand the return of every child…

    And will press for it in every forum we have.  

    And we are backing words with action…

    Supporting Ukrainian-led efforts to verify cases…

    Trace children’s whereabouts…

    And reunite families.

    And we must also pursue justice for the violence that is not so readily seen.

    The violence hidden through shame, or stigma…

    The rapes, and sexual violence…

    Used brutally, and systematically as a weapon of war.

    Against women.

    Against men.

    Against children.

    These crimes are devastating…

    And they are, so often, underreported…

    Because of fear…

    Or the sheer difficulty of investigation in occupied areas.

    But they must be confronted.

    And the UK is helping Ukraine to protect women and girls from sexual violence, and other gender-based crime…

    Ensuring that specialist services are there for survivors…

    So they can begin to recover and rebuild their lives.

    At the same time, we are supporting Ukrainian investigators and prosecutors to pursue survivor-centred justice…

    Equipping them with the skills and expertise they need.

    And we are absolutely clear:

    Ukraine’s recovery can only happen if women are able to play their part.

    That is why we champion the full, equal, meaningful and safe participation of women in decision-making…

    Which will be critical not only to Ukraine’s reconstruction…

    But to securing a just, prosperous and lasting peace. 

    Yet even in the darkest moments of war, Ukraine has been a leader…

    Not least in tech, and innovation.

    You have revolutionised the fight against Russian drones…

    A threat causing such devastation to your cities, and infrastructure.

    In the UK, that same technology is the scourge of our prisons –

    Flying in drugs and weapons, and fuelling addiction, violence and organised crime.

    We are incredibly grateful to Ukraine for sharing its hard-won experience here…

    In January, we announced funding to accelerate anti-drone research…

    And we are now launching a new open competition…

    Innovate UK are providing £5 million for UK research organisations to build on that momentum…

    I hope Ukrainian researchers will consider partnering with them…

    So that new relationships will emerge, which can turbocharge this technology.

    And as the UK works with Ukraine through our Memorandum of Co-operation, signed last year…

    To rebuild its justice system, and strengthen the rule of law…

    This is real partnership:

    Not a one-way street…

    But learning from each other…

    To keep our people safe.

    As this war continues, our sense of solidarity only grows stronger.

    And our shared purpose is clear:

    A just and lasting peace for Ukraine…

    Because peace without justice is no peace at all.

    The UK will continue to stand with you.

    Together – we will have accountability,

    We will drive recovery…

    We will lay the foundations for freedom.

    And, just as the Ukrainian spirit is undimmed…

    Its courage, unflinching…

    Our shared hope for the future, is unbreakable.

    Thank you, and Slava Ukraini.

  • Keir Starmer – 2026 Statement to Mark 81 Years Since VE Day

    Keir Starmer – 2026 Statement to Mark 81 Years Since VE Day

    The statement made by Keir Starmer, the Prime Minister, on 7 May 2026.

    As we mark eighty-one years since VE Day, we give thanks to the men and women of our armed forces, who triumphed over tyranny to secure victory and safety for our country.

    The courage and selflessness displayed by our World War II veterans is interwoven into our national fabric. We will never forget the immense sacrifices that were made by so many and we will continue to protect the peace that they fought for. 

    Their bravery lives in the stories that have been passed down through generations, and in those who serve our armed forces tirelessly today to keep our nation secure.

    I thank them for their dedication and service.

  • Keir Starmer – 2026 Comments on Local Election Results

    Keir Starmer – 2026 Comments on Local Election Results

    The comments made by Keir Starmer, the Prime Minister, on 8 May 2026.

    The results are tough, they are very tough, and there’s no sugarcoating it.

    We have lost brilliant Labour representatives across the country, these are people who put so much into their communities, so much into our party.

    And that hurts, and it should hurt, and I take responsibility.

    When voters send a message like this we must reflect and we must respond.

    I think the vast majority of people do understand that we face huge challenges as a country.

    We’ve had a series of economic shocks in recent years and there’s a very difficult international situation at present, they know that.

    But they still want their lives to improve, they still want to see the change that we promised, they know the status quo is letting them down and they’re frustrated, they don’t feel the changes.

  • James Cleverly – 2026 Comments on Illegal Traveller Camp at Willows Green

    James Cleverly – 2026 Comments on Illegal Traveller Camp at Willows Green

    The comments made by James Cleverly, the Conservative MP for Braintree, on 3 May 2026.

    This weekend, construction began on an unauthorised traveller site in Willows Green in my constituency, timed to exploit the gap in enforcement over the bank holiday.

    There is already fencing and groundworks and work has gone on until late into the night.

    This is a deliberate tactic and it is happening across the country. The current system is not working.

    I have written to the Housing Secretary, demanding answers and calling on the Government to adopt the Conservative Party’s five-point plan to fix the enforcement framework once and for all.

    This has to stop.

    I have also written to Uttlesford District Council and Essex Police about this.

  • Yvette Cooper – 2026 Statement on the Hantavirus Outbreak

    Yvette Cooper – 2026 Statement on the Hantavirus Outbreak

    The statement made by Yvette Cooper, the Foreign Secretary, on 6 May 2026.

    The outbreak of Hantavirus is very serious and deeply stressful for those affected and their families. The UK response is being led by the UK Health Security Agency working with the WHO.

    The Foreign Office is working urgently to support the UKHSA’s work overseas and to make sure British nationals on the MV Hondius can all get safely home with proper protection for public health.

    Foreign Office consular staff are in direct contact with British nationals onboard the ship and stand ready to provide further assistance to any British national in need of support overseas 24/7 – our crisis response centre has been operating for the last few days to provide support. Ministers are in close touch with our Dutch and Spanish counterparts and we have been working with other countries to facilitate the medical evacuations, to support our Overseas Territories and to get British nationals home safely as quickly as possible.

  • Keir Starmer – 2026 Comments at No 10 Tackling Antisemitism Forum

    Keir Starmer – 2026 Comments at No 10 Tackling Antisemitism Forum

    The comments made by Keir Starmer, the Prime Minister, on 5 May 2026.

    Thank you all for being here. We have a lot of work to do so it’s very important we gather here to do that work.

    Thank you Louis. That was incredibly powerful, and honest, and courageous. I think it’s really important we heard you speak, in your words, saying how you feel, and what it feels like to be Jewish in Britain right now.

    And if recent events haven’t given us pause for thought, that really should.

    About the responsibility each one of us has to face this challenge head on. And about what’s at the stake in the conversations we have today.

    Last October, at Heaton Park, a deadly terrorist attack shocked the nation.

    Similarly, last week’s terrorist attack in Golders Green was utterly appalling. But they were not isolated incidents.

    It is part of a pattern of rising antisemitism that has left our Jewish communities feeling frightened, angry, and asking whether this country, their home, is safe for them.  

    These disgusting attacks are being made against British Jews. But, make no mistake, this crisis – it is a crisis for all of us. It is a test of our values. Values that aren’t guaranteed, they are earned. Every single day. Through our actions.

    So, it is not enough to simply say we stand with Jewish communities. Of course we do, but we have to show with action. And that responsibility lies with each and every one of us.

    Because it is our fight too. It is about the kind of country that we all want to be.

    And that’s what today is about. Because only by working together can we eradicate antisemitism from every corner of society.

    I have seen this poison up close. I have seen the damage it does when it takes hold. And I know what it demands to root it out – a coordinated approach, an unwavering resolve and zero tolerance for failure. And that is what we must do today. My government is using the full force of the state to that end. We have begun, as we must, with immediate protection.

    In recent months, as antisemitic incidents have risen, we have acted decisively to strengthen the safety of Jewish communities. And last week, we announced an additional £25 million in funding. 

    That money is being used to increase police patrols, enhance security at synagogues, schools and community centres, and place specialist and plain-clothes officers in communities to prevent serious harm before it occurs.

    That is the right thing to do. But what a sad thing to read out that list of acts to you – protecting synagogues, schools and community centres. I repeat those words.

    Because of course, we cannot accept a future where communities feel safer only behind higher walls. Security is essential – but it is not enough. We must also deal with the forces that drive this hatred in the first place.

    So, we are confronting them directly. One of the lines of inquiry is whether a foreign state has been behind some of these incidents. We are investigating of course all possibilities. And we are clear that these actions will have consequences if that proves to be the case.

    Our message to Iran, or to any other country that might seek to foment violence, hatred or division in society, is that it will not be tolerated. That is why we are fast tracking legislation to tackle these malign threats.

    And we are clear eyed about the fact that antisemitism does not have one source alone. Islamist, far-left and far-right extremism all target Jewish communities.

    That is why this Government has put in place the first coordinated national plan to strengthen cohesion and confront extremism in all of its forms.

    This is not about tinkering around the edges. Our plan is a complete step change in how we protect communities: moving beyond piecemeal responses to a sustained, nationwide effort – one that ensures that people across the United Kingdom can live freely and without fear.

    We are strengthening our ability to disrupt extremism – stopping those who spread hatred from entering the country and giving the Charity Commission stronger powers to act against organisations that enable it. 

    We are holding technology companies to account, requiring them to remove illegal extremist content or face serious penalties. And we have introduced stronger powers to deal with protests, ensuring intimidation is not tolerated on our streets.

    And when these vile acts are committed, we are bolstering the response of our justice system – working to speed up sentencing for offences so that consequences are swift and the deterrent is clear. 

    But it is also important to recognise that so often this hatred does not begin with violence – it begins with ideas, with misinformation, tropes and conspiracy theories, and with attitudes that, left unchecked, can take root and spread. So, in those spaces where the shoots of antisemitism begin to grow, we are stepping in.

    We have commissioned independent reviews into antisemitism in education and health services. Across the NHS, we are rolling out antisemitism training for staff.

    And in our schools, colleges and universities, we are investing £7 million to tackle antisemitism, while making sure Holocaust education is taught in all schools.

    And, today, we are going further. We already expect universities to set out clear disciplinary consequences for antisemitism, and to enforce them. And so we will hold them to account on that. 

    But today, I can announce that we will lift the bar higher: when abuses take place, we are calling on universities to demonstrate action. We will now expect them to publish the scale of the problem on their campuses, as well as the specific steps they have taken to clamp down on it. There will be zero tolerance for inaction.

    In our cultural venues and spaces we will also expect more. Where public funding is being used to promote or platform antisemitism, the Arts Council must act, using its powers to suspend, withdraw and claw back funding. 

    And, today, we are mandating an independent audit of how allegations are handled. This will be a hard-edged review of where systems are failing and where they need to be strengthened. We will not and cannot accept complacency, delays, or weak enforcement. And where complacency is found, it will be challenged and addressed swiftly.

    And we will also address a quieter but no less serious harm: the way rising security costs are forcing Jewish artists and organisations out of public life. That is exclusion – and it is unacceptable. 

    We will ensure that the Arts Council and Home Office funding can be used to cover protective security costs, so that participation is not determined by fear.

    There is, of course, more work to do – and we won’t stop playing our part. But this is not a task that government do alone.

    Every part of society has a responsibility to respond with determination and force. Because there are too many people who don’t see antisemitism for what it is: anti-Jewish hatred, racism, pure and simple.

    That is why, today, I am asking you – each and every one of you – to reflect. On what form antisemitism takes in the sectors that you lead. In how it may be allowed to fester and spread. And on the work that you are currently doing to stamp it out.

    And then, even more importantly, I am calling on you to act. With urgency. To look clearly at where you are succeeding – and just as clearly at where there is still work to be done. And to commit to the tangible action that Jewish people in this country need to feel safe again.

    Because stopping antisemitism is not someone else’s responsibility. It is all of ours. That is the test before us. And only by working together will we meet it.

    So, thank you for being here today – we have a lot of work to do – and we’re now going to move through to the Pillared Room to discuss that work further. So please come through and join us in the Pillared Room to continue the work that we have started today.