PM takes blame for welfare U-turn as he gives full backing to Chancellor
He said: 'Labour MPs are absolutely vested in this. It matters to them to get things like this right, and we didn't get that process right. We didn't engage in the way that we should have done.'
But he insisted his Government would 'come through it stronger' as he vowed to 'reflect' on what needed to be done 'to ensure we don't get into a situation like that again'.
Sir Keir also gave his full support to Chancellor Rachel Reeves after she was seen crying during Prime Minister's Questions on Wednesday.
Ms Reeves's visibly tearful appearance in the Commons came amid speculation that her job was at risk after the welfare U-turn put an almost £5 billion hole in her spending plans.
But the Prime Minister insisted her appearance had 'nothing to do with politics, nothing to do with what's happened this week' and was 'a personal matter'.
Asked if she would remain in her post, he said: 'She will be Chancellor for a very long time to come, because this project that we've been working on to change the Labour Party, to win the election, change the country, that is a project which the Chancellor and I've been working on together.'
On Thursday morning, Health Secretary Wes Streeting said Ms Reeves would 'bounce back' as he praised her 'leadership' on the economy.
He also dismissed a suggestion that Sir Keir himself could be at risk, telling Sky News: 'Keir Starmer has been consistently underestimated.
'I wonder when people will learn. They said he couldn't win the Labour leadership, but he did. They said he couldn't change the Labour Party, but he did. They said he couldn't take the Labour Party from its worst defeat since the 1930s to election victory last year, and he did.
'And now the cynics say he can't change the country, but he will.'
But Conservative shadow chancellor Sir Mel Stride said the scenes in the Commons over the past week had left bond markets 'twitchy' about the Government and 'their ability to actually grip things like spending going forward'.
Appearing on BBC Breakfast, Sir Mel appeared to distance himself from Robert Jenrick, who had earlier posted a video on social media describing Ms Reeves's career as 'dead'.
But he added that Mr Jenrick was making a 'valid' point that the Government had 'lost control of the economy', laying the blame with the Chancellor and Sir Keir and warning of tax rises to come.
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
Rhyl Journal
12 minutes ago
- Rhyl Journal
Ex-Labour MP says she will set up new party with Jeremy Corbyn
Zarah Sultana – who had the Labour whip suspended last year – said she was resigning from Sir Keir Starmer's party and would 'co-lead the founding of a new party' with the ex-Labour leader. In a statement posted on X, Ms Sultana, who represents Coventry South, said that the project would also involve 'other independent MPs, campaigners and activists across the country'. Today, after 14 years, I'm resigning from the Labour Party. Jeremy Corbyn and I will co-lead the founding of a new party, with other Independent MPs, campaigners and activists across the country. Join us. The time is now. Sign up here to stay updated: — Zarah Sultana MP (@zarahsultana) July 3, 2025 She said that 'Westminster is broken but the real crisis is deeper' and the 'two-party system offers nothing but managed decline and broken promises'. She added: 'A year ago I was suspended by the Labour Party for voting to abolish the two-child benefit cap and lift 400,000 children out of poverty. I'd do it again. I voted against scrapping winter fuel payments for pensioners. I'd do it again. Now, the Government wants to make disabled people suffer; they just can't decide how much.' She urged people to 'join us'. Ms Sultana was one of seven MPs who had the Labour whip suspended last summer when they supported an amendment to the King's Speech which related to the two-child benefit cap. Four of the seven had the whip restored earlier this year but Ms Sultana was not among them. Mr Corbyn led Labour from 2015 to April 2020, stepping down after the party's loss at the 2019 general election. He was suspended from Labour in 2020 after he refused to fully accept the Equality and Human Rights Commission's findings that the party broke equality law when he was in charge, and said antisemitism had been 'dramatically overstated for political reasons'. He was blocked from standing for Labour at last year's general election and expelled in the spring of 2024 after announcing he would stand as an independent candidate in his Islington North constituency, which he won with a majority of more than 7,000. Last year Mr Corbyn formed the Independent Alliance with other independent members of the Commons. Asked on ITV's Peston programme on Wednesday whether that group could turn into an official party, Mr Corbyn said that they have 'worked very hard and very well together' over the last year in Parliament. "That grouping [of Independents] will come together, there will be an alternative" Ex Labour Leader @jeremycorbyn says he is "here to serve the people" as he outlines plans for a new party #Peston — Peston (@itvpeston) July 2, 2025 He added: 'There is a thirst for an alternative view to be put.' 'That grouping will come together, there will be an alternative,' he later said. Responding to Ms Sultana's statement, a Labour spokesperson said: 'In just 12 months, this Labour government has boosted wages, delivered an extra four million NHS appointments, opened 750 free breakfast clubs, secured three trade deals and four interest rate cuts lowering mortgage payments for millions. 'Only Labour can deliver the change needed to renew Britain.'
Glasgow Times
26 minutes ago
- Glasgow Times
Ex-Labour MP says she will set up new party with Jeremy Corbyn
Zarah Sultana – who had the Labour whip suspended last year – said she was resigning from Sir Keir Starmer's party and would 'co-lead the founding of a new party' with the ex-Labour leader. In a statement posted on X, Ms Sultana, who represents Coventry South, said that the project would also involve 'other independent MPs, campaigners and activists across the country'. Today, after 14 years, I'm resigning from the Labour Party. Jeremy Corbyn and I will co-lead the founding of a new party, with other Independent MPs, campaigners and activists across the country. Join us. The time is now. Sign up here to stay updated: — Zarah Sultana MP (@zarahsultana) July 3, 2025 She said that 'Westminster is broken but the real crisis is deeper' and the 'two-party system offers nothing but managed decline and broken promises'. She added: 'A year ago I was suspended by the Labour Party for voting to abolish the two-child benefit cap and lift 400,000 children out of poverty. I'd do it again. I voted against scrapping winter fuel payments for pensioners. I'd do it again. Now, the Government wants to make disabled people suffer; they just can't decide how much.' She urged people to 'join us'. Ms Sultana was one of seven MPs who had the Labour whip suspended last summer when they supported an amendment to the King's Speech which related to the two-child benefit cap. Four of the seven had the whip restored earlier this year but Ms Sultana was not among them. Mr Corbyn led Labour from 2015 to April 2020, stepping down after the party's loss at the 2019 general election. He was suspended from Labour in 2020 after he refused to fully accept the Equality and Human Rights Commission's findings that the party broke equality law when he was in charge, and said antisemitism had been 'dramatically overstated for political reasons'. He was blocked from standing for Labour at last year's general election and expelled in the spring of 2024 after announcing he would stand as an independent candidate in his Islington North constituency, which he won with a majority of more than 7,000.
The National
32 minutes ago
- The National
Zarah Sultana quits Labour to set up new party with Jeremy Corbyn
Both have been vocal campaigners against the UK's involvement in Israel's bombardment of Gaza . Zarah Sultana – who had the Labour whip suspended last year after voting to remove the two-child cap – said she was resigning from Sir Keir Starmer 's party and would 'co-lead the founding of a new party' with the ex-Labour leader. A FORMER Labour MP has announced she has quit the party and said she will set up a new one with Jeremy Corbyn. In a statement posted on X, Sultana, who represents Coventry South, said that the project would also involve 'other independent MPs, campaigners and activists across the country'. She said that 'Westminster is broken but the real crisis is deeper' and the 'two-party system offers nothing but managed decline and broken promises'. She added: 'A year ago I was suspended by the Labour Party for voting to abolish the two-child benefit cap and lift 400,000 children out of poverty. I'd do it again. I voted against scrapping winter fuel payments for pensioners. I'd do it again. Now, the Government wants to make disabled people suffer; they just can't decide how much.' She urged people to 'join us'. Sultana was one of seven MPs who had the Labour whip suspended last summer when they supported an amendment to the King's Speech which related to the two-child benefit cap. Four of the seven had the whip restored earlier this year but Sultana was not among them. Corbyn led Labour from 2015 to April 2020, stepping down after the party's loss at the 2019 General Election. He was suspended from Labour in 2020 after he refused to fully accept the Equality and Human Rights Commission's findings that the party broke equality law when he was in charge, and said antisemitism had been 'dramatically overstated for political reasons'. He was blocked from standing for Labour at last year's General Election and expelled in the spring of 2024 after announcing he would stand as an independent candidate in his Islington North constituency, which he won with a majority of more than 7000.
