Sir Keir Starmer is planning surprise general election raids into Tory stronghold constituencies in a bid to pull off shock wins.
The Labour leader headed to Essex on Thursday to unveil “Six First Step” pledges for the upcoming general election, expected in the autumn.
But a Labour Party spokesman declined to name which seats the party will be targeting in Essex, in London’s wider commuter belt or beyond.
“I don’t want to start giving away all the trade secrets on which seats we are targeting,” he told The Standard.
“We did quite well at the local elections in using our resources well in places where the Tories did not expect us to use resources.
“We hope to take some of that learning into the general election campaign.”
Labour won 186 more councillors at the May 2 local elections, with the Tories losing 474, as the Liberal Democrats gained 104, the Greens 74 and Independents 93.
But possibly the most surprising win for Sir Keir’s party was David Skaith being elected as the new regional mayor for York and North Yorkshire, an area which covers Rishi Sunak’s Richmond constituency.
Labour also won the West Midlands mayoralty in a nail-biting finish which saw Richard Parker beat the Tory incumbent Andy Street by 1,508 votes.
The six flagship pledges in Labour’s “retail offer” to voters for the general election are to:
- Deliver economic stability
- Cut NHS waiting times
- Launch a new Border Security Command
- Set up Great British Energy
- Crack down on antisocial behaviour
- Recruit 6,500 new teachers
They did not include any specific measure on workers’ rights or tackling climate change, decisions which were seen as showing Labour targeting Tory 2019 voters who could switch party.
Ahead of the launch, Sir Keir said: “These first steps make real our claim that a changed Labour Party is back in service of working people. They show our priorities, what we care about and what the British public cares about. Country first, party second.
“These first steps will make a real difference to people’s lives.
“If you’re waiting in pain for NHS treatment, if your child is at school and you want higher standards, if your local area is plagued by anti-social behaviour, if you want cheaper energy bills for good, these first steps show what a Labour government will do to help you.”
These are @Keir_Starmer’s first steps for change 👇
— The Labour Party (@UKLabour) May 16, 2024
Education Secretary Gillian Keegan said the six pledges were “Tory-lite” as the Conservatives claimed Labour had “no coherent plan” and described Thursday’s announcement as Sir Keir’s “sixteenth relaunch” that “won’t amount to a hill of beans”.
The proposals will be provided to voters in physical form, but Labour steered away from directly comparing this to the pledge card given out by Sir Tony Blair ahead of the 1997 general election.
Sir Keir appears prominently, with his sleeves rolled up, on billboard and newspaper ads being taken out in constituencies that Labour is targeting.
His image suggests that Labour is planning the election campaign as very much a showdown between him and Rishi Sunak.
The Labour spokesman insisted that the six steps were “not the sum total” of the party’s election offer when asked whether its other promises, including a new package of workers’ rights, would be side-lined.
“I do want to stress to you the other policy commitments that we have made stand,” he said.
“I would remind you for example... the national minimum wage was not on the pledge card in 1997, but it was one of the most important achievements of the Labour government, and in a similar vein, our manifesto will be our full offering.”
The first steps are “very clear and simple” he insisted, and would not cause confusion among voters with the previously announced longer term five national missions.
Distinct Scottish and Welsh launches are expected in coming weeks with offers aimed at voters in the devolved nations.
