The Prime Minister warned there would be ‘trade-offs’, including new pylons and people having to live near prisons, if the government is to succeed in rebuilding Britain.
Kier Starmer also promised to house all military veterans, care-leavers and victims of domestic violence.
He also said would set up a new ‘foundation apprenticeship’.
The Labour leader said a new ‘Hillsborough Law’ enforcing a duty of candour on public servants would be introduced to parliament before the next anniversary of the disaster in April.
In his first speech as Prime Minister Starmer said he would not be distracted by noisy criticism of his government .
“All those shouts and bellows, the bad faith advice from people who still hanker for the politics of noisy performance, the weak and cowardly politics of fantasists”.
He went onto criticise the “politics of easy answers” – or populism.
“People have heard it all before. And so people ask us now… ‘What will we get to show for it?’ And I understand that. After all, what they are used to is a lie.”
He also talked of the “defiance of ambition, the determination of service”.
His government is pursuing stability, moderation, common sense, keeping a cool head, staying the course, practical solutions.
“Not easy answers that may well move a crowd but do not move a nation forward”.
“You can call it populism – many people do. But I prefer to call it the politics of easy answers. A deliberate refusal to countenance tough decisions”.
The prime minister said his government would “turn up our collar and face the storm” as he promised to build “a Britain that belongs to you”.
And he told voters that there would need to be difficult trade-offs and said that it was not possible to have both “low taxes and good public services”, a dignsl that taxes would have to rise in the budget.
Starmer also said that he would ‘never accept’ the argument that millions of people concerned about immigration are the same as rioters who told people with different coloured skin to ‘go home’
Nut-shelling his speech he said that
“And the truth is that if we take tough long-term decisions now, if we stick to the driving purpose behind everything we do – higher economic growth so living standards rise in every community; our NHS facing the future – waiting lists at your hospital down; safer streets in your community; stronger borders; more opportunities for your children; clean British energy powering your home – then that light at the end of this tunnel, that Britain that belongs to you, we get there much more quickly.”
In one gaff during the speech he said
‘I call again for an immediate ceasefire in Gaza, and the return of the sausages – hostages.’
