Starmer rules out EU customs union after Labour rebellion over government’s Brexit stance – latest

Sir Keir Starmer said Conservative leader Kemi Badenoch “will probably be a guest star” on The Liz Truss Show next week, and they both talked about how “Liz Truss is 100% right”.

The Prime Minister answered Ms Badenoch’s question: “The Prime Minister promised to recruit 13,000 more police officers last year. How is it going?”

Sir Keir said: “We are increasing police numbers, another three thousand by the end of March.”

He added: “She’s obviously spent the morning rehearsing for The Liz Truss Show, she’ll probably be a guest star next week, they both talk about Liz Truss being 100% right.

“But Liz Truss said the Conservatives must take responsibility for their 14 years of failure. This was Liz Truss, their former leader, so maybe she will take notice and stand up and apologize.”

In a heated debate during PMQs, the prime minister was mocked for spending “too much time” outside the country in the wake of tax rises.

Conservative MP Dr. Luke Evans said: “I feel sorry for the Prime Minister. It must be tough wherever he goes in the UK because of his policies, a pub, higher taxes, a restaurant, higher taxes, a cafe, higher taxes, a farm, higher taxes, a care home, higher taxes, a care home, higher taxes.”

“So Mr. President, is this why the prime minister has chosen to spend so much time outside this country?”

Sir Keir dismissed the allegations as “nonsense”.

Our political editor David Maddox writes…

Karl Turner, Labor MP for Kingston upon Hull East, fired another shot at the prime minister’s bow.

He asked that the plan to get rid of the right to a jury trial for some crimes was only about the “backlog” in the court system, “so why isn’t there a termination clause?”

Sir Keir Starmer relied on the words of former judge Brian Leveson, whose advice was behind the plan to limit jury trials.

But the question represents a sense of unease on the issue for many Labor MPs and another challenge to the Prime Minister’s authority.

As such problems pile up on leadership judgment, his position becomes more precarious by the day.

The prime minister has ruled out rejoining the UK-EU Customs Union after a vote on Tuesday night saw more than a dozen Labor MPs back a Liberal Democrat bill supporting the idea.

The Liberal Democrat leader said: “Is the Prime Minister afraid that if he continues to oppose the customs union in 12 months he won’t be able to hang in there?”

Sir Keir said: “We have had a closer relationship with the EU throughout the reset at the beginning of this year.

“Yes, I want a closer relationship than we have right now. We are moving towards that.

“We have manifesto commitments on issues such as the single market, customs union and freedom of movement, but I would like to kindly point out that we have now made important trade agreements with other countries, including the US and India.”

Kemi Badenoch hit out more broadly at the Starmer government, claiming “things are getting worse” under Labor.

Badenoch adds that his cabinet should be doing their own thing, but instead they are all “competing for the caretaker job”.

The Conservative Party leader later called on the prime minister to “accept that Labor is useless”.

In response, Starmer says Badenoch is “living proof that you can say whatever you want when no one is listening to anything you have to say”.

“No wonder so many people are leaving their party, they know there is no reason for them to stay,” he adds.

The Prime Minister has vowed to defend Europe but has declined to comment on Donald Trump’s recent comments describing European leaders as weak.

In an interview with Politico, the US president went after London mayor Sadiq Khan, calling him a “terrible, cruel, disgusting mayor” and claiming that European nations had failed to contain immigration and the war in Ukraine.

Asked about those comments by Liberal Democrat Ed Davey, Sir Keir said: “On Europe and President Trump’s comments, I see a strong Europe united behind Ukraine and united behind our long-standing values ​​of freedom and democracy. And I will always stand behind those values ​​and freedoms.”

However, it was noted that he did not include any expressions such as “opposing President Trump”.

Our political editor David Maddox writes…

This was the brutal dismantling of Keir Starmer’s government by Kemi Badenoch at PMQs.

Labor gradually failed to deliver on important promises such as fewer teachers, fewer police and more days lost to doctor strikes.

“Things are getting worse under Labor,” he said, as he derided Starmer as a “caretaker prime minister” whose cabinet ministers were trying to take his job.

It was his most confident performance yet and left Sir Keir looking visibly shaken as he struggled to talk about the Reformation.

Just a month ago Ms Badenoch was the least job secure of the party leaders but now she seems confident that Sir Keir is desperately keeping his job.

Prime Minister Sir Keir Starmer said too many women were being “failed” by maternity services.

Speaking at Prime Minister’s Questions, she told the House of Commons: “I am particularly interested in maternity services and that is why we have launched a review to ensure that every mother has her voice heard, receives the care she needs at a special time and that so many are currently failing.

“We fund healthy baby services in 75 of the most deprived areas and have taken action to help parents save up to £500 a year on baby food.

“Rescuing children from poverty is a moral mission of this Government and we intend to do it.

“The opposition leader (Kemi Badenoch) thinks maternity pay is excessive.”

Taking aim at his own leadership, Kemi Badenoch claimed Sir Keir Starmer had “lost control of his party”, saying: “They’re all so busy trying to replace him that they’ve taken their eye off the ball.”

In a rapid-fire series of questions, he questions Sir Keir about what Ms Badenoch says are rising energy bills, as well as how many teachers have been hired.

Taking aim at Bridget Phillipson, he said: “Teacher numbers have fallen by 400 since he took office, it’s on the DFS website – doesn’t he check?

“The Prime Minister doesn’t know what’s going on in the energy department, he doesn’t know what’s going on in education; does he know what’s going on in his home office?”

This leads to further debate over the number of police officers being recruited and Wes Streeting’s bid to end doctors’ strikes.

Our political editor David Maddox writes…

The Tory leader started, in cricket parlance, with a bouncer against Keir Starmer.

“How can his own MPs call him the caretaker prime minister?” he said.

Sir Keir appeared stunned by the brutal short question, but it reflected a newfound confidence for Kemi Badenoch, who until a few weeks ago was the subject of rumors of a leadership challenge.

He now feels comfortable enough to go after Ed Miliband with jokes about wanting to “recycle” his leadership because of the fragility of the prime minister’s position.

Sir Keir began talking about how former Tory MPs would lead Reformation in the UK.