SIR KEIR STARMER was accused today of insulting British workers as it emerged he will ask struggling families to endure even worse economic and social pressures in the months to come.
In his first major address since entering No 10, the Prime Minister is expected to signal he will ignore mounting pressure from his own party to tackle fuel and child poverty.
Downing Street has billed the speech tomorrow as “a direct message to the working people across Britain.”
In it, Sir Keir is expected to develop the line of attack that Chancellor Rachel Reeves began when she accused the Tories before the summer recess of leaving a £22 billion black hole in this year’s budget.
Sir Keir will claim government has to take “unpopular decisions” to rebuild the country from “rubble and ruin” left by the Tories, saying: “We have inherited not just an economic black hole but a societal black hole.
“And that is why we have to take action and do things differently.
“Part of that is being honest with people — about the choices we face. And how tough this will be.
“Frankly — things will get worse before we get better.”
A Momentum spokeswoman said: “There is nothing novel about what Keir Starmer is saying.
“It is an insult to the people who voted for the Labour government and the entire labour movement to maintain the myth that attacks on living standards are necessary to rebuild the country.
“In reality, the UK has a GDP of £2.3bn trillion and the Labour government has the means to generate the resources necessary to transform society in favour of the majority, as Starmer promised when he was running for the Labour leadership.”
TUC general secretary Paul Nowak said: “The Tories left the nation in a state of disarray. The Labour government must now revive UK industry, rebuild our public services and restore our lost living standards.
"Nobody expects this can be done with quick fixes, but Keir Starmer has set out on the right path. His government is settling industrial disputes, getting unions and business around the table to work on industrial strategy, and bringing forward an Employment Rights Bill to deliver the New Deal for Working People – all in its first 100 days.
"It's important to stay on this path, and to deliver on commitments to workers in full, because then there will be much better days ahead."
