(left to right) Rachel Reeves, Shadow Chancellor, Sir Keir Starmer and Angela Rayner, Deputy Leader of the Labor Party, at the launch of the Labor& Bus campaign No. 39 at Uxbridge College. Photo: Lucy North, PA /bc72b371-0215-4d99-b27b-4223678de837.html?direct=true&id=bc72b371-0215-4d99-b27b-4223678de837&template=articleRendererHTML' class='tmg-particle Sticky-nav-bc72b371-0215- 4d99-b27b-4223678de837' title='General Election' data-business-type='editorial' loading='eager' scroll='no'frameborder='0'allow='web-share' style='width: 100%; min-width: 100%; border: none; position: relative; display: block; padding: 0px; margin: 0px;'>
Sir Keir Starmer insisted he had answered questions about his handling of Diane Abbott's candidacy as he faced questions about his credentials.
Mr Starmer said Ms Abbott was “free” to fight for re-election. to her seat of Hackney North and Stoke Newington in London on Friday, days after reports she would be banned from standing for the party.
The Labor leader was asked on Saturday whether he was forced to act because he had misjudged the level of support for Ms Abbott within the party, including from his deputy Angela Rayner, who appeared with him in Uxbridge for the launch of her battle bus.
“Look, I was doing this yesterday,” Sir Keir said, trying to steer the debate towards the party's plans for jobs and the economy.
Pressed that his message was aimed at black voters who may have felt let down by his handling of Ms Abbott's candidacy, Sir Keir stepped aside, saying: “My message to voters, because I think it's very, very important if you want to change the government with you.” “.
Angela Rayner has rejected claims that she pushed Sir Keir Starmer to Mr. Ms Abbott's run as a Labor Party candidate was “rubbish”.< /p>
Rishi Sunak accused Sir Keir of giving way to Ms Rayner after she first backed Ms Abbott's candidacy.
But Ms Rayner told the Mirror on Saturday: “This is nonsense.
“We both appreciate the contribution that Diana made to the work of Parliament. So I don't see any difference. And I'm certainly not putting any pressure on Keir.
“I respect Keir as the leader of the Labor Party and he's done a fantastic job. When Keir became leader in 2019, we suffered our worst defeat and he took over from the Labor Party.
“We are now in a position where the party is focused on representing the country. Keir is very clear about this and he has my full support on this.”
Battle Bus
Sir Keir previously made speeches alongside Ms Rayner and Rachel Reeves, the shadow chancellor, as the deputy leader prepared to host participation in elections. her battle bus is on the road.
Uxbridge is one of the key marginal seats Labor is hoping to win at the election, less than a year after it lost a by-election dubbed “Uloss” due to the scale of the opposition regarding Sadiq Khan's expansion of the ultra-low emission zone. .
Praising Danny Beales, the party's candidate who unsuccessfully fought a by-election last year, Ms Reeves said if Labor wins Uxbridge “then we'll have a Labor government.”
A brand new battle bus , meeting Ulez requirements, will take Ms Rayner across the country some 5,000 miles, starting from Harlow and Thurrock in Essex.
Sir Keir was also asked about comments from pop group D:Ream that they would reject any request to use their song Things Can Only Get Better, which launched the Labor Party's comeback in 1997.
“Well, we are now not 1997, it's 2024,” Sir Keir said. “We will have a song for this moment, if we are privileged enough to come to the service.”
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