.jpg)
Keir Starmer praises Margaret Thatcher for
bringing ‘meaningful change’ to UK
Labour leader says former PM ‘set loose our natural
entrepreneurialism’ in appeal to Tory voters to back him
Hayden
Vernon
Sat 2 Dec
2023 23.10 GMT
Keir
Starmer has praised Margaret Thatcher for effecting “meaningful change” in
Britain in an article directly appealing to Conservative voters to switch to
Labour.
Writing in
the Sunday Telegraph, the Labour leader said Thatcher had “set loose our
natural entrepreneurialism” during her time as prime minister.
“Across
Britain, there are people who feel disillusioned, frustrated, angry, worried.
Many of them have always voted Conservative but feel that their party has left
them,” he said. “I understand that. I saw that with my own party and acted to
fix it. But I also understand that many will still be uncertain about Labour. I
ask them to take a look at us again.”
In the
article, Starmer pointed to Labour prime ministers of the past – Tony Blair and
Clement Attleee – as well as Thatcher, as examples of how politicians can
effect meaningful change.
Starmer
said it was “in this sense of public service” that he had overseen a dramatic
change in the Labour party – cutting its ties with former leader Jeremy Corbyn
and expelling him from the party.
“The course
of shock therapy we gave our party had one purpose: to ensure that we were once
again rooted in the priorities, the concerns and the dreams of ordinary British
people. To put country before party,” he said.
Starmer
claimed his party was “moving back towards voters” while “the Tory party has
been steadily drifting away”.
His praise
of Thatcher – a divisive figure in British politics – is likely to raise
eyebrows on the left of the Labour party.
Elsewhere
in the article, Starmer criticised the government’s handling of Brexit, arguing
it had wasted economic opportunities made possible by the split from the EU.
“They have
squandered economic opportunities and failed to realise the possibilities of
Brexit. They will bequeath public finances more akin to a minefield than a
solid foundation,” he wrote.
The Labour
leader touted the party’s “iron-clad fiscal rules” in an effort to portray
Labour as trustworthy on the economy.
“There will
be many on my own side who will feel frustrated by the difficult choices we
will have to make,” he added. “This is non-negotiable: every penny must be
accounted for. The public finances must be fixed so we can get Britain growing
and make people feel better off.”
On
migration, Starmer said: “This is a government that was elected on a promise
that immigration would ‘come down’ and the British people would ‘always be in
control’. For immigration to then triple is more than just yet another failure
– it is a betrayal of their promises.”
Sem comentários:
Enviar um comentário